Hurricane

Good lord. That is sad and awful... As a a not-yet-“conceived” “Baby-Nurse” the only logic I see in your patients’ hypochondriasis, is that some treatments can cause low white cell counts. I could see people being freaked out for that because the “army” of immune system’s “fighting cells” have been taken out. My mom had cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy when I was a teenager and she was hospitalized for some issue (and had extremely low white counts). Anyway, it was cold season here but no coronavirus back then. Thank God, she was OK and taken care of, continues her treatments, and has been cancer free ever since - 20 years or something!

I appreciate also the perspective that there is more than one “good fit”. And that it’s not a career death sentence if the first one doesn’t work out!

Hi - strongly considering a career change into nursing. I am in my early 30’s. Looking around on here it sounds like the 1st year after graduation can really destroy people. Even those who did well in school and interviewed well. When I put my mind to something, I can excel in school and do well in interviews. That’s not to say I’ve been a rockstar at every job I’ve had! Is there something about certain new nurses that made them destined to be a dud on the job, despite being one of your most promising new hires? If there are things like that I would like to know, so I can look at myself honestly and either work to improve myself, or realize that it’s just not compatible with me - before embarking on this long and challenging commitment of becoming a nurse! Are there any aptitude tests (or personality tests) that I could take prior to deciding to start my nursing education? I’ve been doing research on this and most places are very clear on the “what it takes” part - and I feel like I’ve got most of that. But what are some “fatal flaws” that once promising new grads have, that caused them to fall on their face in their first year of work, and have to give up the career? (Or is it seriously just a matter of Hospital X is poorly managed/ICU a poor fit but Med Surge was great). (FWIW, my intention would be to pursue schooling and career locally, and I live in a midsize city dominated by two major hospital systems that hire probably 90% of nurses). I am really excited to be exploring this opportunity at this time, but I also shudder at the thought that I could undertake this huge commitment to be a square peg in a round hole and have to start over all over again.