Nervous... I think my instructors want to get me out of the program

JenRN30, BSN · Feb 17, 2009

Hmm,

well it doesn't sound to me like they're trying to get you thrown out of school. They want you to be prepared. It's very important to be on time, and they don't care where you had to park. Go into your patient's room first thing, do your assessment, and then if you still have questions maybe you should look it up or ask your instructor. When you talk to your instructor, ask specifically what you need to improve on. Then do your best to improve on those things by reading and trying your best. Sounds like the staff doesn't really want to be bothered, so just stay out of their way. Kinda crappy, but that's how things are for us students a lot of the time. Good luck, keep going, BE PREPARED, and everything will turn out fine.

caliotter3 · Feb 18, 2009

Turn the negativity around. Go out of your way to be on time, prepared, on the ball, receptive to constructive criticism, helpful to others, etc. Instead of waiting for your instructors to come to you with the latest complaints; go to them, with your paperwork not only complete but above standards, your charting above standards, anything assigned done above standards. Go early the night before to pick out your patients and get your required info. Then go home and do what you're supposed to do. Go to the unit manager or head nurse. Be proactive. Tell her that you have been told that the staff is complaining about you and you want to be told specifics and to be told immediately when there is a complaint so that you can correct yourself on the spot. It sounds to me that you are a victim of gossiping, more than constructive criticism. If the criticism were constructive, the person making the remark would have taken you aside and told you face to face what you need to improve on. When they go behind your back, they are not acting in the preceptor role and they should not be complaining about you if they have not brought up anything to your face. You need to be the one who is stepping forward in the clinical workplace, not the other way around. Start putting it to everyone else and they should back off and look for another "victim". Don't quit and slink off. Even if you were to gain admission to another program, chances are that you could run into a similar situation, and you had better learn how to deal with this type of treatment now before you get done in yet again. Stick up for yourself.

trepinCT · Feb 18, 2009

first, take a deep breath and slow down..like everyone else said on this post..talk to instructors to get specifics of areas of improvement. We have weekly written evaluations..our clinicals are not graded..its pass or fail. When I get on the floor, if i cant get report right away, I go do my introduction to my patient and a quick assessment, then I might glance through the chart..patient, report, chart all need our attention,the order it happens depends on the day- just size up the morning and get something done so you are not hanging around.

123angiecat · Feb 18, 2009

Hi there!

I agree with most of the previous comments:)

I would like to reinforce the possibility of coming in the day before to find out about your patients and look up their medications, illness/disease, and assessment parameters. I realize of course that in acute care the patient you thought you were going to have may differ when you get on the unit but that is where arriving early helps you also with preparation.

When I was a student, I found coming in the day before very very helpful. I would then be more focused and less nervous about meeting the patient and what I needed to do. Also, coming in early rather than at the expected time also helped especially when I did not have the opportunity to find out about my patients from the night before or I have a different patient assigned to me.

With regards to approaching the charge nurse/unit manager to explain to her what has been happening with regards to complaints, be careful in how you do this and reheorifice what you are going to say. However, your first priority should be "be prepared" and that way you will find that you have less questions for the primary nurses on the unit, be early, and smile--u can do this and you will succeed!!

Kevin RN08 · Feb 18, 2009

I would caution about addressing the issue with the unit manager, it's not her/his problem and she/he has enough to keep them busy with their own staff. I does need to be addressed with the CI, it is a school problem and needs to be addressed by and with the school.

As a student we are expected to be on time, be prepared, and be professional, no excuses. Was everyone else on time? Much of the problem as you explained it, seems that you either are lacking confidence or are simply unprepared (I'm not judging).

Lastly, you (we as NS) must understand that the Hospital/Unit is doing us a favor by allowing us to do our clinicals at their institution, in turn we must do our very best to blend in and not interupt the daily flow of the organization. Report is frequently a one-sided conversation with the off going controlling the conversation, if there are specific questions they should be held until the end of report on that patient and should be specific to that patient. If there are questions about a process (disease or nursing) it should be addressed to the instructor, but the answer is most likely on your pathocard.

