I think I am going to quit my first RN position ;-( Long post

**RosesrReder, BSN, MSN, RN** · Sep 8, 2005

wow, no "team work" or much of it is there? .

So sorry about your situation. I think you should look elsewhere if you aren't that comfortable there and then put in your 2 weeks' notice.

About the gossip email. Don't assume it is about you. It seems like there was an ongoing problem since before so just keep your lips sealed, go in and do your work and do what you have to do. Hey, everyone doesn't have to like you. But as long as you are being responsible, getting the job done right....then everyone could just keep on trucking. Good luck. :)

raindrop · Sep 8, 2005

wow, no "team work" or much of it is there? .
So sorry about your situation. I think you should look elsewhere if you aren't that comfortable there and then put in your 2 weeks' notice.
About the gossip email. Don't assume it is about you. It seems like there was an ongoing problem since before so just keep your lips sealed, go in and do your work and do what you have to do. Hey, everyone doesn't have to like you. But as long as you are being responsible, getting the job done right....then everyone could just keep on trucking. Good luck. :)

I love ICU, but no temawork is right, and I'm training myself. Not good for the pt's or my license.

I want to do the right thing and give them 2 weeks, but it will be 2 weeks of hell for me - they will eat me up alive. Since I am still on orientation, technically, can't I just call my nurse manager and tell her it isn't working out and I won't be back. Legally, I don't think they should be relying on me for taking on my own pt load like how I have been.

llg, PhD, RN · Sep 8, 2005

How have you tried to resolve the problems with your preceptor? Have you talked with the educator in charge of your orientation? To simply quit without trying to resolve the problem seems to be giving up prematurely. Everywhere you go, there will be people and situations that are imperfect. Some will be worse than others. Learning how to resolve/fix/cope with those inevitable imperfections is part of the process of maturing as a nurse and making that transition from student to professional.

If you have actively tried to resolve the situation with your preceptor and not been supported by your unit educator, that's another story. Your original post does not say.

What is the plan for your orientation? Are you supposed to be learning new things every week, or is it planned for you to learn a few things and then have a week or two to practice those skills before moving to the next level? Is there a written plan or checklist for your orientation that you can use to help monitor your progress and keep you and your preceptor on track? It sounds like you really need to have a meeting with your educator to sort these things out. The problem of "one bad preceptor" or "miscommunication between you and your preceptor" can often be fixed without having to quit a job and start over somewhere else.

Also, before you make a hasty decision ... how do you like working with the patient population of that unit? Have other members of the staff been friendly? or has everyone been unfriendly? Is it really the job you don't want ... the rest of the staff you don't like ... the management ... the patients ... etc. .... or are you just struggling at the moment with your relationship with your preceptor? Are you being tempted to leave because of other reasons? If there are a lot of other legitimate reasons, then maybe leaving is the best thing. But if it 90% the single preceptor, I think that is worth an intervention or two before you give up.

llg

JentheRN05, RN · Sep 8, 2005

I was at my previous position (my first RN job) for 90 days. The probationary position. On day 91 I called my supervisor and told her I quit. I offered her 2 weeks notice, but since I 'didn't count' then it wasn't necessary she said. I 'didn't count' because I wasn't off orientation yet. I was training in a small OB doing PP, L&D and Nursery as well as floating to medsurg.

There's a thread about it somewhere here.

Anyway - I explained the situation to a prospective employer, and she understood why I quit and still gave me the job. I am just waiting on a start date :)

Good luck, don't stay there any longer than you have to, because all it is doing is making you feel insecure.

grinnurse, RN · Sep 8, 2005

Hey Raindrop-

Sorry things aren't going so well with you and your preceptor. Have you talked to your nurse manager about how you are feeling? Maybe you should do that before just quitting, maybe something could be worked out and maybe your just the one to get the team work going in the dept if there is none. Is transferring somewhere else in the hospital an option?

If you have p&p manuals, maybe someone could tell you which ones to make yourself familiar with for the dept.

