i did so many errors today.*needing comfort guys

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i'm a new grad and i've been orienting for about 8 weeks now.I should hve been starting my night orientation 2 weeks ago but i guess i'm not doing well so my preceptor suggested to my manager that it would be best to keep me orienting on day shift bef i finally start nights. Today i guess i made the biggest error ever. I forgot 2 vials of diluded for the PCA in my pts room!Good thing the pt was honest and returned it to me. My preceptor saw this and she reported this to my manager.My manager then called me and told me that such an act is a valid ground for termination, but since i'm still orienting she will let it pass. Earlier that day i forgot 1 med tablet in my pts room.i was suppose to give it but then she was sleeping so i left it in the table so i can give it to her later ( bad move).And to top all that the pts iv line has air in it so i disconected it and tried flushing the bubbles out from tubbing but i forgot to close the antibiotic line so i almost emptied all of it! and it was only a 50 cc rocephin.:crying2: There's just too many things goin on that i forget things. And my preceptor is the kind that well not let anything go.She reported me to my manager about the diluded earlier that day i don't know what she's gonna do about those other errors i made later that day. And to think she was in the room while i was doing this.I wonder why she did not say anything?I've had other preceptors before her but she seems to be the only one making such a big fuss out of this.I mean don't get me wrong i learn from her but she makes me feel so inadequate.I mean i have seen a lot of nurses who forgot to open antibiotic lines.*sigh*i guess i'll just expect for the worse.:crying2:

Specializes in Day Surgery/Infusion/ED.
i'm a new grad and i've been orienting for about 8 weeks now.I should hve been starting my night orientation 2 weeks ago but i guess i'm not doing well so my preceptor suggested to my manager that it would be best to keep me orienting on day shift bef i finally start nights. Today i guess i made the biggest error ever. I forgot 2 vials of diluded for the PCA in my pts room!Good thing the pt was honest and returned it to me. My preceptor saw this and she reported this to my manager.My manager then called me and told me that such an act is a valid ground for termination, but since i'm still orienting she will let it pass. Earlier that day i forgot 1 med tablet in my pts room.i was suppose to give it but then she was sleeping so i left it in the table so i can give it to her later ( bad move).And to top all that the pts iv line has air in it so i disconected it and tried flushing the bubbles out from tubbing but i forgot to close the antibiotic line so i almost emptied all of it! and it was only a 50 cc rocephin.:crying2: There's just too many things goin on that i forget things. And my preceptor is the kind that well not let anything go.She reported me to my manager about the diluded earlier that day i don't know what she's gonna do about those other errors i made later that day. And to think she was in the room while i was doing this.I wonder why she did not say anything?I've had other preceptors before her but she seems to be the only one making such a big fuss out of this.I mean don't get me wrong i learn from her but she makes me feel so inadequate.I mean i have seen a lot of nurses who forgot to open antibiotic lines.*sigh*i guess i'll just expect for the worse.:crying2:

I don't want to sound harsh, but your preceptor is exactly right to not let these types of errors go. Each was serious and could have harmed the pt. It would be completely unethical for her to overlook this.

Instead of focusing on her, you should be focusing on why you are making mistakes like these. I repeat, these were grave errors. You are lucky you weren't terminated; most places would have let you go with this track record. The facility where you are working has given you many chances to improve. Please have a sit down with your manager/nurse educator and talk about what you can do to improve.

And stop looking to blame others or minimize your mistakes. It's unprofessional, and it says that you are not mature enough to handle well-deserved criticism.

This is not a case of "young eating."

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Thanks for the correction.It's well appreciated.Actually i don't really use ' dilaudid' very often i just usually use hydromorphone coz that's what comes up in the pyxis:nuke: .

I took this to mean the words. I thought she was saying that she doesn't use the word dilaudid, she uses the word hydromorphone, because that is what it is called in the pyxis and that is why she spelled dilaudid wrong.

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I took this to mean the words. I thought she was saying that she doesn't use the word dilaudid, she uses the word hydromorphone, because that is what it is called in the pyxis and that is why she spelled dilaudid wrong.

I took it the same way.

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Specializes in NICU, PICU, PCVICU and peds oncology.