BabyLady, BSN, RN · Feb 18, 2009

here is my two cents:

today when i went to clinical i got there a little later than normal, due to the fact that we students now have to park in another lot, far, far away....

well, i got lost trying to get back to the hospital unit on time. i went into several buildings before i got turned around and found the right building.

anytime i go to the facility the first day of clinical, i always allow time to show up one hour early. that way, i have time to find where i need to be and get myself in order. this is about being a responsbible professional...and the reason you got report late. you have to show up on time...instructors get infuriated over this and i can understand why.

when i got onto my unit finally, i had to choose my 2 pts. i charted meds and stayed out of the way, but then i got report late from my primary nurse. my instructor noticed this and she was not happy!!! then the director of the program and my nursing instructor took me to a room and told me that there had been a concern about me during an evening when i went to the unit to select my patients. my instructor had previously told us that we could go to the unit the night before to select a pt if we went in professional clothing and so on. so i did, well the complaint... as i understand it to be... is that i seemed confused, disoriented, red in the face, and like i was just really confused and shuffling papers around. :bugeyes:

this is probably the truth, because you have to practice your assessment skills at home so they come off professional and with ease. i would have brought my assessment book with me, viewed the chart, looked a few things up that way you can not only do a full assessment, but a focused assessment...you can't go in there and "wing it."

i have been getting a lot of complaints from staff on this unit. i have been told that 5 different people have reported something negative about me since i have been going to this hospital. what's that all about? i don't know. one of the first complaints was from a doctor who walked in behind me while i was assessing my patient. i had my back to him, and my scope down my patients gown to listen to her heart. apparently he was upset that i did not leave so he could visit with the patient. i didn't even know he was in the room for a few minutes, then i had my scope down this lady's gown, what was i supposed to do????? just snap my fingers and disappear??????

absolutely, you should have excused yourself immediately. the physician always takes priority over the nursing student...he may only be there for a few minutes and you are going to be there all day. you should also be more aware of what is going on around you in the room and should have noticed when someone walked in.

if you just got a complaint about a single nurse, then i would say it's a personality clash...but if it's 5 and happening "all the time"...then you really, really need to listen to what they are saying.

i then have ben complained about from other staff who say that i was asking too many questions about my pt rather than going in and assessing her myself.

again, this is lack of preparation. i never ask the nursing staff any questions unless i have exhausted my efforts. i look at their chart, their meds, their last set of vital signs, i look things up that i don't understand....then i go do my assessment, ask the pateint questions, then i can demonstrate to the rn what i have done and i have never had an issue with them answering my questions.

i will admit i am a little nervous about going to see patients right away, but i don't think i need this kind of constant nitpicking as i turn every corner!!!!!!!

this is a fear...if you prepare, you won't be nervous. when you become an rn, this is what you'll be doing every day. you can beat this!

i am afraid that when i go to see my instructor tomorrow, they will try to get rid of me!!!! what can i do??????? what recourse do i have??????? our syllabus states in our class that if our instructor chooses to do so, she can kick us out of the program if she sees fit to do so. now i am scared!!!!!!!!!

you are more likely to get thrown out for denying there is an issue and blaming other people...then taking responsibility, asking for suggestions on what to do differently, and then take corrective action.

anyway, my nurse instructor sent me home today, and this will reduce my clinical grade by 10 % right off the bat; but now i am scared that she and the staff and the director are trying to get me kicked out of the program altogether!!!! i am a first year student, and i am not getting the politics of nursing down! i feel like i will have spent all this money and get kicked out of the program and have nothing to show for it and no where to go!!!! help!!!!

what should i do? i took a&p in 2005, and i could get into another program, i guess, but should i leave them, or just wait for them to get rid of me? i have worked way too hard for this to end this way!!!!!!! there must be some way to give them what they want without me having to get thrown out of school for this!

