Hi, I am new to this forum. I am a 37 yr old mother of three who worked in the Ultrasound field for eons...before making the "smart" move to go back to school for nursing. I was in the hospital since I was 20, know the politics, made many friends and many enemies. I am an outspoken, honest,"say it like it is" person who believes in team work and NON backstabbing. I was recently terminated from a position as a staff nurse at a local hospital in M---- County Pennsylvania. I was in this program that would supposedly take me from med-surg all the way up to ICU/CCU. That's what I wanted. Ever since I had started at this institution I have encountered nothing but negative feedback. I am a new nurse, six month's into the GAME. I have been pulled into the nursing office about three times,confronted by two nurse managers that they feel I was just not getting it. That was the first meeting, when I was there on the floor as a new nurse for only 6 days. Then second meeting they told me that I wasn't filling out my I/O sheets (O.K) that "other nurses" were complaining that I was unaproachable, defensive, unfocused, and that patients were complaining too. I said, O.K, can you give me some examples so I know what to work on. They said that they didn't have it ALL written down but there were numerous complaints. I also supposedly talked about alot of the nurses to other nurses. ( At this point I am thinking am I in high school?) So I left that meeting solum and beaten....vowing to not say a peep to anyone. I have three children here to feed and a marriage on the rocks. But unfortunately I have a personality that loves to laugh, talk, help others, and really want to make a difference in patients and my coworkers lives. So that didn't last. I was told I was on probation again....after 5 months on the floor and that I was not ready to be trained on the telemetry floor. ( My background is Cardiology...Echo, holter scanning, etc.) The very next week they ( nursing office) decide to pull me to the telemetry floor, by myself, no preceptor or co-assign for 12 hrs. (Humph!) They( nursing office) call me about 3pm and ask me to stay to 7pm, there on telemtry. I opened my big 'ol mouth and said "Isn't it funny how I am not ready to be trained in telemtry but you can put me here for twelve hours." I stayed. The next week they pull me to the Oncology floor, which is a hospice floor also. I did a two week rotation there in December. I recieved 5 patients....One was dying...and did die on me, a psych patient with medical issues, a drug seeker, a normal medical case, and last but certainly not the least, a OPT coming in for blood that spoke only Russian. Well, my day was hell, so one of the other nurses "started" the ball rolling as far as my patient that had to recieve blood. She did the assessment and "got them ready for me". I was left with the IV stick and getting the blood. I did this all after sticking this poor woman three times because of rolly veins and I proceeded with it when the clerk told me the blood was ready. Appartently there were med's to give prior to the blood that I did not know about. I assumed (how wrong I was) the other nurse would have let me know this. She wrote the nursing progress notes on the patient and it was a mistake I will never make again. Anyhow, this woman's vein infiltrated, I took it out, iced it, then went to pull a seasoned nurse to restick here again. When the first unit of blood was done, I took her vitals and let the oncoming nurse that she had to get lasix folling the unit and after the second unit. This fact was told to me. Patients vitals all within normal parameters, I finished all the rest of my paperwork, and lastly checked if the oncoming nurse needed anything before I left. She said no. Off the next day, then went to work the day after, pulled in the office and was shown an order that stated Tylenol 650mg P.O, Benadryl 25mg, P.O, and Hydrocortosone (don't know the amount...blurry now) and that these meds were never given, now this patient was admitted with reactions and she is in CHF. I looked at the order and it had no time or when to give (premedicate or only PRN)So I am at fault but there were more than one pair of hands in this pot along with a badly written order. I was terminated. I was told that I didn't follow through. Then they said that I didn't even sign the progress note and that's when I told them that I did not write that. They said"oh...." I never receieved any written warnings nor had to sign for anything and I feel that I did not practice at 100% but it was a floor out of my realm. I hope all that reads this do not think that I think I am infallable. I am not. I just feel that this hospital had no intention of keeping me and were waiting to see me fall. I am a "6 month old nurse" in desperate need of a job and I need good references. I was going to stay at this one place until I hit my year mark. It does not look right when you go from place to place. I need some guidance here, if any body would be so kind. Thank you. Bindy
