Not out of Orientation yet and...

al7139, ASN, RN · Sep 11, 2007

Hi,

Do you have a hospital or unit educator who plans your orientation, or is your orientation planned by your unit? I am a new grad, and just finished my orientation. At our hospital if you are an orientee, you have a nurse educator who you work with. I did not technically report to my unit manager until I completed orientation. I had two main preceptors on the unit who I worked with. On one occasion, the preceptor who I was scheduled with called in, and they assigned me to a nurse who I knew, but had never worked with. This person is a great nurse, but we have very different ways of organizing and it was a very difficult shift for me. She was very pushy with how she does things, and did not take into consideration that I had been orienting for a while, and had developed my own way of organizing my shift. The next time I spoke with the nurse educator, I expressed how difficult and frustrating working with this person was. She made sure that whenever I could not be assigned to my regular preceptors, I was given the choice of who I wanted to work with (as long as that nurse was ok with it).

Bottom line: Consider orientation as if it is for you. If you are not comfortable with your preceptor, you ultimately lose. Speak with whoever is your supervisor during orientation about getting a different preceptor. If it is a good hospital, they will be receptive, since they ultimately gain a happy nurse. Be sure not to talk bad about this person when you ask for another preceptor, just say that you are not feeling a connection, and you would like to be assigned to another nurse to ensure that you get all you can out of orientation.

Hope this helps!

Amy

santhony44, MSN, RN, NP · Sep 11, 2007

Hi,
Bottom line: Consider orientation as if it is for you. If you are not comfortable with your preceptor, you ultimately lose. Speak with whoever is your supervisor during orientation about getting a different preceptor. If it is a good hospital, they will be receptive, since they ultimately gain a happy nurse. Be sure not to talk bad about this person when you ask for another preceptor, just say that you are not feeling a connection, and you would like to be assigned to another nurse to ensure that you get all you can out of orientation.

I think this is excellent advice. Express that your preceptor is an excellent nurse, etc etc, but that your personal styles are very different and you'd like to have a different preceptor for the rest of your orientation.

If I'm understanding what you mean by "high strung" that person would be driving me crazy, too.

anonymurse · Sep 11, 2007

My preceptor rushes me so much, and its not like I'm drowning...she is just high strung and is all over me ALL THE TIME. Its not helping me at all, and sometimes I wonder if I'd do better without her help. At the end of the day I just feel frazzled.

Same here. I stayed quiet and refused to complain. Then one day the preceptor (a charge nurse) said the manager wanted to see us in her office. I said OK. The manager asked how I was doing, and I said my preceptor was a brilliant nurse, but I just wasn't making any headway on learning multitasking; that I organized very differently and I was doing much worse than on my own. The preceptor went on the attack and said I didn't do something I did. I calmly stated that I did it. She said she didn't remember it that way. There was a long pause that was comfortable for me. Then the manager asked me if I was ready to be on my own. I said yes. She asked the preceptor if I was safe. The preceptor mumbled something equivocal. The manager asked again. The preceptor said yes. Since then it's been fantastic.

I think orientation is just that, getting oriented to the unit. Many preceptors however see it as a test of their precepting skills. They want to see if they can duplicate the habits it took them years to develop in an entirely different person in just a few weeks. So once you are oriented to the policies and procedures of the unit, its internal customers and suppliers, then I think it's time to cut the apron strings so you can begin the process of applying your own style to the work situation. Staying any longer will have you trying to be someone you aren't, which can't end happily for anyone. And if the preceptor won't let go, and you're ready, then maybe you can terminate the unhealthy relationship. Of course there are procedures that only come along a few times a year on a unit and which you haven't yet taken part in, but that's doesn't mean you're not ready.

This is the case of the patient having to know when they need to be on their own for their own good, and possibly having to be the one to terminate the relationship when it ceases to be therapeutic. Not common with nurse-to-patient relationships, but apparently not uncommon in nursing preceptor-orientee relationships.

Nursing4Sure · Sep 13, 2007

Im a fairly new GN in my second month of fellowship. I have two great preceptors and all the unit nurses (well, almost all of them:lol2:) are great and are welling to offer help. Two month into the program, I'm not as reliant on my preceptors as much as when i first began. That said, I still run things that im not sure of through them just to make sure...and believe me that has saved my ass many times. In your situation, which also applies to me as well, u have to take charge. The preceptor is there to help and guide u through ur orientation, not hold you by a leash and drag u around. At this point in ur orientation u should ask ur preceptor to step back and let u do everything. I think this well help u develop ur own style and confidence. And REMEMBER, when it comes to nursing, as my preceptor puts it, the PATIENT ALWAYS COMES FIRST, paper work can wait.

