Please don't eat your young.

Published

as a nursing student i am having a hard time understanding why a good number of nurses are so nasty to nursing students. don't they realize that we are the people who will help fill the shortages in their facilities making their jobs easier? don't get me wrong, i have worked with some great nurses who have been very helpful to me during my clinical rotations. however, the nurses who "eat their young" should know that nursing students compare notes. we warn each other about facilities or units where the nurses have treated us poorly and do not apply for jobs in those places. if your facility has a staffing shortage, being nice to student nurses may help fill the gap later on.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in nursery, L and D.

I think we have covered this sufficiently in several other threads. Nurses do NOT hold the monopoly on being rude to people. Every profession has some jerks. Just gotta deal with it. Hopefully by being assertive and professional yourself. You aren't anyones "young" but your parents, you are an adult, they don't let children into nursing schools. If someone is being rude/abrasive/mean act like an adult and tell them so (nicely, of course)!

I am always nice and helpful to students, I know who I will be working with one day!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Psych, Informatics, Biostatistics.
as a nursing student i am having a hard time understanding why a good number of nurses are so nasty to nursing students. don't they realize that we are the people who will help fill the shortages in their facilities making their jobs easier? don't get me wrong, i have worked with some great nurses who have been very helpful to me during my clinical rotations. however, the nurses who "eat their young" should know that nursing students compare notes. we warn each other about facilities or units where the nurses have treated us poorly and do not apply for jobs in those places. if your facility has a staffing shortage, being nice to student nurses may help fill the gap later on.

i agree with you kiren. i don't know why they do that. nurses just do not consider it part of their job to train people. they figure you should grasp it, first time around. that to me is not training.

good luck to you in your future studies and please don' t let them get to you.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

But they're so tasty....

Up Vote Up Vote ×

There are people who just dont play well with others, be they nurses or what ever. I had an instructor once tell me that rude nurses will teach ya just as much even if its just how you don't want to be. Sometimes it helps just to figure that "mary" must be having a bad day. Good luck in your future studies, I am sure you will meet better people, I work now with a nurse I met 1st semester who I admire and still try to model my self after

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ER.

I think there's ignorance on both sides of the issue. Your instructor should be able to mediate major conflicts, but keep in mind that some people are just jerks (students AND grads).

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in nursery, L and D.
but keep in mind that some people are just jerks (students AND grads).

Exactly!! Also, lots of other people in the world besides nurses.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

When I was in nursing school, I met a nurse now and again who seemed determined I should "pay my dues" just like she had to, in the sense that she had a miserable beginning as a nurse, and so should I. I finally spoke with one of them directly and explained a bit about my life and why, as an over 30 college student, there had been plenty of dues paying in my life and childhood. She relaxed and I hope I helped her to judge people less harshly. I found that some nurses who are nasty to the newbies are just exercising the small amount of power they perceive they have, in a unit that has been nasty to them, or in a hospital where management doesn't appreciate nurses at all. I have found that the direct approach works best. I asked one nurse, "What can I do to make your day easier? I am here to help you, even though I sense you see me as just another irritation in a bad day." She ended up showing me a lot of things.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Lie detection.
as a nursing student i am having a hard time understanding why a good number of nurses are so nasty to nursing students. don't they realize that we are the people who will help fill the shortages in their facilities making their jobs easier? don't get me wrong, i have worked with some great nurses who have been very helpful to me during my clinical rotations. however, the nurses who "eat their young" should know that nursing students compare notes. we warn each other about facilities or units where the nurses have treated us poorly and do not apply for jobs in those places. if your facility has a staffing shortage, being nice to student nurses may help fill the gap later on.

hi kiren,

you bring up some valid points. i would like to give you some information that may help you if you have a little time. if you use the search button at the bottom of this page and type in "nurses eating young" or something like that, i'm sure you will get some of the recent threads that we have had. many of us contributed thoughts, the threads got quite lengthy and it may help you to read some of it.

good luck in your futrue endeavors and post often!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.

There are a lot of threads on this subject here at our site. I would encourage you do a search and you will find a lot of interesting and educational reading.

I also encourage anyone feeling "eaten" gain skills of self-assertion and if truly being bullied, seek help. Here is a resource for you to help you cope with bullies in all walks of life:

http://www.bullyonline.com

remember, in so many cases, half of any equation like this is YOU....you can change a few things, mainly, your attitude and how you react to such people who give you a hard time. I wish you good luck. Hang in there.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

When I was a student most of our instructors had the mentality and actually outright said they were there to make us pay our dues, we would receive our 'dues' from the RNs we worked under on the floors during clincal rotations and to just deal with it. The instructors made it a point to be nasty and play it off saying 'we're only giving you what you're going to get once you get out in a job' saying they were 'toughening' us up. To me that's just a sorry excuse for being rude and unprofessional. Not all our instructors were like that however, TG! For the most part, the nurses on the floors during clinicals were not like we were told to expect. Most of them were great, even when they were clearly weary and didn't really want another student they were professional and kind. There was one unit though that was horrid. The prof (one of the nice ones) actually apologized in advance for the RNs we'd be working with saying there was 'hx' here of being unaccepting of students and this is where they had a contract and we drew the raw deal on this rotation, wished she could do something about it but the super didn't seem to care/be able to change anything. I blew it off as 'ya sure, whatever--we've been told to expect this everywhere we go but haven't seen it yet.' Well, was I ever shocked! The entire bunch of RNs were the rudest set of people I've ever met. It was unbelievable. I now work in surgical services where my colleagues are absolutely wonderful. They were cautious at first with a new grad coming into the midst, wasn't something they'd had in a long time and weren't fond of the extra training it would require vs someone who was an experienced nurse and knowing nursing school gives us all of 2 days in the OR and one lecture on OR practices, etc. All has worked out great and I'm pleased to say that my unit doesn't eat its young as the myth goes but like others have said, it's not excluded from nor exclusive to the profession.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Med/Surg, Geri, Ortho, Telemetry, Psych.

I hate when students say nurses "eat their young". When I was a student I did not experience any such thing and as a nurse I bring my own lunch. Mean people are mean people anywhere you go and in any workplace, has nothing to do with being nurses. Get over it and get used to it, you are going to deal with evil people no matter where you go. Good luck.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion