New Grad RN - finally found a job

[iheartcali_RN]

Hi all!

Like most new grads, I waited..waited..and waited..and WAITED some more for a job. Finally, I have been offered a position in a new grad RN program and although I am VERY excited, I am nervous :uhoh21: . It's been so long since I have been in a hospital setting (more than a year now!) Also, the fact that this new job is not local (hours and hours away from my families and friends), is not helping the situation. I am anxious of how I will adjust to this job and better yet how I will adjust to this whole new environment. Any tips on how I can calm my nerves down and just shine during orientation?? Any nurses out there who felt the same way I feel now when they first got their job?? I need words of wisdom and encouragement :) Thanks all nurses!

[preppyrn, BSN, MSN, RN, APRN]

iheartcali,

You sound exactly like me one year ago! It had been months since I was actually in a hospital when I recieved my new grad RN job offer. First off, if you got the job, you certainly have the personality, skills, and resume to shine naturally. If you've got some down time before you start, I'd flip through your old nursing text books about the particular area of nursing you will begin doing just as a refresher. But remember: you were hired under the pretense of being a new grad. As much as textbook nursing teaches you, REAL nursing begins the second you're on the floor. You learn about which doctors to call, where the syringes are kept, what the protocol for xyz procedure is, which nurses are good resources, how to handle scheduling, how to deal with patient/co-worker conflicts. So, my best advice is to stay optimistic, show that you are willing to learn, accept that you don't know it all, and be open to learning everyday. You are going to be a wonderful nurse and I hope that you will be offering this same advice to the next new grad who needs it. Best of luck!