I am a new grad and can't wait to get out of orientation!

Nurses New Nurse

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Hi,

I am a new grad and it's my third week on a busy tele floor. Here is the thing. I feel as though I don't need a preceptor anymore and feel I am ready to be on my own. Every day when I come to work I think things would have been easier for me if I could organize my day without anybody telling me what we need to do next or do it my preceptor's way. I feel confident talking to doctors and monitoring my patients. I have caught things before the patient deteriorated badly.

But now I have a question. Am I being too confident? Am I missing something? I feel as though all new grads should feel overwhelmed and need preceptor's help. I just don't want to be one of those new grads who felt too confident and made a huge mistake because they thought they were ready too early and didn't need help.

Specializes in Palliative, Onc, Med-Surg, Home Hospice.
Thank you all for replies! There are many things I still don't know, but I can ask just about any nurse on the floor if I have a quick question. Sometimes seasoned nurses ask questions which I overhear and know the answer to. So everybody has questions (young or old), but this doesn't mean everybody needs a preceptor. But I am definitely going to take your advice and stay on orientation for 12 allowed weeks.

I've worked on a tele floor before and when all hell breaks loose, you don't have time to ask the other nurses. And the other nurses aren't going to have time to stop their work to help you. I've had days (not tele, rather on onc/palliative) where we were fully staffed (5 patients/nurse, night shift) and NONE of us had time to breathe. Imagine having a patient getting blood, another is on an Argatroban drip, a third is on a heparin drip and you have a palliative patient who needs pain meds every hour. And every single nurse has an equally heavy load, except the charge nurse, who has 2 patients on chemo (one on induction) so she is having to deal with that. You don't have time to breathe, let alone ask for help or questions. And your co-workers aren't going to have time to breathe either. This has happened a lot on my unit.

If you have a preceptor, and you start to drown (and it might happen tomorrow, you never know) you have a resource at your side to help you through it. Without that preceptor, you could very well be on your own with no one available to help you out. If you feel like you need to have your preceptor back off a bit, ask her too. Just try to be humble and polite about it.

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I am reminded of a nurse I used to work with some years ago. She was irritated at being referred to as The New Nurse because, as she put it, "I've been here for 2 months already! I'm not new!".

She didn't know what she didn't know yet and to those of us who had been there long enough to recognize this she was very much The New Nurse. Off of orientation but didn't realize how much she still had to learn before us old fogies would accept her as Experienced.

If you have the blessing of a 12 week orientation in today's climate of Throw Them On The Unit, consider yourself very fortunate indeed and take the opportunity to really get all you possibly can out of it.

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Specializes in PACU, pre/postoperative, ortho.

It's only the 3rd week! Don't get ahead of yourself when they are offering 12. If you have a good working relationship with your preceptor, perhaps you could approach her/him to discuss the next stage of orientation. Let them know you are feeling more comfortable & would like to transition to do more on your own but with them as back-up, of course. Word it in a way to let them know that you value their help & knowledge, but want to gradually rely on them less so you will be ready when orientation ends (as ready as you can be). Have you been given goals to reach at certain stages of orientation? If not, that should be part of your discussion with an end goal being that you are taking the full load of pts by the 12th week.

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Specializes in orthopedic/trauma, Informatics, diabetes.

I have been a nurse for 5 years and KNOW I still have much to learn. The experiences that really teach are not the ones you go looking for, they are the ones that sneak up on you from left field and you have to think fast on your feet from EXPERIENCE not confidence. Not trying to burst your bubble, but you are no where near ready.

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Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.
So everybody has questions (young or old), but this doesn't mean everybody needs a preceptor. But I am definitely going to take your advice and stay on orientation for 12 allowed weeks.

Wrong. EVERYONE needs a preceptor. You will probably have better insight as to why when you are a nurse on your own. Your over-confidence is a bit worrisome. I do wish you well.

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I think a lot of new grads feel this way. You need your preceptor. At least twice mine caught orders that were flat-out wrong, whereas I would have probably just given the med. It's great that you are confident but three weeks is not nearly enough time to be a safe clinician, especially as a new grad.

I started on tele when I was out of school too. On orientation on my floor, they tried to "shield" us from the complicated cases or very difficult family members. They wanted us to get our sea legs before we were bombarded with the true nature of the floor. If your floor is doing that, maybe you feel confident because everything is is straightforward so far? Or perhaps your preceptor is doing much of the heavy lifting behind the scenes?

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May be it was too much to say that I don't need my preceptor's help. Rather I need her, just need her to back off a little and help only when I am truly drowning. Good point! Thanks.

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May be it was too much to say that I don't need my preceptor's help. Rather I need her, just need her to back off a little and help only when I am truly drowning. Good point! Thanks.

Gotta tell you CRC12. You've gotten some tough love. I was fully expecting an internet flounce (we see it all the time) but you've been really open to what we've said and clearly are listening. Keep it up and you'll be very successful. :yes:

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You are right. I don't get patients who are unstable. I am mostly admitting and discharging patients at this point. Newly admitted patients are a bit hectic to handle as many new orders are due STAT. But discharging has been super easy so far. The turnover on our floor is high. Sometimes I discharge all 4 of my patients and then admit 2-3 back to back. That can be hectic and a lot of tedious work but I like it so far. May be if I got a "near critical patient", I would not have felt that everything is this straightforward.

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Specializes in ED.
May be it was too much to say that I don't need my preceptor's help. Rather I need her, just need her to back off a little and help only when I am truly drowning. Good point! Thanks.

This!! Maybe talk to her and tell her you'd like to try to organize your day on your own to test some of your independent skills but seek input to not come off as someone that is hastily confident. Some hospitals have 6 months orientations or longer, especially on highly specialized units. I think it's a blessing. You never know what else you might learn, not only clinically but little organizational tips and tricks that come with being a seasoned nurse. Look at it as free education, not as someone breathing down your neck.

Good luck:up:

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Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.

Is the preceptor the kind you can communicate with? I COMPLETELY understand wanting t her to back off a bit. Why not ask her that in the same words you did, here? There is a big difference between spreading your wings a bit and "not needing a preceptor" and I am truly glad you came back to clarify.

You sound smart and if you have a lot on the ball. Don't be afraid to ask to go a few things alone, if possible. But respect your preceptor if she says "not yet". She has insight you might just not.

Good luck, I think you will be brilliant.

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Now that you have elaborated a little, I see where you are coming from, but trust me, they are easing you into the sicker patients. After three weeks, your preceptor should be backing off a little and letting you handle the stable patients while still overseeing what you are doing.

The time will come when you start getting the more difficult patients and it will be crazy and learning all over again. Then, you will off orientation and be back to the stable patients but will be all on your own without the safety of your preceptor and that's a whole new level of scary.

While I'm not a new grad anymore, I still remember my life as one. I remember coming off of orientation and great of a feeling it was. I remember the overwhelming feeling of those first few months off of orientation, and then how it felt when they started to trust me with the sicker patients. I work in an ICU and those first really sick ones, I was scared.

I still don't even know half of all I need to know. I spend my days off looking up crazy conditions and their patho. Make sure you are always receptive to learning and know you don't know it all. Always be cautious. I'm still cautious on everything I do including meds. But I remember in the beginning, so wanting to be as fast as my preceptor with all the tasksy stuff.

Good luck!! I'm sure as long as you keep going, you will be a great nurse!!

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