this is not about "giving them what they want"...you are trying to do things your way rather than the correct way...i'm not being mean, seriously....but this is something you have to get out of your head.

i still do not know specifically what i did that caused others to complain. i was confused! i was shuffling papers! i have rosacea, and my face is always red after a shower!!!!! what am i supposed to do? can my school really legally throw me out for staff complaints?????????????????????????????????

yes, they can.

help,

laura

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · Feb 18, 2009

You're lucky they let you stay at clinical after coming late. In our program, if you're not there after x minutes (for some it's 10, some it's 15, some it's 1), whenever you do arrive, they have the right to send you home and mark it as an absence. And it has been done. So try not to be late...but get your CI's cell phone number (she should have given out some contact number to you) or the number on the floor you're having clinicals on, so if you ever run late again, you can at least call before you're late. It may or may not help, but it's worth trying.

I wouldn't stress so much about what a doctor says about you, though if you weren't in the middle of something critical such as pushing a med, if you didn't leave the room you should have at least stepped aside and let him do his thing. He had a valid point there. But if the nurses have criticism, then I'd really pay attention. Some of it might not be valid, but most of it will be, and it's something you can learn from.

As far as the meeting goes: don't go in there all defensive because that'll shut things down stat and not make you look good. See what they say, apologize for your mistakes, see what you can learn from, and do contest anything that is grossly inaccurate. I don't think this is a NS killer, but as you go along in the program things get more intense--you need to learn the proper assesment and clinical skills now.

And from one rosacea sufferer to another: people are going to see red faces and think the worst. You can either tell them you have rosacea, or conceal it with makeup. Since my medical diagnoses aren't anyone's business but my own...I highly recommend Bare Minerals. I don't know how severe yours is. Mine isn't severe but enough redness to draw comments. The mineral makeup covers it very well.

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Feb 18, 2009

my guess is that they are going to put what they talked to you about on paper for official documentation purposes. i was a manager. first we would have a talk with an employee who we had disciplinary problems with. then we would begin documenting the problems and the discussions for the purpose of beginning a paper trail if termination became necessary. we never fired anyone without documentation (notes, oral and written warnings, official disciplinary actions) to back it up. ask for a copy of anything you are asked to sign and respond in writing to defend yourself, especially regarding the rosacea. ask if a copy of what goes on in this meeting is being placed in your student file. if the business about your rosacea is not in your pre-school medical information, get it verified by your doctor and get that information to them. most places will not dismiss anyone without doing proper written documentation in the event that the person decides to sue them for wrongful termination. documentation is important to the process. if that is what they are up to, you do have the right to (1) defend anything that they have incorrect, and (2) correct the things you are doing wrong in the amount of time they give you. fighting against them is not the way to go if you want to stay in this program. if you are not willing to follow their dictates and do things the way they want, they will terminate you unless you follow their rules, let them cite them to you and give you a chance to conform to them. if that is what today's meeting is about. . .ask for help from them rather than fighting with them if you want to stay in the program. and do not go about discussing this with your fellow students. that is just one more problem (gossip) for them to add to the list of things they don't like that you do. leaders see talking to others about your situation as a desperate and unproductive act. it causes trouble and unrest in the ranks, so just don't do it. what goes on between you and them is confidential and nobody else's business.

