I was yelled at by my nurse yesterday

ginaw623 · Apr 10, 2012

I actually think that is BS and you (being a student who is trying to learn) should be able to ask whatever you want! This is annoying to me. Keep your head up and don't let some idiot like this get to you.

allnurses Guide · Apr 10, 2012

Depends what you are asking questions about. If you are asking how to make a bed with a patient in it, then yeah...you need to simmer down. But if it is clinically pertinent, then this nurse is a poor match for you and you need someone who enjoys teaching.

All I would advise is to ask your questions NOT in front of the patient. That way if the nurse needs to say "I don't know", she can do it without feeling like she is losing face. There is also the option of writing down your questions and looking them up after clinical day is over.

Mike R, ADN, BSN, RN · Apr 10, 2012

Hi Ellie,

There's a couple of things I would like to touch base on.

First, I'm sorry that this RN was unprofessional and rude enough to belittle you in front of others like that. She should have pulled you aside in private and had a respectable conversation with you there.

May I ask what kind of questions you were asking? I've caught myself several times asking questions that I could easily of answered myself if I just opened my eyes and looked what was right in front of me; leading me to start to annoy the nurse I was with. I agree with Gina, that a student should be able to ask any question they want. But they should know which questions to ask and which ones to do a little footwork on. I know, I'm guilty of it. (I'm saying all this without knowing what you said, so please don't infer that I'm inferring anything about you).

Given what I just said, I really think you should throw your "coupon" idea out the window. If you have a good question, by all means ask it!

noahsmama · Apr 10, 2012

Even if you really do ask "too many" questions (which would be difficult, though perhaps not impossible, for a student to do) it was not appropriate for this nurse to yell at you in front of everyone. She should have taken you aside and told you without yelling.

Instead of not asking questions at all, I would advise that you seek out your clinical instructor with any questions that the nurse you are working with is unwilling or unable to answer. Keep a running list of any questions you have that do not need to be answered immediately, and save those either for your instructor, or to look up on your own. Familiarize yourself with other sources of information you can use such as reference texts (e.g. drug guides in the med room). Don't stop asking questions, but do cluster them and use all available resources, not just the nurse, to answer them.

EllieBean13 · Apr 10, 2012

ginaw623- thank you for your encouragement! I don't think the nurse was an idiot, just maybe not as receptive to my questions as other nurses have been in the past.

not.done.yet- no, it wasn't anything about bed making LOL. In my opinion, they were questions that could absolutely not wait, just because they were based on such a dramatic change happening with my patient and my clinical instructor was no where to be found at the time. And I certainly wasn't asking questions in front of the patient, it was in the hallway outside of the room. Thank you for the suggestion of writing down my questions to look up later- I will certainly do that for the questions that I do not think need immediate attention.

Reader007 · Apr 10, 2012

Irregardless of the profession, yelling is pretty much considered unprofessional (oil rigs, mining, construction sites etc., not withstanding). Consider it bad behavior by someone who doesn't posses good management skills...at least, not yet.

You don't ever need to feel like being yelled "at" (as opposed to being yelled "to"), is an acceptable behavior.

Sounds like you have a good attitude, though. Schtuff happens.

EllieBean13 · Apr 10, 2012

Hi Ellie,
There's a couple of things I would like to touch base on.
First, I'm sorry that this RN was unprofessional and rude enough to belittle you in front of others like that. She should have pulled you aside in private and had a respectable conversation with you there.
May I ask what kind of questions you were asking? I've caught myself several times asking questions that I could easily of answered myself if I just opened my eyes and looked what was right in front of me; leading me to start to annoy the nurse I was with. I agree with Gina, that a student should be able to ask any question they want. But they should know which questions to ask and which ones to do a little footwork on. I know, I'm guilty of it. (I'm saying all this without knowing what you said, so please don't infer that I'm inferring anything about you).
Given what I just said, I really think you should throw your "coupon" idea out the window. If you have a good question, by all means ask it!

Well, without writing a novel about my patient, he was a young guy in his 40's, & he had come back from abdominal surgery very early in the morning. About 2 hours after I had first checked him out, his abdomen was significantly distended and he was complaining about how painful it was. His O2 sat was in the high 80's (how is this not a scary vital!?), deep breathing/coughing/repositioning him was not helping. So I relayed all this info to her immediately- and she DIDN'T seemed worried AT ALL. I was asking her what other measures she would like me to try, if she would like me to stay and monitor him, at what point should I be concerned and bring other issues to her attention, and since I cannot pass meds myself- I asked if she could discuss his options available to him about pain medication. I guess it was a lot of questions. Maybe it's because I am a student and everything seems very serious, I just don't want to miss anything. :bluecry1:

loriangel14, RN · Apr 10, 2012

oops double post.

loriangel14, RN · Apr 10, 2012

Yeah you were probaby driving the poor woman nuts! I remember doing the same thing in clinicals.Firing nonstop questions at a busy nurse will give her heartburn.Things that don't seem to bother them make us hyperventilate.It's ok,it's part of learning.When I was in clinicals I was driven to tears by one nurse.My time management skills were weak at best and I had spent all morning trying to deal with 3 simple patients.She demanded to know,in front of others,WHAT I had been doing with my time all morning. I was mortified.Four years later I work with that same nurse and she is a good friend.Hang in there.

Oh yes in time you will learn not to freak at sats in the high 80s.

mazy · Apr 11, 2012

Yeah, I did the same thing when I first started working, just asking way too many questions and I think driving people nuts. The charge nurse that I drove the most nuts is now one of my closest friends, many years and many jobs later.

And I did come to realize that I was asking too many questions that weren't necessary to answer right in that moment. I was just really worried about doing well, and not making a mistake.

I think that when things changed is when I realized that I would rather make a mistake based on my own judgement than make one based on what someone else told me to do.

Once that happened I grabbed my parachute and jumped into the abyss of uncertainty. I survived and learned to trust my instincts and accept accountability for my actions because whatever I decided was all going to come down on me, so I needed to make sure I did things right.

It made me a better, more confident, and less annoying nurse.

You are in a clinical situation so it's a little different because you are working on someone else's patient load. You are reporting concerns that she may be aware of and responding to in a way that you don't understand, but she is too frazzled to explain it all to you, and at that point you should probably step back and just wait and watch her do her thing.

All that aside, it was incredibly rude of her to yell at you, and unprofessional. And I'm sorry that happened.:hug:

EllieBean13 · Apr 11, 2012

Thank you everyone! I have definitely learned my lesson. This is why I love this site- such a great resource!