I graduated in May with my ADN and have had a hard time finding a job. I finally landed a job in a SNF and was given 14 shifts of orientation. 3 of which included shadowing the wound nurse and just clerical things. I'm coming off of orientation in 5 days, and yesterday had the unit of 11 patients to myself and practically drowned. My orienting nurse was nowhere to be found when I needed help.
My personal life is suffering— I am scheduled 6 days a week, 8+ hrs when its my weekend on and 4-5 shifts when its not. I cannot sleep, I dread going to work, I've lost 5 pounds since I started at the facility and feel like a zombie. I'm miserable and debating just not going in anymore.
While I realize this is burning a bridge I do not plan to work for this facility in the future. I'm scared for my license due to the lack of training by the nurses. I was given a write up because I did not obtain a consent for Melatonin that was already given by another nurse yesterday (she did not obtain the consent).
Next week, on my one day off, I have a shadowing opportunity on a med surg unit at a hospital nearby. I interviewed and was told I would likely be offered a position by the unit manager. I'm assuming this is one of the last steps in their hiring process. Stick it out or leave and save my sanity and protect my license?
Specializes in Senior Care/Elderly Adults TCU, LTC, MC.
Congrats on your new job!
With all that said in mind, just be prepared that a Hospital Care setting has significant challenges that can ultimately lead to more stress and dire situations than a SNF job detail, and nurse bullies/preceptors.
It is often good to hone your assessment skills, time management, and knowledge base in a LTC or TCU, before jumping into a hospital setting. Unless you are a know it all Type A person, or someone who is good at jumping in head first.
It would be great if you could please post what challenges you faced in SNF in which caused you to feel like you were drowning?
I only ask because then advise can be given, although you will be in a new care environment/ hospital setting, some things do not change from setting to setting, certain aspects will always be there, such as the need to provide safe, efficient, and compassionate patient care, all the while by utilizing good time management, prioritizing which patient has most acute needs that should be tended to first and completing tasks/skills sometimes while under a good deal of stress w/out making drastic mistakes.
Hospital patients tend to be heavier in care and more complex nursing skills need to be carefully applied, such as checking an IV by first starting at the insertion site for possible phlebitis, infiltration, following the tubing making sure there are no kinks and air bubbles all the way up into the infusion pump, then checking the flow rate, ect ect (sry not the best example but)
Administering a blood transfusion, in which two nurses must thoroughly complete a step by step safety check of the blood before it is set to the correct flow rate to be transfused into the patient, if one aspect is missed or overlooked, things could be drastic!
Night shift does tend to be a slower more relaxed shift, but still possess its many challenges, and there maybe less staff to go to for support.
My post is not meant to scare you, but to help you prepare for a more critical care setting. I would still like to help give advice if you could post what your struggles were at the SNF?
Some advice could be beneficial to you as every nursing job is a juggling act of time management, prioritizing patients level of acuity/needs, completing complex nursing skills, and all of your cares/duties competently, and ending the shift by providing a detailed shift report to the next oncoming nurse.
I would decline the opportunity to continue working for the LTC facility PRN. You said working there concerns you about your license. You were written up because you wouldn't obtain consent for an already completed procedure that a different nurse completed on a different day. (Were you supposed to fraudulently back-date the consent?) Typically, facilities don't require a certain notice period before resigning during orientation. You don't count as staffing (even though they were wrongly using you that way), and most places don't want to pay to orient someone who will never work there.
If you want to work extra shifts, pick them up on your unit once you're oriented and comfortable, and you get the added benefit of overtime money that way. I imagine with COVID and flu season there'll be ample opportunities. (Don't do this until you're feeling good about working independently.)
I think it's wise for new grads to focus on one unit/employer at first - one flow, one set of policies and procedures, one set of available resources to learn, one set of who to call, etc.
I decided I will not be returning to the facility PRN. While on shift with my preceptor on a different unit and narcotics went missing. This was the first time on orientation I had another nurse continuously borrowing my keys (apparently I was too slow during med pass). She kept passing medications while I was in a room. She also held the keys when I went for a 15 minute break. I told her I was uncomfortable sharing the keys and she said that she is one of the main nurses for this unit and she knows so and so will ask for this at this time etc. An investigation was conducted and I was not suspended however Im unsure if they will ask me to come back to the facility to conduct a separate interview. My precepting nurse was the one required to fill out the missing narcotics form, however we both had to meet with the supervisor. This is just adding to the list of red flags...
Why did she not have her own keys? Were you drug tested after the incident? (CYA)! Write down the events of the day while they are still fresh in your mind. State only the facts. Keep this for your records sometimes these investigations can take a while.
I decided I will not be returning to the facility PRN. While on shift with my preceptor on a different unit and narcotics went missing.
