I don't know if I can do this...

[lily8424]

I've been a nurse for around 3 months on a busy medical surgical unit and find myself struggling each day. Last shift was particularly bad. I had a very agitated patient who ended up being placed in restraints despite being medicated around the clock. I had a very difficult time managing my other patients while doing the required frequent assessments on my restrained patient. I missed another patient's antibiotic and found out later that morning when passing meds. Also, whenever we remove a narcotic, the pyxis requires us to count the meds. I miscounted ativan vials when removing one which caused my charge nurse to become rightfully upset with me. I cried in front of her and another nurse tonight which I am still pretty embarrassed about. I left 2 hours after my shift ended in order to catch up on all my documentation. I am not sure if nursing is for me. I love my patients but I don't feel that multi-tasking is my strong suit. 

[TheMoonisMyLantern, ADN, LPN, RN]

You gotta give yourself time. You're going to feel clueless for about 6months then you'll finally get your groove at around a year. It sounds like you were managing your assignment the best that you could. You know what, even once I became experienced on a really bad night I missed an antibiotic by a couple hours, it happens and when it does you fix the problem and move on. Managing combative and agitated patients does get easier the more you do it. You'll learn what meds work well in most patients and you'll learn when to notify the physician to adjust those medications.

Word of advice, whenever you are pulling a narcotic from the pyxis, no matter what is running through your mind, take a moment to quiet yourself so that you concentrate, count, remove what's needed, and put the right number in the pyxis. But guess what mistakes with the narc count happen, even when people are trying to be careful.

You sound like you are keeping your head above water, so keep on trucking. The more time behind you the better you're going to feel

[Nunya, BSN]

How many times did you say this exact thing during nursing school?  Heck, high school!?!  Everything TheMoon said is true, you won't be an expert at anything in 3 months and no one expects you to be.  You can do this, take it day by day like we all did when we first started.  It'll get better.  Really!!

[0.9%NormalSarah, BSN, RN]

The first year sucks. I’m sorry you’re going through this, but it’s too early to quit. It really does get better. You can do it, go in each shift ready to kick some butt and don’t let these setbacks get you down!

[kp2016]

That sounds like a shift that would have been difficult for any nurse, let alone a beginner. If you have a medicated patient in restraints your charge nurse really should have stepped up to help you, it's impossible to do all the extra checks and documentation and carry a full patient load.

As for the miss counted drug, forget about it, it happens all the time. A pharmacy at one small hospital I worked at actually made the charge nurses do a count every day and rectify any miscounts. It really isn't that hard and doesn't take very long. She should not have gotten upset with you and frankly I feel like this is partly on her anyway for leaving you with such a tough assignment. 

Hang in there, it gets easier.

[Sour Lemon]

On 1/28/2021 at 1:44 AM, lily8424 said:

I've been a nurse for around 3 months on a busy medical surgical unit and find myself struggling each day. Last shift was particularly bad. I had a very agitated patient who ended up being placed in restraints despite being medicated around the clock. I had a very difficult time managing my other patients while doing the required frequent assessments on my restrained patient. I missed another patient's antibiotic and found out later that morning when passing meds. Also, whenever we remove a narcotic, the pyxis requires us to count the meds. I miscounted ativan vials when removing one which caused my charge nurse to become rightfully upset with me. I cried in front of her and another nurse tonight which I am still pretty embarrassed about. I left 2 hours after my shift ended in order to catch up on all my documentation. I am not sure if nursing is for me. I love my patients but I don't feel that multi-tasking if my strong suit. 

I'm ten years in and missed an antibiotic last week. No reason, I wasn't stressed ....just oops! It got hung about four hours late. Miscounting things is not a huge deal either. If the charge was upset about that, she may have been stressed and a bit snippy as a result.

Try to look at it as a "rough day" and nothing more than that. Go back with the attitude that today will be a better day.

As a new grad in med/surg, I think I had about four months of orientation (with a preceptor) on the floor. It sounds like you might have gotten less and are still managing to keep your head above water.

[JBMmom, MSN, NP]

You're right about where you should be at this point in your career. Your patient assignment would have been busy for anyone, Mistakes happen like the antibiotic and the narcotic count, don't beat yourself up. You'll have rough days for the next 20+ years, but you'll also have more and more good days thrown in there as well. Take care and hang in there. 

[LiveWellRNofficial, ADN, BSN, RN]

Don't be hard on yourself! It takes a while to learn the process of taking care of others. The healthcare system is very fast-paced and it can be very challenging to keep up sometimes. Just remember that safety is paramount. Never (ever) skip any of the safety steps. Don't let anyone around you push you into cutting corners. So if that means moving to a different department, company, specialty, etc, then maybe that's what you should do. The beauty of the nursing field is that there are SO many different areas to work in. Many nurses start in hospitals and other fast-paced, higher acuity areas and end up settling (happily) in outpatient or lower acuity areas. Just keep looking until you find your happy place! It exists.