Hi, I am new to this forum. I am a 37 yr old mother of three who worked in the Ultrasound field for eons...before making the "smart" move to go back to school for nursing. I was in the hospital since I was 20, know the politics, made many friends and many enemies. I am an outspoken, honest,"say it like it is" person who believes in team work and NON backstabbing. I was recently terminated from a position as a staff nurse at a local hospital in M---- County Pennsylvania. I was in this program that would supposedly take me from med-surg all the way up to ICU/CCU. That's what I wanted. Ever since I had started at this institution I have encountered nothing but negative feedback. I am a new nurse, six month's into the GAME. I have been pulled into the nursing office about three times,confronted by two nurse managers that they feel I was just not getting it. That was the first meeting, when I was there on the floor as a new nurse for only 6 days. Then second meeting they told me that I wasn't filling out my I/O sheets (O.K) that "other nurses" were complaining that I was unaproachable, defensive, unfocused, and that patients were complaining too. I said, O.K, can you give me some examples so I know what to work on. They said that they didn't have it ALL written down but there were numerous complaints. I also supposedly talked about alot of the nurses to other nurses. ( At this point I am thinking am I in high school?) So I left that meeting solum and beaten....vowing to not say a peep to anyone. I have three children here to feed and a marriage on the rocks. But unfortunately I have a personality that loves to laugh, talk, help others, and really want to make a difference in patients and my coworkers lives. So that didn't last. I was told I was on probation again....after 5 months on the floor and that I was not ready to be trained on the telemetry floor. ( My background is Cardiology...Echo, holter scanning, etc.) The very next week they ( nursing office) decide to pull me to the telemetry floor, by myself, no preceptor or co-assign for 12 hrs. (Humph!) They( nursing office) call me about 3pm and ask me to stay to 7pm, there on telemtry. I opened my big 'ol mouth and said "Isn't it funny how I am not ready to be trained in telemtry but you can put me here for twelve hours." I stayed. The next week they pull me to the Oncology floor, which is a hospice floor also. I did a two week rotation there in December. I recieved 5 patients....One was dying...and did die on me, a psych patient with medical issues, a drug seeker, a normal medical case, and last but certainly not the least, a OPT coming in for blood that spoke only Russian. Well, my day was hell, so one of the other nurses "started" the ball rolling as far as my patient that had to recieve blood. She did the assessment and "got them ready for me". I was left with the IV stick and getting the blood. I did this all after sticking this poor woman three times because of rolly veins and I proceeded with it when the clerk told me the blood was ready. Appartently there were med's to give prior to the blood that I did not know about. I assumed (how wrong I was) the other nurse would have let me know this. She wrote the nursing progress notes on the patient and it was a mistake I will never make again. Anyhow, this woman's vein infiltrated, I took it out, iced it, then went to pull a seasoned nurse to restick here again. When the first unit of blood was done, I took her vitals and let the oncoming nurse that she had to get lasix folling the unit and after the second unit. This fact was told to me. Patients vitals all within normal parameters, I finished all the rest of my paperwork, and lastly checked if the oncoming nurse needed anything before I left. She said no. Off the next day, then went to work the day after, pulled in the office and was shown an order that stated Tylenol 650mg P.O, Benadryl 25mg, P.O, and Hydrocortosone (don't know the amount...blurry now) and that these meds were never given, now this patient was admitted with reactions and she is in CHF. I looked at the order and it had no time or when to give (premedicate or only PRN)So I am at fault but there were more than one pair of hands in this pot along with a badly written order. I was terminated. I was told that I didn't follow through. Then they said that I didn't even sign the progress note and that's when I told them that I did not write that. They said"oh...." I never receieved any written warnings nor had to sign for anything and I feel that I did not practice at 100% but it was a floor out of my realm. I hope all that reads this do not think that I think I am infallable. I am not. I just feel that this hospital had no intention of keeping me and were waiting to see me fall. I am a "6 month old nurse" in desperate need of a job and I need good references. I was going to stay at this one place until I hit my year mark. It does not look right when you go from place to place. I need some guidance here, if any body would be so kind. Thank you. Bindy