Sassybottom

Strong leaders on the floor. Having a supportive, competent, and hard working charge nurse does so much for the morale of the nurses and support staff on the floor. The difference between an excellent charge nurse and horrible charge is like night and day. One makes you actually look forward to working and the other truly makes you physically dread work. Seeing a charge nurse sitting around doing nothing and eating while call bells are going off, admissions are coming in, and staff are running off their feet is frustrating and leaves a sour taste in your mouth. He never even offered to help - just sat around eating and surfing the net, reading. The only times he seems to offer help is when it looks like you have everything under control. I don't even trust him to come to him with questions - he is just not that knowledgeable - it would be like the blind leading the blind. I'd have better luck trying to figure it out myself or asking anyone and everyone but him. Yeah, I am dreading working when he is charge vs. can't wait to work when a strong charge is leading the unit. A good charge nurse has been the main reason I love my job ... managers should recognize this and grant salary bonuses to good charges.

NVM - Incorrect

Just to clarify, this is what I have "heard" from surgeons who work at this hospital. Who knows if their sources are reliable but what they describe makes sense to me. Hospitals will try to cut back on costs wherever they can. Why hire a RN to do a job an OR tech can do? Why have a team of RNs assisting the surgeon when 1 circulator is enough (according to them).

Keep things professional ... just remember you are there to work not to make friends. If you do happen to make friends with your co-workers, great. But, if you don't become friends with your co-workers, that is okay too. It is their problem not yours. You won't get along with everyone in the world. The best advice is to keep things neutral and professional. Good luck ... I know what it is like to work with unwelcoming individuals too ...

I don't know but I feel less rushed when I know I will have that extra hour that would otherwise be spent on a forced break. During the break the only thing that will be on my mind is what needs to be done or what might be happening to my patients while i am off the floor ...

I don't mean completely phased out but the only positions for RNs in the OR will be as a circulator. RNs will not be hired to do the same work that can be done by an OR tech. If an OR tech can competently do the job at a lower price, the hospital is going to hire OR techs, not RNs. This is what I have heard ... I am not saying this is going to happen everywhere but that is the plan for this one particular level 1 trauma hospital in my area.

I also hear that they are phasing out OR nurses ... the jobs are being replaced by scrub techs. The only position for nurses will be as a circulator and openings for those positions are rare.

Honestly, the lure of $$, benefits like subsidized gym memberships, and meeting friendly nurses who actually work on the floor and love their job.

I don't know what is wrong with me but it is often a struggle for me to get all my work done efficiently. It really sucks. I always feel like the slowest person on the floor. Everyone else is able to take breaks and have time to socialize except me. I don't even know why I am slow. I once asked one of my preceptors as to what I could do to make myself more efficient and she didn't even really have an answer for me. I recognize that I am a new grad but I see other new grads who are always done their work so much more quickly than me and even complain that they are bored. I feel like such a failure sometimes that I am not progressing as well as these other new grads. There have been some nurses on the floor who have confronted me about not taking my breaks and the only answer I can give them is that I have poor time management skills ... I felt embarrassed telling them and I have a feeling they felt uncomfortable hearing it. I know that the nurses on my floor often like to talk to others about other nurses and it worries me that word will get back to my managers that I am not effectively managing my time. I almost feel pressured to take my breaks now that I will be working more shifts with these nurses who seem to keep tabs on if I am taking my breaks or not. I know they are just concerned and looking out for me but I feel less pressured to do my work if I have more time to work - taking breaks feels like a burden to me. Anyone else feel this way or have been in this position?

I don't know what is wrong with me but it is often a struggle for me to get all my work done efficiently. It really sucks. I always feel like the slowest person on the floor. Everyone else is able to take breaks and have time to socialize except me. I don't even know why I am slow. I once asked one of my preceptors as to what I could do to make myself more efficient and she didn't even really have an answer for me. I recognize that I am a new grad but I see other new grads who are always done their work so much more quickly than me and even complain that they are bored. I feel like such a failure sometimes that I am not progressing as well as these other new grads. There have been some nurses on the floor who have confronted me about not taking my breaks and the only answer I can give them is that I have poor time management skills ... I felt embarrassed telling them and I have a feeling they felt uncomfortable hearing it. I know that the nurses on my floor often like to talk to others about other nurses and it worries me that word will get back to my managers that I am not effectively managing my time. I almost feel pressured to take my breaks now that I will be working more shifts with these nurses who seem to keep tabs on if I am taking my breaks or not. I know they are just concerned and looking out for me but I feel less pressured to do my work if I have more time to work - taking breaks feels like a burden to me. Anyone else feel this way or have been in this position?

OR seems harder to get into ... most OR nurses never seem to want to leave.