Good luck!

peaceful2100, BSN, RN · Sep 8, 2005

I agree with llg. Maybe you need to talk to the nurse manager about what is going on before you give up. It could simply be that you need a new preceptor and that can make ALL the difference in the world. I am new to the critical care area but I am NOT a new nurse. I have been a RN for almost 2 years now. It will be 2 years in October. I just started working in the neonatal intensive care unit. I have been there 2 weeks now and already I want to quit. I'm sooooo stressed out. I feel like I can't do anything right. This is my 3rd job. I am beginning to feel that no matter what area I thought I really wanted to do which has been NICU since I first graduated from school I feel that maybe nursing is not for me after all. I hate that feeling. I get so frustrated easily because there is so much going on and I don't have anyone to talk to about it. Although I am talking about it now.

If you quit you have the right to quit and you can do so without notice but that just does not look good or professional. HOWEVER, if you feel your nursing license is on the line then FORGET about doing it properly. Nothing is more important then protecting your license. I would not hesistate to quit at any point in which I feel that way or if I feel just horribly stress that I am literally making myself sick.

llg, PhD, RN · Sep 8, 2005

. I have been a RN for almost 2 years now. It will be 2 years in October. I just started working in the neonatal intensive care unit. I have been there 2 weeks now and already I want to quit. I'm sooooo stressed out. I feel like I can't do anything right. This is my 3rd job. I am beginning to feel that no matter what area I thought I really wanted to do which has been NICU since I first graduated from school I feel that maybe nursing is not for me after all. I hate that feeling. I get so frustrated easily because there is so much going on and I don't have anyone to talk to about it. Although I am talking about it now.

What types of jobs were your other 2 jobs? I have spent many years running NICU orientation programs and know that switching from adult nursing to NICU is very difficult. That's why I totally disagree with those people who say you should get a year or two of adult med-surg experience before taking a NICU job. What usually happens is this:

The new grad struggles during her first year as a new grad on an adult med/surg unit, like most new grads do. Her struggles may be made worse by the fact that she knows it is not really the type of work she wants to do the rest of her life. She's only doing it because it sounded like good advice to get that med-surg experience first.

After a while, she starts feeling comfortable. She has progressed from being an "advanced beginner" to being "competent" and it feels good. She has developed sufficient judgment to handle things. So now, she thinks she is ready to do what she always wanted to do in the first place, NICU.

When she gets to the NICU, she realizes that the care is very different from adult med-surg. The judgment she worked so hard to develop doesn't always apply there. It feels like the rug has been pulled out from under her. Her confidence deteriorates. She is a beginner again and it feels horrible.

Could that be what is happening to you, peaceful2100? Have you talked with someone (like your unit educator) who is familiar with this "changing units" process? Making that transition from one specialty to another can be very difficult and requires special effort -- different effort, but just as much effort as orienting as a new grad. Please find someone to talk with and get some support before making a quick decision to leave. The stress you are experiencing may just be the result of those normal processes.

llg

Judee Smudee, ADN, RN · Sep 8, 2005

Your preceptor should be warned that if you make a really big mistake her name is going to come up in the investigation. She is not going to be able to wag her finger at you and duck responsibility. She needs to start doing a better job. I have worked with many RNs that precepted and they always did a better job than this.

Bijou-Spice · Sep 8, 2005

I am a new grad to the CCU and I have a very sarcastic preceptor. Who comments to me "where did you go to school? and what DID they teach you!" (fyi I went to a "good" school and did well, so I know I am not incapable of mastering this job but my preceptor sure can undermine my confidence!) So I can relate to how you feel. This weekend I had an emotional melt down. I had dopa and dibutamine drips and watched her pressure zip up and down (my preceptor told me estimate for increase/decreases were just a best guess!! "well this is my first time could you give me a little help here!!", antibiotics, med to be given thru an NG and a 83 yr old patient that is in restraints because she tries to pull out the ET and NG tubes (she had already self extubated herself twice). Everytime I changed her position she had a BM and my paper work ---forget it. Meanwhile I can see my preceptor laughing it up with coworkers!

I congratulate you on figuring out what to do --without being instructed--with the heparin drip!

llg gave you great advice. My thoughts are is the shift you are orienting on your assigned shift after your orientation? (hope that would be a "no" so you won't have to deal with her and that lazy LPN. Second, what about a meeting with your preceptor and your NM?

I don't enjoy my preceptor but I really want to do this job and I have found other people who are into the "teaching moment" so I try to seek them out when possible.

And finally----you have 2 patients already!! Talk to your NM about that also! They should give you time to absorb everything, you shouldn't be considered staff so tell them to give you some breathing room so you can become productive and not so stressed! Good luck!