truern · Feb 18, 2009

hi everybody...
today when i went to clinical i got there a little later than normal, due to the fact that we students now have to park in another lot, far, far away....
well, i got lost trying to get back to the hospital unit on time. i went into several buildings before i got turned around and found the right building.
when i got onto my unit finally, i had to choose my 2 pts. i charted meds and stayed out of the way, but then i got report late from my primary nurse. my instructor noticed this and she was not happy!!! then the director of the program and my nursing instructor took me to a room and told me that there had been a concern about me during an evening when i went to the unit to select my patients. my instructor had previously told us that we could go to the unit the night before to select a pt if we went in professional clothing and so on. so i did, well the complaint... as i understand it to be... is that i seemed confused, disoriented, red in the face, and like i was just really confused and shuffling papers around.
i have been getting a lot of complaints from staff on this unit. i have been told that 5 different people have reported something negative about me since i have been going to this hospital. what's that all about? i don't know. one of the first complaints was from a doctor who walked in behind me while i was assessing my patient. i had my back to him, and my scope down my patients gown to listen to her heart. apparently he was upset that i did not leave so he could visit with the patient. i didn't even know he was in the room for a few minutes, then i had my scope down this lady's gown, what was i supposed to do????? just snap my fingers and disappear?????? i then have ben complained about from other staff who say that i was asking too many questions about my pt rather than going in and assessing her myself. i will admit i am a little nervous about going to see patients right away, but i don't think i need this kind of constant nitpicking as i turn every corner!!!!!!! i am afraid that when i go to see my instructor tomorrow, they will try to get rid of me!!!! what can i do??????? what recourse do i have??????? our syllabus states in our class that if our instructor chooses to do so, she can kick us out of the program if she sees fit to do so. now i am scared!!!!!!!!!
anyway, my nurse instructor sent me home today, and this will reduce my clinical grade by 10 % right off the bat; but now i am scared that she and the staff and the director are trying to get me kicked out of the program altogether!!!! i am a first year student, and i am not getting the politics of nursing down! i feel like i will have spent all this money and get kicked out of the program and have nothing to show for it and no where to go!!!! help!!!!
what should i do? i took a&p in 2005, and i could get into another program, i guess, but should i leave them, or just wait for them to get rid of me? i have worked way too hard for this to end this way!!!!!!! there must be some way to give them what they want without me having to get thrown out of school for this! i still do not know specifically what i did that caused others to complain. i was confused! i was shuffling papers! i have rosacea, and my face is always red after a shower!!!!! what am i supposed to do? can my school really legally throw me out for staff complaints?????????????????????????????????
help,
laura

where to begin??

i don't think your rosacea has anything to do with this...i wouldn't focus on that if i were you.

you charted meds and "stayed out of the way" before getting late report on your patients. why?? a nurse needs report in order to begin care of the patient. they're not even your patient until you're received report!! you get report first, then review meds...not sure what you meant by "charted meds".

again, keeping the rosacea out of the equation, were you confused and disoriented selecting your patients?? do you know the information you're responsible for gleening from the chart, labs, orders??

one complaint isn't a lot, but five?! honestly, if five different people have complained about you at this one site, you need to closely examine "why".

from what you wrote it seems like even after you realized the doctor was in the room you continued to ausculate. if you don't see the problem with this, then what could i say??

you assess the patient!!! you don't base your assessments on what previous staff document. you seriously need to address your fears with seeing patients.

Laura77598 · Feb 18, 2009

Hi everybody,

went and talked to my instructors today:

They are not happy with my Health Assessment skills with doing a Head-to-toe assessment. I need to improve and get a perfect head to toe ass. by next Thursday (Feb 26). I am nervous about not remembering all the bases to cover. I need to get a really good way to remember all the things I need to remember so I can impress my instructors. Also, I need to do this on a patient not a student. That makes it a little more awkward, since I have to ask these people to move and many of them are bedridden. Any suggestions about how to remember all the things covered in a Head to Toe?

By The Way

Thanks to all of you who took the time to answer my post!! :yeah: :bowingpur

I really got GREAT FEEDBACK from you ALL,

and the instructors echoed your advice in my meeting.

I am going to go to the unit the evening before, take notes on my pt, get his meds and labs jotted down, and look meds up at home when I get back about 30 mins later.

Then, when preconference comes around I will have much data on my 2 pts., and I won't have this problem again. Then after I Hear report, I will go and see my patients as soon as report is over, Do My Head To Toe, and I should be O.K.

Any other advice you can give is always appreciated!!!:bowingpur

Thanks Again,

Laura

Editorial Team / Admin · Feb 18, 2009

Threads merged for continuity.