Need advice after losing first nursing job

[AsianNurse27]

Hi everyone! I need some advice after losing my job.

Some background on my situation: I had the luck to be hired into a new grad nurse residency program several months after my graduation. However during my orientation, the hospital had low census, so I didn't have alot of patients or very complex patients. When my orientation was finished, I started working independently on the evening shift in my medical unit. For the first month or so, my patient load was very similar to what I had during my orientation. But then the census started picking up, and suddenly I was bombarded with more patients with complex conditions that I had never encountered. I was told that it was fairly normal for the unit to have many complex patients, and it was a fluke during my orientation that we didn't have any. This went on for several weeks, and I started to be very worn down and was really struggling. I felt like I didn't have any support and that I was not adequately prepared. My manager was also placing alot of pressure on me to improve too, which made things very hard as I was trying my best to improve.

To add to the difficult situation, the hospital figured out that it was losing money and needed to cut expenses. So they announced that they would have to fire some people. I also had some difficulties in my personal life, like moving to a new house and some family health issues. It was just a very difficult time for me; I was always stressed and afraid.

Finally, my manager called me into her office, and told me that things were not working out and asked me to resign. I felt devastated. It was my first nursing job and I had only been working for 6 months.

Now I am currently on the job hunt for another position. I got an ACLS certification and also took an IV therapy class.

I was wondering if anyone knows if Nurse Residencies will accept you if you are not a newly graduated nurse, but only had 6 months of experience? I would really like to do another residency program since I really felt that my previous experience really did not prepare me very well. I have also been looking at regular nurse positions, too.

Also, if an interviewer asked me why I left my previous postion, what should I say? I feel that I am capable of handling the fast pace of a hospital setting, but my previous job situation had left me with a rather low opinion of myself and my nursing abilities.

Any advice would be wonderful. Thanks!

[PrimaFacie]

This is a tough situation. It won't be constructive or helpful to criticize your school or your new grad program for lack of preparing you. From reading this board lately, it seems many new grads are not ready for the real-life world of how hard nursing really is.

But, that said, I would have thought that a decent preceptor in your new grad program would have taken advantage of the slow time to run you through extra tasks that would have help prepare you. Low census = great teaching opportunity.

What was it about the "complex" patients that was difficult?

Comorbidity's?

If you could explain what you mean by complex, then it may be easier to assess what you need to focus on to improve.

Make a list of your nursing strengths and weaknesses.

Post it here and see if the wise nurses on this board can help point you to a good solution.

[RNGriffin]

You can apply to new residency programs, most shy away from new grads who have already held another residency position. You could call the board of nursing to inquire about refresher courses. All the while, you should be looking towards your next position.

Many factors contributed to you losing your position. Without asking the specifics during the meeting with your DON or Nurse Manager it's impossible to determine what the key factor was for losing your position. As the previous poster has stated, most nurse managers would have used the period of low patient census to inform you on how to deal with complex( I assume you mean comorbidity) patients.

Take this as a lost and attempt to figure out where your short comings were. Ask yourself, "what do I need more training with", "what are my areas of strength", "where am I most comfortable"..etc. Now all units are suited for every nurse. You have to find the area of practice where you excel...!

Best wishes!

[One1, BSN, RN]

Many new grad residency programs will not accept RNs who had ANY kind of previous work experience, but it is always worth checking with whatever hospital you apply to.

[sapphire18]

Most new grad programs require less than 6 months working as a nurse to qualify. I'm not sure what to tell prospective employers about why you left your previous job..."it wasn't a good fit" might work but might be too vague and they might ask for clarification.

I encourage you to continue seeking educational opportunities, certifications, and networking opportunities, and wish you luck on your job search!!

[sauconyrunner]

I think you might qualify for another residency, but what you really need is a really good preceptor. It's hard to pick yourself up and start over, but...I think you can. I also think that if the acuity really changed then you should have had some assistance in gettng up to speed with the regular census.

You can always start with It wasnt a good fit. I find an easier statement..."The schedule I was working did not fit well with my home schedule"

You could also try, "I know the job market is tough for new grads, so I took the first job I was offerred, but I found I'm really more interested in working at XYZ hospital or on XYZ unit".

Good Luck to you!!!

[PrimaFacie]

You can always start with It wasnt a good fit. I find an easier statement..."The schedule I was working did not fit well with my home schedule"

I'm never ok with lying, even if the job market is bad.

But the OP said they were making financial cutbacks....so a truthful statement here is:

They were making cutbacks and I was the least experienced nurse on the unit.

[PrincessRN101]

girl, your not the first to lose a nursing job in 6 months and you wont be the last. suck it up, keep applying, try ltcs senior homes if you have to, and agencies. until that next big hospital gig comes through. because u still need experience

[duckyluck111]

I'm never ok with lying, even if the job market is bad.

But the OP said they were making financial cutbacks....so a truthful statement here is:

They were making cutbacks and I was the least experienced nurse on the unit.

Sorry, that sounds more like a lie than the initial "didn't fit with my schedule", that would be a lie that would be easy to check out also, since she resigned and did not get laid off. A quick call to HR of previous employer would confirm that.

I'm just going to qualify my advice by saying I'm not a nurse yet but I have worked in management and did a lot of hiring in wellness related industry. I think it's perfectly acceptable to say "as a new grad I didn't receive adequate training on the kinds of complex cases I was being assigned and felt I couldn't accept the patient assignments they were giving me. Rather than risk my license, or compromise patient care, I resigned". That sounds responsible.

[VivaLasViejas, ASN, RN]

In general, employers are not permitted to share information about an employee, or why they were let go---only dates of employment and whether or not they are eligible for rehire. That doesn't stop some employers, but most will stick to the rules so that's probably the least of your worries.

I'd venture to say that the majority of people will face a firing at some point in their working lives. It's happened to me personally, and my career not only survived but went on to bigger and better things. This is merely a hiccup in yours; you'll find another job, and you'll thrive once you've worked with a good preceptor. Best wishes in your job search!

[Merlyn]

Just put cut backs. Don't go into your work history of not working out. Just put hospital cut backs. Skip the drama.

[CapeCodMermaid, RN]

If this happens again, don't resign. Make them fire you so at least you can collect unemployment.