Hey, I am a fairly new grad but am totally enjoying my nursing experience. I work on a steady busy medical floor - nothing too crazy usually happens. I am a very hard worker with a pretty good bedside manner. In terms of the attitude I have towards my work and patients and the effort I put forth, I would give myself an A (even an A+ on some days). However, performance and knowledge wise, I might give myself a B to some days B-. Ever since I started working, I have wanted to work in the ICU. A lot of the nurses who I hold in extremely high regard work or are trained to work critical care. Here is my question: When it comes to a performance based profession like nursing do you think I should continue this hope of working in critical care? I know I have the positive attitude and work ethic and bedside manner ... but i am worried about my performance. The only thing that isn't totally shattering to me is the fact that I know that I am a motivated learner and will do anything i can to learn what it takes to work in critical care ... I just don't know if I will actually get to the level needed to work in that environment. Some nurses seem to have a natural ability (are able to get their work done quickly and efficiently, are able to interact professionally with other members of the team, etc) - I don't think I have that natural ability but what I don't have in natural talent I do try to make up in effort and attitude. Sorry, this post is kind of long.

As a new grad, nights are an excellent place to start. On nights, you will have more patients thus you have legitimate access to more charts. You will come across more diagnoses and more personalities. You will definitely grow as a nurse on the night shift. There will be nights where the patients are more quiet and sleeping and this is a great time for you to go through their charts, read their histories, look at their orders and think of why certain things are done. You will have more time to look up their medications. There are some very strong nurses on the night shift. They are strong because on nights, you need to be able to work independently - there are less people to run things by. Find these strong nurses and learn from them. It will help you become a stronger nurse to see how these strong nurses deal with crisis situations. I think every new grad should start off on nights and move on to days (if they want). On days things can get so hectic you don't have time to think of the rationales for certain orders. You don't have time to look up an unfamiliar med. You definitely get busy with a lot of patient care things i.e., walking a patient, helping with bed baths, making sure a patient is eating ... etc. I loved working nights and feel that it has helped me grow like crazy without making me crazy.

Oh, and when it comes to which department is the best to work for, it all depends on your manager, your charge nurse, and your co-workers. Working with a supportive and understanding manager who is invested in helping you is key. A good charge nurse will make or break your experience. Your co-workers are essential in creating a positive and welcoming environment. It isn't really about the department it is more about the people. But, they say labour and delivery and post-partum tend to be the happier units. People rarely die and it is usually a happy time!

I am a new grad and still fairly green but the more I think about my long term goals, the more I see myself working a shift or two in the ICU. I know I have a long ways to go - everything still makes me nervous and I am unfamiliar with so many things ... But, just wondering for all the ICU nurses out there, how many years did you work as a nurse before you entered the ICU?

It almost seems like a universal occurrence that the night team is usually the nicer group who is more willing to help each other out whereas the day team is the snarky team always looking to "eat" each other. I am really sorry for your horrible experience.

I hate it when scheduling schedules me for more than 3 days in a row. I prefer having a shift here and a shift there. I don't like working shifts in a row. I start feeling exhausted and burnt out that way.

"grossest" would be units where the patients are very dependent, sick, and unable to ambulate - probably units like rehab, neuro, medicine, oncology "cleanest" units would be psych (but, you can get some pretty gross patients who like to smear feces and sperm on the walls and linens), post-partum, labour and delivery, clinics you can pick and choose but not all units will be open to accepting new grads. you'll just have to check the hospital listings and apply for whichever units want ya!

regular vitamins, trying to insure adequate H20 intake during your shift, as much sleep as you can, and somehow finding some time to workout in between. I practice yoga and it really does feel good. Yoga encourages us to leave things that have happened in the past behind. I have a hard time letting go of my mistakes and will dwell on them but yoga helps me let go. The hard physical nature of ashtanga yoga also provides release and a good workout. My back feels great after a good yoga practice.

2300 - 0730 right here!

It was taught to me in school that you don't take a blood pressure on the same side as a saline lock or site that is infusing because you'll damage the site. I have only been working for a short period but I have come across multiple nursing assistants and even a handful of nurses who will take the blood pressure on a side with IV access (even if the other side is perfectly fine for a pressure). I remember asking a nurse about this once - she told me that as long as the site is saline locked, it is fine. Insights?? Thanks.

I work with a super nurse ... she is extremely intelligent, very skillful, a great leader, patient, always takes the time to teach and mentor other nurses, and inspires others to work hard and do their best. And, she is a genuine person who is sincerely nice and respectful to everyone. Honestly, she is my role model.

I don't have access to the article but I can tell you that one of the things a poor wage will do for a nurse is create resentment towards his/her job. Nursing can be a physically and emotionally demanding job - we (and the public) need to acknowledge this and be compensated appropriately. $ attracts talent and with a competitive wage you will be expected to perform to a certain standard. A low nursing wage does nothing to contribute to the professional image of nursing.

I have heard that oncology can be an extremely stressful and busy environment. I know a nursing assistant who tells me the busiest floor in our hospital is the oncology floor. I still think you should try your hand at floor nursing but perhaps on a different unit.

What shortcut did that other nurse suggest during the med pass? What did the second nurse want you to do instead of the shortcut?