Me three!

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Me four :chuckle

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TraumasRus, I think she meant that she is used to calling Dilaudid by it's generic name. That's how I read it. She wrote that she pulls it up in the Pyxis by hydromorphone, therefore doesn't use the trade name, hence her spelling error.

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Specializes in Newborn ICU, Trauma ICU, Burn ICU, Peds.
...Actually i don't really use ' dilaudid' very often i just usually use hydromorphone coz that's what comes up in the pyxis:nuke: this was the first time i handled a pt with a dilaudid PCA...

Sorry folks, I don't agree, read the line after "pyxis"

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Specializes in Newborn ICU, Trauma ICU, Burn ICU, Peds.

But in any case, every mistake we make is a good learning opportunity. I'm sure her manager is correct, she will be very careful in the future in giving her meds. I know making a mistake in my past (as I shared) made me even more diligent.

I think she just needs a bit more time, a preceptor better suited to her learning needs, and some time to get more comfortable and learn her unit's frequently used meds.

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So? She hadn't done a dilaudid PCA before, so what? She's probably given it IV. I've never done a dilaudid PCA yet because we haven't switched to that yet, but I give it IV all the time.

Anyone can make an absent minded mistake like this once. She's new and has a nitpicky preceptor breathing down her neck. I'll bet she never does it again!

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She had a hard day, it's extremely stressful being new, and many people perform poorly while being watched. I always did much better once I was on my own.

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Hi Chick pea,

I'm sorry you had such a bad time. There's comfort in knowing that all of us nurses are not half bad. We don't all eat you guys and then spit you out. It will get better as you learn the ropes and become more confident about yourself and your capabilities. Don't let this "nasty" nurse ruin it for you. Ask as many questions as you can and when you mess up, report yourself to the manager before anyone else can, in the guise of asking for help/guidance, and understanding. Your new at this, cut yourself some slack your going to mess up, SOOO what.........even seasoned nurses like myself have had not so good days. I remember years ago when I first became a nurse, I was always so scared about forgeting things and as a practice (even now, though now I am a nurse practitioner) I still make a check list of all of the things I need to do for a patient. For example: I'm caring for Joe Smoe who is fresh post-op abd surgery....my check list would go something like this.....BP..P..R..T lung sounds, check for edema, check for bleeding at the site, monitor the wound, etc-Q4hours (rationale is that since the patient is fresh, if he develops a fever or the vs are grossly different than they were 4 hours ago that is indicative of infection or internal bleeding, and even acute pain and I want to be on top of that)...next is urine output. On my paper, I write UO and put a line next to it then yellow it so I can know that it needs to be done (indication is less than 30cc or no uo for a shift is indicative of fluid retention, amongst other acute issues being fresh post-op....next, I want to monitor pain and to do this I write down the type and amount and frequency of the pain med I am expected to administer and I ask the patient about pain at the times I wrote on my paper and again I yellow this out to distinguish what I still need to do ( I write my report from the off-going shift in black and the things I need to do in red, then yellow the blank area next to it, the I write what I actually did in blue or green so that I know it's done)....anyway I hope you get the point. Assess by patient true, but there are things your going to do for each patient that are constant (VS, lung sounds, etc...pain management, edema check, UO) then things that are specific to the patient based on your assessment, patient needs, and pateint diagnosis. If you find that you are having issues remembering to not leave meds at the bedside then put that on your list and put a little box next to it, yellow it out and when you give the med and have thrown everything in the trash, then put a red check mark next to it to indicate that it was done. I hope this helps...

APRN:nuke:

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Specializes in ER.

I't a huge no-no to leave any medication at all at the bedside, so keep your hands and eyes on them at all times until they go into the patient.

Your preceptor may have been particualrly upset about the dilaudid because it is such a potent narcotic. If it had been lost and you didn't remember you set it at the bedside it would have been her butt as well as your own. There would be suspicions about diversion, and possibly police involvement. If I was her I would make sure someone knew about the error in case it happened again, so I would not be the prime suspect.

The errors you made don't make you a bad nurse, but your coworkers don't know you that well yet, and they may be more cautious. Just take it in stride, and you will prove yourself in time.

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