lfish

I am a new grad nurse one month out of orientation in the ICU. Not knowing where certain things are in the unit, MD contact info, etc is not a reason to stay on orientation, IMO. Your fellow nurses are an invaluable resource to you, even off orientation. If you don't know how to do something or want a second opinion, just ask. We're new. We shouldn't know everything. Even experienced nurses get stumped from time to time. And a new nurse that doesn't ask questions is dangerous. ICU patients are a complex puzzle; try to think through the problem, and bounce ideas off a nurse you trust. For your last two weeks, I would push to have your preceptor take a strictly observational role (if she will consent to it). If not, I would give it a few months after orientation before I would make the decision to call it quits. You're going to learn in the struggle. It will be stressful, but you need to give yourself the chance to see if you can adapt and learn, without the threat of your preceptor pushing in and doing tasks for you.

This has been current debate in my nursing school. Is it a bad idea to start trying to get pregnant half-way through a 12 month ABSN program? A lot of us are getting close to 30, so waiting until you have been working for a few years to start a family really isn't an attractive option. So to those of you with some insight... Is it easier to be pregnant during nursing school and have your baby before starting work? Or to be pregnant when you start working and take maternity leave as a new grad RN?