asix1961

I honestly think that they all feel I don't fit in. I'm older and a new nurse. I get the patients to the room, take vitals, chart on what they're there for and then the doctor comes in. Its not rocket science. I did very well in school. I graduated with honors and did well in clinical. I know many of us didn't feel we were ready when we graduated though. I really felt that I would get more training on the job. I got 8 weeks on the first job and 10 on the second. The one I'm doing now I got 10 as well. I like the idea of a refresher course, I definitely need to look in to it.

I just ordered a book on telephone triage. The office I work in is a Family Practice with 2 doctors and 1 PA. The one doctor is very hard to get along with. He belittles his nurses in front of everyone and the patients. He will just storm into the room while your getting vitals and trying to go over meds and tell you to get out you've been in here long enough. Apparently the office supervisor was told by someone that I have no critical thinking skills. That I don't report to the doctor if a patients blood pressure is low or high. When I take the BP I tell the patient what it is. If its high or low, I'll ask them if that normal for them or how they feel. The doctor thats hard to work with usually ignores me when I speak to him so I don't communicate much to him. He told me, just take the vitals and get out of there, so thats what I do. He has the vitals in the chart to see. The other thing that the doctor and the other nurses seem to have a problem with is how I learn. I have a notebook that I use to remember how to chart certain things that I don't do repetitively. Once I have that task concord I no longer need those set of notes. Thats just how I learn. I've been there since June and rarely use them anymore. I think its unfair to say I'm not capable of being a phone nurse when I was never trained or given the opportunity. It seems that once my training period was over, even though there were many things I was never trained on, the nurses including my trainer, no longer wants to help me or answer my questions. The PA that I work with said I'm doing an excellent job and told the supervisor she would hire me as her nurse. I believe it is just this hard headed doctor.

This is my dilemma. I was married for 28 years and stayed home with my children all those years. Married right out of high school with no work experience. When I got divorced I decided to go to nursing school. I figured it would be a good job that would support me and I would be caring for people, which I love to do. I did very well in school and my clinicals and personally feel I've done well with the jobs I had for those short times. I was nervous of course but I did my best. I am 53 years old and I'm scared with the little experience I have and being told, lacking in critical thinking skills, that I can't compete with the younger nurses. What other career could I do now at this point in my life, not to mention the student loans I still have to pay? I just don't know what to do?

Thanks I will check out that site. I just want to succeed. Just once.

Thanks for your reply. Yes I went to the Dean at my school. She was suprised to hear that there are so many places that are unwilling to take the time to help develop new grads. At the doctors office where I work now, but am about to be let go, they told me that because I'm an RN I should have more critical thinking skills. Everything that I've read and people that I've turned to have said that comes with years of experience, yet no one wants to invest that time, they want everything right now. I feel I am doing a great job at the office that I'm at. I've only been there since June. I haven't been trained to do the triage nursing or blood draws but the one doctor feels I'll never have that ability. I don't think thats very fair. If you know where I might find that place that will mentor me please let me know. I'm so afraid of my continue failures. I'm a single Mom and I was about to lose my home before I took the job at the doctors office. I can't imagine losing this job.

I graduated Nursing school in 2012. I did an 8 week orientation on a med/surg unit and was let go the last week of orientation being told I wasn't ready for that type of job after giving a blood pressure medication to someone who's blood pressure was low. Then I took a job at a skilled nursing facility which I worked for 8 months. I was let go from there after an IV and G-tube clogged up in the same day and I had to turn to my supervisor for help. I am now working in a doctors office and was told that I lack critical thinking skills. I haven't been let go yet, I am being sent to work in a different office to see how I do there. I really felt I was doing well since I've only been there 4 months. They said they were hoping I could do triage nursing but was never trained in that as of yet. I feel like such a failure and wonder if I should even continue as a nurse.