So... I am on orientation in an L&D unit, where I felt so sure (for a long time) that I wanted to be. I have a pretty solid nursing background (8 years, some ICU) and consider myself to be fairly smart, conscientious, and careful. The problem is that I made a mistake the other day on the job and it is absolutely killing me. I don't want to give specifics, because I can't bear the comments that may come back telling me how stupid/dangerous/wrong it was to do that. I KNOW. I cannot figure out for the life of me why I made the mistake, why I didn't talk to my preceptor before giving the med as I always do otherwise, why I didn't carefully read the policy, why, why, why. I am sick about it for so many reasons: I could have caused harm to the patient and her baby (thankfully, nothing happened). I am ashamed and embarrassed in front of my new coworkers, who will see me as careless or stupid or dangerous now. I wonder if I should even be working here in this high intensity, litigation-likely, high-stakes area. And, I wonder if I should even be a nurse.
I guess I am looking for advice on how to get over this. Or for someone to tell me to find a new job. 'Cause I've already been looking.
Breathe!! As another poster mentioned,...Will you ever make that mistake again? Of course not,...you know that, I know that, everyone on this board knows that and your new coworkers know that!!! Relax and move on. We all make mistakes,....to be honest, I'm glad you are at least concerned about it. I'm precepting an experienced but new to us, Nurse who has made multiple errors. The mistakes really aren't the issue,..but the fact that she makes excuses for them or giggles and blows them off,....very scary and she probably won't be around long if she doesn't change her attitude!
Best of luck to you,...relax,...it will all work out.
It happens to everyone and you are lucky nothing happened to the patient. I have done this myself and felt exactly the same way. You must never get complacent in giving drugs. I have a routine now for giving meds and I never deviate, no matter what the drug or situation. You have taken full responsibility so take your lumps and move on. You obviously have learned from this and you sound like a fabulous nurse. This is just one part of what we take on when we put on the scrubs every day. Keep going!
I just made what I kept calling a "stupid mistake" 2 nights ago on a postpartum unit. I am a new nurse. I cried and cried over it the first 2 or 3 times I had to talk to a co-worker about it. Then I just thought to myself, "why don't you make this a learning experience, move on from it, and NEVER let it happen again?" That's what I decided to do. We are human beings, not God; only God is perfect.
Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
I worked with a nurse who overdosed an infant with epi by a factor of 10 (thank you God he made it through) . . . I would happily have handed her my own child to take care of the next day. Don't make a decision based on your prediction that the others will think you are stupid or dangerous.
Being human we make mistakes. You learn from it and move on. Many of us have made errors. I have found that talking with my husband (who is not in the medical field at all) has helped me to cope with my mistakes. It doesn't mean that I won't make mistakes in the future, but my mistakes have made me a more cautious nurse.
Do you have someone you can confide in? Doesn't have to be a nurse - maybe a spouse, sibling, good friend?
Please don't beat yourself up over it - learn from it and move on.
Just wanted to say... right after anyone makes a mistake (whether it be as a nurse or outside the hospital), we always try to run from it (ie: change units thinking you shouldn't be in L&D). Everyone's going to make a mistake somewhere down the line; whether you're in L&D, ICU, Peds, Med Surg or a doctor's office. You're not superwoman... you're a nurse! Talk to someone at your work about it, review the policy because the only we we truly never make the same mistake again is to make it in the first place. Try not to beat yourself up about it anymore... you've accepted the mistake. Learn from it and continue now on being the best nurse you can be. :redbeathe
I learn more from my stupid mistakes (near-misses) than from anything/anywhere else! Take this as a learning experience and walk with your head high knowing we ALL make mistakes!
Making a mistake in nursing sucks for so many reasons. We have a punitive perspective on mistakes because, yes, after all we don't work on produce. The stakes are high, but that doesn't mean that its a mistake like any other. If you were a conscientious mechanic and you put a dangerously wrong part on a car, you would probably feel just as really low about it. The important aspect is that no one was hurt and you learned a great deal from it, if that doesn't satisfy the critic in other nurses, then they haven't owned their own mistakes, that's the only difference. I think as long as you know what happened and you own it, at a certain point you have to forgive yourself, for your own health and sanity. And believe me, every nurse will be in your shoes at some point or another.
We all make mistakes. You'll probably never make the same mistake again! I'm new to L&D as well and just the other day while I was triaging a pt, I forgot to tell the MD that the perinate was keeping her on the Procardia till she was 37 wks (pt was 36.4). Anyways, the MD wanted the med stopped & I DC'd the pt home with the orders to stop the Procardia. Not till I was laying in bed did I realize that I didn't tell the MD what the perinate wanted. The next day I called my precepting nurse to let her know & she was going to call the MD. Boy, this is still dragging me down. But when I go in on Friday I know what I will do different when calling the docs.
You aknowledged your mistake. It would be different if you were trying to cover it up. Learn from it and move on, but don't leave L&D over it!
BrnEyedGirl, BSN, MSN, RN, APRN
1,236 Posts
Breathe!! As another poster mentioned,...Will you ever make that mistake again? Of course not,...you know that, I know that, everyone on this board knows that and your new coworkers know that!!! Relax and move on. We all make mistakes,....to be honest, I'm glad you are at least concerned about it. I'm precepting an experienced but new to us, Nurse who has made multiple errors. The mistakes really aren't the issue,..but the fact that she makes excuses for them or giggles and blows them off,....very scary and she probably won't be around long if she doesn't change her attitude!
Best of luck to you,...relax,...it will all work out.