billlee2

sorry 'bout that. wish you well. i got a new preceptor and am trying to start from the beginning. good luck to you!

i know its stupid to call out but i felt i had to break this prceptors momentum. things were heating up and she seemed like she was enjoying giving me a hard time. i couldnt take it another day. i made a phone call to the nursing educator and hopefully she can help or else im out of a job because im not putting up with this nonsense so early in my career.

Hi and thank you for your valuable advice. I really appreciate your support. I called our nursing educator and informed him of my concerns. He said he'll be looking into it for me and was very supportive. I also took your advice and used this day to review some material ive forgotten. I have a PDA so i dont need flash cards but that was a great suggestion for remembering the medications. I also went and reviewed heart meds and insulin. THese are the meds most used so far. Youre right about my risking not being successful and I am trying to address this. I cant let myself get too uptight about this because that'd be counterproductive i think. Im just going to study this weekend and try to more familiar with things. Again, I cant thank you enough for your sugggestions. I will keep in touch and let you know how things go.

Thank you for your response. Yes, the preceptor makes me nervous. It's almost a self-fulfilling prophesy kinda thing. For instance, the ritual is to see my patients, chart, and give meds. This morning, I forgot to give the meds. She said, in her usual speaking-down tone, "it's been almost 3 weeks, you know youre supposed to give meds." I know this of course, but I'm frazzled now and my confidence is gone. The "tone" started this morning with the PCA pump, the "we've been through this many times" crap, even BEFORE we see the patient. She was talking as if she was expecting me to not know what I was doing. This is how we started our day at 7:30 in the morning, with this tone. It annoys me to the point where I can't even look at her. When I get info in report, because I'm new to dialysis patients, fistulas, etc, I can't always remember details such as temporary access,etc. Because of this, I forget them because I'm not at the point where i can tie everything together. So when i was giving report, i forgot to mention why the patient was in dialysis today, and she told me in front of the incoming nurse. "Remember?" she said. It's been almost 3 weeks and i dont know where a new nurse should be. Im kinda a scatter-brained person but because i genuinly care for these people, i feel that i can overcome this eventually. Things like printing reports, doing paperwork for labs, i do forget this stuff, not always but a good amount of time. I just have to do it a few times and itll start to make sense. I havent spoken to any new nurses to gauge their progress so I dont know. I think itll be a good idea to look over my texts and just get more familiar with these patients' conditions. But really, I dont know what Im going to do about work. This particular preceptor is well-liked and is ALWAYS in people's business. She seems to be well-respectedso itll be tough asking for a new preceptor. I dont see things changing. Approaching her isnt the answer, it'll just be more of the same.

hello, thanks for responding. Today, i got the sense that my preceptor knew she made me uncomfortable. She needled me alot today. It's just so disappointing because i really liked this hospital. I dont know how I'll ever explain to my family, who has worked at and used this hospital for years, why i left, should that happen. My preceptor is the type that is just in everyones business. People on the unit sensed that i was having a bad day but didnt know why. Its a bad situation. Today, right off the bat, at 7:30 in the mornign, i had to remove a PCA pump. My preceptor says, "now for room 422, youll need to remove a pca pump. We have done this numerous times now(twice actually)." It's just her whole talking-down-to-me tone,it's so damn unpleasant and such a rotten miserable way to start the day. Today, i stood in the medication room pondering whether or not to just leave. Its been almost 3 weeks. Maybe I should be picking up on more, but not everything is going to make sense when im getting report. I dont like the situation I'm in and after only 3 lousy weeks, I dread work. I've already called out for tommorow, if that gives you any idea. I worked so hard for this career.

I understand what youre saying but actually, she's always sitting around, talking with the other nurses, eating, etc. Occassionally she asks if im OK but I'm essentially on my own, just as the other nurse she's precepting is essentially on his own, except he has 20 years experience and is in the final week of orientation. Yes, i do have a while to go, and i dont want a bad experience to start off with. i certainly dont need to be reminded of my "bad short term" memory. she likes mentioning that all the time. you need to build that confidence early on. The orientation is 10 weeks and i dont want this getting worse. it's bad now, in my opinion.

Hello forum, I was wondering if I could get some help with something. I started a nursing job, my first out of college, 2 1/2 weeks ago. I've been assigned a preceptor that is very good, very smart, and has a great deal of experience. However, she really seems to like getting on me. Many times it's legit. I've just been kinda frazzled and I forget things. I also remember things which is naturally overlooked. This is my first nursing job and of course, you need a good foundation. I really dont think that this person is a good fit for me. In fact, i find interactions with her unpleasant and I'm starting to avoid them. Even though it's early, this really doesnt seem to working out and I'm not sure how to tactfully ask for a new preceptor. Is this even common? I've never heard of it but I'm worried that this could get worse. I didnt even want to look at her by the end of the shift. Any thoughts?

Thanks to all who responded with the encouragement. I just checked out sallie maes website and they apparently dont have any income requirements. you may all want to look into that. im looking into other banks. will keep you all posted with what i find.

really? what nursing school are you going to? are you going full time? have you applied for private loans?

Anyone else needing to apply for private loans for nursing school? I've been accepted to Drexel and it's very expensive, almost 30k. Since i have an undergrad degree already, I'm not eligible for grants, etc. Anyone else in a similar position? Are these loans hard to get? I know they're credit based. And which banks are best? Thanks.

well, im planning on leaving. im workign as an accounting temp for a few months and then ill enter school full time this spring, to take my pre-reqs. hopefully by next fall ill be enrolled in an accelerated bsn program.

whether he's a nurses aid or an emt, either way he's leaving corporate america so he might as well go into nursing. once youve left corporate america, it's unbelievably difficult to explain leaving and then reentering. one really doesnt have the luxury of getting some experience. you either do it or you dont. thats what i think at least.

Dude, I'm totally in the same boat. I graduated with a 2.7 gpa undergrad. Here's what I've heard from a few different admissions officers. You MUST, ABSOLUTELY MUST, get A's, maybe a B+ once or twice, but a 3.6 or above is a must. I spoke with drexel, pitt,and holy family, and given the competitiveness of nursing these days, good grades must be a given. What im gonna do is kill myself for high grades and supplement that with workign in a hospital, maybe as nurses aid. YOU CAN DO IT.

thanks for the reply. your point about finding work anywhere makes alot of sense. ive heard this, as theres a nationwide shortage of nurses. thst student loans bother me but i guess nothing worthwhile comes cheap. ill be going to camden county comm college to take the pre-reqs. then, i hope to get into drexels accelerated bsn program.

I'm seriously considering nursing and in fact, ive registered for some pre-reqs. But ive been looking at some of the tuitions and i just cant believe how high they are. Ive figured ill be loaning out some 30k after its all said and done. my friend is a nurse and loves it. he brags about making 100k/year. dont know if thats true or not but if i can come close to that id be a happy guy. anyway, its not really about the money but wanting a meaningful career. my q is, is nursing worth all this trouble? i mean, im looking at 2 1/2 -3 years of full time school and lots of debt. any insight?