New Grad RN

thenightnurse456 · Jan 20, 2015

Take a deep breath.

Nearly every new graduate nurse experiences exactly what your feeling.

Time management will come with time and experience: DO NOT put pressure on yourself to go faster. This will only increase your chances of making a mistake. It will happen just give it time.

Do not compare yourself to other experienced nurses. Your new. They know this.

My advice is not new advice. Come into work 10 minutes early to get settled. Get your assignment. Check labs/orders/tele strips etc. This will make you feel more prepared for when you receive report.

Create a customised brain sheet that will help you plan your shift and assist you in giving report. When meds, assessments, dressings are all due. If you want examples, do a quick search on the forum.

Seek out a mentor on your floor (perhaps your preceptor or unit manager?) who can give you additional advice and support once

your orientation is over.

Does your floor do bedside report? If so, during report assess your patient and surroundings on a basic level: patient A's bag of fluid is nearly empty, I know before I go into the room again to grab a fresh bag to save running back and forward.

Delegate to appropriate staff members. Does your floor have techs/CNAs? Work with them! Teamwork!

Hourly rounding. So many people find it tedious and annoying but trust me, effective hourly rounding will save you a lot of running around backwards and forwards. Less call lights, less complaints and your always kept in the loop with what's going on because your always in the rooms.

Where safe/legal cluster your cares. Patient B needs his picc dressing changed today, he also has an Iv antibiotic due at 10. Seeing as I have to do a whole new line and bag with the dressing change I could do it all at 10 to save going in and out several times.

Last is to try getting in the habit of charting as you go. Don't leave it till the end of your shift. It won't do you any favours.

I'm sure there's a lot more advice I could give but I am post night shift and I'm not sure any of this post will make sense! All the best, let us know how you progress!

Nonyvole, BSN, RN · Jan 21, 2015

Lots of good advice already.

More things to think about: you have a preceptor, yes? Use them. They're not there to tell you everything that you're doing wrong, they're there to help you transition from being a student nurse to being a floor nurse. Observe them, ask about how they like to cluster care and organize their day. That's a great topic of discussion for lunch or a break.

Make a mental note of one or two new drugs each day to look up. Write all the information about them on note cards - it may be a throwback to nursing school, but you can organize them into class, frequency seen, whatever works best for you and then you'll have a ready reference. Over time you'll have the medications that you see the most often down cold.

Now, I'm an ER nurse and have never worked on the floor, but it's always a good idea to notify the physician if anything is going on with the patient that is an immediate threat to life and limb. Or could rapidly become so, and you don't have standing orders.

Finally, take it one step at a time. Nobody is expecting you to come out of nursing school and be a carbon clone of the nurse that has been working that floor for the past ten years. So something else you can do is sit down with your preceptor and write out a rough timeline of personal goals. Or you can do it yourself. It will be your own care plan with short and long term goals (more nursing school flashbacks!). For example: "By the end of my next shift I will cluster cares for one patient." "By the end of the week I will be able to cluster cares for all my patients."

And good luck! You'll do fine.

LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN · Jan 21, 2015

I would like to add: a few things:

Yes, the curve into the transition from nursing student to novice nurse is steep; however there are a few things to consider to make a successful transition:

1. Self study. This is HUGE factor in understanding what you have learned for the day and how it can complement your nursing practice.

Studying doesn't stop after nursing school. :no: Continue to study: if you think you are going to have to put the books away, think again. This is the time for self study, find nursing manuals for the specialty that you are getting into; as well as any disorder you encounter, study it, reflect on it, and incorporate it into your practice.

2. Advocate: meaning, be assertive in asking for help, finding information, and be assertive enough to understand that you do not have all the answers, but be willing to TRY to find the answers.

3. My personal 3 C's in becoming a excellent nurse: Consistency, Competence, Confidence.

Be consistent in best practice; you become competent and confident in your practice. That means understanding you will NEVER know everything, but be willing to learn everyday of your nursing career, and be ok with that. :)

Best Wishes.

Home Health Columnist / Guide · Jan 22, 2015

Moved to allnurses First Year After Nursing Licensure

Please read the advice our members have given out over the years. You are experiencing new nurse jitters--this is normal and lessens after 6-9mo at work; often can continues to 2nd year when it all seems to come magically together as your confidence soars.

Best wishes