[...]
See, I hope as many people as possible will read this thread all the way through! There is advice upstream about not burning bridges, pretty much no matter what.
We, as a profession have to stop operating that way. When employers treat us poorly in a way that is completely out of bounds (such as writing someone up for the reason the OP mentioned above), we have to walk if there is any possible way that we can. Employers have to have some way to know that they can not behave any old way with impunity.
It is ludicrous to go around telling each other to toe the line regardless of the employer's outlandish behavior.
Why did she not have her own keys? Were you drug tested after the incident? (CYA)! Write down the events of the day while they are still fresh in your mind. State only the facts. Keep this for your records sometimes these investigations can take a while.
There are only one set of keys to each med cart. No they did not drug test me although I offered. They barely gave me the paper for new hire drug testing and physical a week ago. Ridiculous! I assumed I would be suspended last week if they had suspected me of stealing. I do not plan on going back to the facility, even still I have my malpractice insurance should something arise. I even asked if there are cameras in this facility to check and they said no.
Please in the Future never give the narcotics keys to no one. Not even the ADN or Doctors until you sign out. I know of people who lost their job because of that. Please TRUST NO ONE WITH THE NORCOTIC KEYS,because you really don't know people. In addition, being a new nurse there they consider you don't have much to loose. STAY FOCUS!
Specializes in Psych, Addictions, SOL (Student of Life).
8 hours ago, newgradrn20205 said:
There are only one set of keys to each med cart. No they did not drug test me although I offered. They barely gave me the paper for new hire drug testing and physical a week ago. Ridiculous! I assumed I would be suspended last week if they had suspected me of stealing. I do not plan on going back to the facility, even still I have my malpractice insurance should something arise. I even asked if there are cameras in this facility to check and they said no.
Just a note - malpractice insurance will not cover you against allegations of theft!
So glad to hear you got the new job and took that offer! Anytime you dread going into work it’s time to move on especially if it’s so soon when you should be new, energetic and excited to be there. In all honestly, we all feel lost when we first start and studies have shown that most nurses don’t feel confident or feel like they know what they are doing until at least a year in. With that said, you still shouldn’t feel miserable going to work. There are too many opportunities in nursing to stay somewhere that’s causing misery and if you “burn a bridge” it’s a bridge you are never going to cross back so you don’t need it...just don’t burn it by being unprofessional or rude ONLY “burn it” to improve your career.
This same scenario describes my position now. They offered me PRN an I took it as I did not have any job offer at the time, but I planned to stay as far away as possible. Tonight I got an offer for RN Supervisor at a Nursing / Rehab facility which I interviewed for yesterday, base pay is 4$ higher but the diffs are way lower... Hopefully I can find myself back.
Ps I am a foreign trained nurse with 10 years experience and the said job is my first in the USA, I was so disillusioned...it felt like a developing nation at that hospital.
Andrew1403, ASN, BSN, RN
6 Posts
Congrats on your new job!
With all that said in mind, just be prepared that a Hospital Care setting has significant challenges that can ultimately lead to more stress and dire situations than a SNF job detail, and nurse bullies/preceptors.
It is often good to hone your assessment skills, time management, and knowledge base in a LTC or TCU, before jumping into a hospital setting. Unless you are a know it all Type A person, or someone who is good at jumping in head first.
It would be great if you could please post what challenges you faced in SNF in which caused you to feel like you were drowning?
I only ask because then advise can be given, although you will be in a new care environment/ hospital setting, some things do not change from setting to setting, certain aspects will always be there, such as the need to provide safe, efficient, and compassionate patient care, all the while by utilizing good time management, prioritizing which patient has most acute needs that should be tended to first and completing tasks/skills sometimes while under a good deal of stress w/out making drastic mistakes.
Hospital patients tend to be heavier in care and more complex nursing skills need to be carefully applied, such as checking an IV by first starting at the insertion site for possible phlebitis, infiltration, following the tubing making sure there are no kinks and air bubbles all the way up into the infusion pump, then checking the flow rate, ect ect (sry not the best example but)
Administering a blood transfusion, in which two nurses must thoroughly complete a step by step safety check of the blood before it is set to the correct flow rate to be transfused into the patient, if one aspect is missed or overlooked, things could be drastic!
Night shift does tend to be a slower more relaxed shift, but still possess its many challenges, and there maybe less staff to go to for support.
My post is not meant to scare you, but to help you prepare for a more critical care setting. I would still like to help give advice if you could post what your struggles were at the SNF?
Some advice could be beneficial to you as every nursing job is a juggling act of time management, prioritizing patients level of acuity/needs, completing complex nursing skills, and all of your cares/duties competently, and ending the shift by providing a detailed shift report to the next oncoming nurse.