When does a nurse recognize it's time to be put out to pasture.

[imintrouble]

When can I tell I'm too old to do my job? Am I forgetting to write orders, sign off the MAR, or losing my "brains", because my memory is failing? Or is it because there simply is too much to do? I'm expected to remember an enormous amt of information, and I'm finding myself dropping the ball at least once a shift. Am I too hard on myself? I still remember more than the newer nurses do, simply because some things have just become automatic. We are caring for more pts with less staff. EMR takes longer I don't care what anybody says. Computers go down, they slow down, and the program is not efficient.

I'm just finding myself coming home more and more often stewing about what didn't get done correctly. Wondering if the mistakes I KNOW about are only the tip of the iceberg.

Do I need to find a slower paced job? Or just cut myself some slack.

[Farawyn]

I missed a lot of comments. I wrote this in 2012. How the years pass. Yes, as Farawyn pointed out, I'm still here, still a nurse, still at the same facility. I think I posted at a particularly low point, EMR implementation. I don't handle multiple crises well, and I considered learning that new trick really stressful.

And now? How you doin'?

[imintrouble, BSN, RN]

It's so kind of you to ask.

After mastering :) the whole computer thing, the stupid mistakes stopped. My brain doesn't handle overload well. It never has. Once it wasn't overloaded, things smoothed out. I don't need to feel less than my younger counterparts physically or mentally. I was feeling threatened back then, because the medical field took a turn towards the technical that younger people are more equipped to handle. I felt left behind and inadequate.

I'm looking forward to retirement even though it's several years away. Not because I can't handle my job, but because I just don't want to do it anymore.

[SororAKS, ADN, RN]

I think that given adequate training and a supportive atmosphere, anyone can learn computers. Just because we are "older" doesn't mean we aren't capable of learning. We just got a later start.

We all have something to contribute to nursing regardless of age.