Good luck

traumaRNmelissa · Sep 15, 2007

The first half of orintation I left every day in tears. I was so frazzled, my preceptor would frequently leave me in a room alone with patients I was not ready to handle independently. I also about 1/2 way through orientation had a complaint by a family member. The patient was totally crapping out on me and my preceptor was no where to be found. He had a BP of something like 60/30 and was loosing conciousness (I am in the ED). I hung some fluids , dropped his head and went looking for ANYONE to help me. The charge nurse came to help but the family complained that I was not communicative and "giggled" innapropriatly. they also stated that left their dying father, which I guess I did to go find help.

After much ado, I request another preceptor and had a completly different second half. I was so much more confident and comfortable in situations that before would have scared the crap out of me.

Do NOT be afraid ask! It will make a world of difference!

nurseangel47 · Sep 16, 2007

Ok, here it is. Why is it, I ask you wise ones, that someone's preceptor, a nurse most likely held in higher regard knowledge-wise, etc. hence the reason they ARE a preceptor....can be most probably, accurately, I might add, described as "high strung, emotional, high spirited", etc...you fill in the blanks with an adjective,...you get my drift...when I have an "off " day or hour or shift, though, I am immediately called on the carpet of whatever manager or dept. head is rolling staff heads off the desk's guillotine that day???!!!

I am sorry to vent in part of another's vent for an unrelated topic, however,....it just triggered the question in me since I've debated it repeatedly every year I've been a nurse. Why is it that some get away with behaviors that others are called on the carpet for? I have actually lost jobs from having been driven away after so called dressing downs for being too emotional at work. Or not reacting a certain specific way towards pts., families, you name it. When others' snide remarks to their pts., family members, etc. simply gain MORE respect from the same nurse supervisors/managers! Gosh, for the life of me, I cannot fathom why I have such poor luck in nursing arenas when I am honestly not as "off the wall" as others at times! I am not saying I'm blameless here, so please, no flames. Just looking for honest two cents' worth of others' opinions.

BTW, to the original poster.-I was in the exact same situation as you at one home health company I once was employed with. The particular preceptor was good as gold insofar as driving to and betwixt each client, no matter HOW many COUNTIES each visit was apart, NOT stopping for ANY breaks, no food or water, no potty stops, etc. and rambling on and on about what to document, when, etc. for that particular company's paperwork (*and as everyone in home health knows, paperwork varies widely from organizations across the map, home health-wise, suffice it to say, though, that the paperwork in ALL home health care delivery systems is VOLUMINOUS!)

I digress, original poster, sorry. Anyhoo....she was excellent in all areas of her preceptoring except for the tone she used while communicating, due to her HIGHLY strung personality and voice tonal qualities, leading one to feel as if, yes, like you stated, that nails dragged across chalkboard were a simile!

I quickly and politely made it known to my immediate nursing supervisor without even eyebrows raised on her part, that I thought I could learn more quickly from nurse x on the same team, and was immediately accommodated, as well. They were more interested in my having a well rounded, thorough, as quickly as humanly and safely possible orientation to the way they ran their ship than for me to be unhappy and learn in an unsafe way due to my discomfort level with that particular nurse, albeit a good one, she was lacking in social interaction/verbalization/body language skills, big time!

So, perhaps politely asking, very nicely, in a diplomatic manner might make all the difference for you, as well. Just ask the nursing supervisor or nurse manager, whatever it is they call themselves at the hospital where you are. All they can do is say "no". They probably won't give it another thought, either, once the matter is taken care of. They want a smooth running engine of a unit, that is their main concern. Oh yes, and meeting the almighty bottom line dollar amount/monies saved by whatever means necessary....but you get my drift. Hope my opinion helps you in some small way.

Don't beat yourself up either over the comments/complaints that the already pissed off family went to the boss over your head. It sounds as if by that time, no one, not even SuperNurse herself, could have pleased them over any concerns or issues whatsoever, in caring for their family member!

Good luck!