I am afriad to work in a hospital

midnightdana · Sep 23, 2004

I am still fairly new to nursing and my first job was horrible. I was not helped while on the floor, and was gossiped about. I was afriad to try things, cause noone was there to assist me. The nurse supervisor and staff were all friends. Nothing I said was taken seriously. I quit after five months and have been afraid of the hospitals ever since. I do hospice and home health. I won't work agency cause I dont have enough experence, I want to learn again but Im scared. I went through hell in nursing school and now this.
Please Help!
Shalom

it is not always like that!!!!!my last job was but that was one in 20 years

allnurses Guide · Sep 23, 2004

What area of the country are you in? From some of the postings on the boards, it seems some spots aren't worth staying in.

Here's a thought. Try volunteering in some of your local hospitals, they always need pink ladies. That way you can see some of the interactions, get to know people, and get a general feel for a place before applying. Looks good on your resume, and you don't have a history of leaving nursing jobs frequently.

I personally would look for a union hospital, where the union has been in place for awhile. Like mine just fine

chronicTX · Sep 23, 2004

It's a good thing that you joined allnurses. This is your breathing room now! (so I may say!) With regards to your problem, please don't lose hope. Like they said it's not all bad. Remember, you have the same education and training like the rest of us. True, theyr'e all friends because they have been there together longer. Newcomers almost always feel an outcast. Sure, someone will have to agree with me... Struggling to blend in with the group and adjusting to a new line of duty are all stressful alright! But for a certain time until you get along with both. Don't fret! you'll get by! Goodluck!

Karen_tn_37211 · Sep 23, 2004

That sounds just like my last job. I left after 7 months. I'm now at a facility that is entirely different. The people are nice and very helpful. Maybe if enough people leave then the facility will get the hint! Life is too short.

NsgTiger · Sep 23, 2004

Try finding a hospital that offers an internship. That way you start in a smaller group of new people and you are assisted in learning/relearning nursing skills.

sharann, BSN, RN · Sep 24, 2004

Some workplaces are toxic while others are nurturing. It's hard sometimes to know until you get there. My first job was on a clicky and nasty unit. My job now (for the last 3 years) is wonderful! Good luck Shalom.

zacarias, ASN, RN · Sep 24, 2004

I'm sorry that you had problems in your last hospital job. I'm still recovering my last hospital job.

It was a great job, I had been there a while and knew quite a lot of people. One day the charge, who was younger than me, helped me with a patient having low Sats. Later she yelled at me for an hour saying how she thought I didn't handle the situation right and accused me of lying to the doctors. This was a person I previously I had liked. While there are two sides to every stories, I know I did not lie to the docs and because I don't freak out when a patient goes south, does not mean I'm a bad nurse; A calm demeanor would actually seem to be better than freaking out.

Things went downhill from there. I did talk to our nurse manager. He was awesome, he listened and didn't judge but understood how I could be so upset. Anyway, things never improved for me. I could never trust another charge nurse again even though there were good ones. I never knew when someone would freak out and "stab you in the back."

Most people say I can't hurt a fly so when I am acosted in such a manner, you better believe it disheartens me because I can't fathom why they would do that.

I am starting a new hospital job in Oct and I am excited. I need to develop a thicker skin possibly but I am going into this gig with a positive attitude. If I can go back to hospital nursing, you can too. It sounds like you are sensitive. Being sensitive can be a great thing. While you may get hurt easier, you also have a manner conducive to building constructive patient relationships where they will open up to you and you, being the nurse, will have the capacity to make them feel like a person who feels, not just a patient with a disease.