not so NETY

[Fruit Sucker]

Four months into my first job as a new nurse. I found the ubiquitous NETY situation to be very different from what many have described. The experienced nurses on my unit are awesome. They know things, are happy to give advice/guidance in a quick, expedient way, and they don't give a hoot about personal stuff with other staff. They leave you alone to do your job unless you ask for help.

The newer nurses, however, are a nightmare. Ask one to show you how to do something, and you'll be spending the next twenty minutes gritting your teeth while they enjoy the sound of their own voices. They're constantly doling out unsolicited advice that they think is very sage but that any idiot would know. They ask personal questions about your life that are none of their business. They talk about other people's personal information with anyone who will listen. They're nosy about what's going on with your patients. They constantly search out opportunities to make themselves look smarter than everyone else.

For my orientation, I was assigned to one of these new nurses, who would loudly berate me for asking about something she had already told me about. Preferably in front of as many people as possible. She had extremely poor time management and was constantly flustered and would take it out on me. She refused to let me do any "cool" procedures because she wanted to do them herself. Patient needs a port accessed? Forget it, I'd have to stand there while she went on and on in a loud condescending voice.

I had to go to my unit supervisor and request that I be scheduled with an experienced nurse. Why they would put someone with a new nurse for orientation is beyond my understanding. The rest of my orientation, with an experienced nurse, went along like a dream.

Some of these new nurses think too highly of themselves, and some humility is sorely needed. And they really need to think about whether they are qualified to teach someone instead of insisting they be given trainees because they want preceptor pay.

[Purple_roses]

This is not NETY, but I can understand wanting a more experienced nurse to train you.

[Fruit Sucker]

This is not NETY, but I can understand wanting a more experienced nurse to train you.

That's why I put "not so NETY" as the title.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

Why they would put someone with a new nurse for orientation is beyond my understanding.

There are only so many experienced nurses to go around. In my unit, orientees outnumber the COBs. So some of the orientees get the 2 year nurse who is just learning to precept. If you've got a pulse and have had to renew your license at least once, you have to precept -- whether you like it or not, and whether or not you're good at it. As a COB, I think we should be mentoring these brand new preceptors -- but that's money the institution doesn't HAVE to spend, so they don't.

[kalycat, BSN, RN]

Just chiming in to say... I've had similar experiences. Not quite to this degree, but there's definitely a culture difference and some interesting interpersonal issues. I'm in a pretty steep learning curve anyway so I just do my best to keep a good attitude, take something away from every interaction, and document anything truly bizarre or wildly inappropriate with my educator/boss. Because I'm in the OR, there's a large swing on the appropriateness scale, so I take most with a grain of salt and move on.

[JBudd, MSN]

Sometimes the newer nurses still remember what areas frustrated them the most, as in what seems baffling to a newer nurse, an experienced nurse thinks is just common sense and didn't need to be explained.

Condescension doesn't help, but is it possible she was proudly showing off a bit rather than trying to put you down?