we often see threads with the title "fired for no reason," or "new grad harassed and fired" or something to that effect. and i always feel at least a little sympathy for the individual involved, if only because i can clearly see by reading between the lines of their self-justifying post that there was a reason for their termination, even if they just don't get it. (there are always a few posts every year from a new grad who is convinced that the reason she's not getting along with her co-workers is that she's just so beautiful they're all jealous, that crowds of mean people are following her around, that she's so wonderful she's going to rock the er or icu or nicu or or and no one sees her wonderfulness clearly, or that some mean, tired, old nurse who ought to retire and get out of the way is targeting her for no good reason.)
i worked with a new grad who was recently terminated for, as she puts it, totally bogus reasons. evidently seeing mine as a sympathetic ear, she went on and on and on about how unfair it was that management expected her to get her act together and actually understand what was going on with her patients. "i've got the time management thing down pat," she said. "i don't know what else they want. they're just picking on me for no good reason." i liked sal, i really did. she was interesting and entertaining and really, really nice. she was also smart, hard-working (when she was at work) and well-educated. but she didn't study outside of work, and really didn't understand what was going on with her patients. i participated in several meetings with her in which it was pointed out that it's not enough to do the tasks, you have to understand why you're doing them. it's not enough to draw the labs. you have to understand what the results mean and then address them. for instance, if the inr is 9, it might explain the nosebleed, the cherry red urine and the fact that the hemoglobin is now 6. giving the coumadin at 6pm as scheduled is not a good thing, even if you gave it right on time and were able to explain to the patient that "it's a blood thinner." i could go on and on.
i got a call from sal today, complaining that she knows she's blackballed for no good reason because she just can't get another job. she wanted me to give her a reference. did she just not get it?
all you new grads out there who are convinced that you're being picked on for no reason, that your more experienced colleagues are just out to get you, and that you're being unfairly targeting, harassed, or picked on, hear this: it may be something you're doing (or not doing) and all those "mean people" are trying to explain it to you so you catch on, learn your job and succeed. we all tried over and over with sal, and she still doesn't get it. are you guilty of the same thing? if your preceptor says you lack critical thinking skills, do you take it to heart, think about it and learn from it? or are you convinced that the entire issue is that she's jealous of your extreme good looks? if your charge nurse charges you with a deficit in your time management skills do you spend time figuring out where you could speed things up a bit? or do you dismiss her as a tired old dog who can't learn a new trick and ought to retire anyway? are you taking to heart and benefitting from any negative feedback you're getting, however poorly given it is? or are you obsessing about how "mean" that nurse was to you and totally overlooking the message?
i wish sal would have "gotten it." she would have been delightful to work with if she had. but right now she's focused on badmouthing her preceptors and the charge nurse, and she still doesn't understand what she did wrong. don't make the same mistakes.
I do not feel that new grad RNs need to be able to," hit the ground running", the day after they graduate. I feel strongly that nurses' image would be inproved if we had a BSN entry into practice and a 6 month mandatory internship required after graduation.
I wholeheartedly agree with the idea of mandatory internship. Right now I find myself in the same position as scores of other December grads: Entry-to-practice jobs have all but evaporated. I'm incredibly fortunate to have found a med-surg position, but it won't come with the one-on-one preceptor experience that I'd hoped for. Yes, I'll get some orientation, but I worry that without that ETP commitment, I'm headed for some baptism by fire.
For what it's worth, I'm particularly excited about working at this particular hospital because my practicum experience in the ICU was so positive. From the unit manager to the CNAs to my preceptor and even the unit secretary, each and every staffer was happy to teach me something. I saw a classmate treated in the same manner. I credit the unit manager for setting the tone. She believes that the unit is responsible for contributing to the education of new nurses, and she leads accordingly. Those nurses set the bar high, but they also made it clear that they believed that with hard work and experience, I would clear that bar right along with them. (Hmm. Sounds like positive feedback.)
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
another thought has occured to me too. i dont want to come off as a "see all know all". i'm relatively new too. i've been nursing for 3 years and........was always told you had to be in the field 5 years before you would really start to see yourself as "a nurse".
i've never precepted. so, maybe i'm being like the people with no kids who think they know whats best for raiseing kids.
so, experienced nurses.........go ahead. educate me a little.
is it that bad really? are the gns coming out of school really that difficult to move along? is sal the exception, or the rule?
how interesting. a few pages back, you were "educating" me as to the gaps in my precepting abilities.
I guess I cant wrap my brain around that. I am not afraid to say it out in the open........when I was a GN coming right out of school.........I was convinced I was.......ah, remedial. Not bad for "showing up late, not helping, leaving the unit" type reasons, but not the smartest out of my class by a long shot. And, for lack of a better way to put it........even I would not have done that.
So, I just rack my brain for other reasons that it happened............like the one I described above.
IDK. Coming out of school I saw people going str8 into ICU and such. My instructors who were looking out for me told me to go into a small hospital M/S setting and build up confidence and skills. I'm glad I did that. Maybe Sal needs it too.
I find that a lot of "Sal" type nurses don't need confidence boosting- sometimes part of the problem is that they are overconfident.
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
tomorrow, i will meet with a manager who's offered me that med-surg job. i plan to be up front with her about my skills: i'm no longer a beginner, but i'm hardly an expert. i understand the significance of an inr, and more importantly, i want to understand that significance. i want to study at home. i want to be challenged.
but is that enough? if new grads are perceived as "laid back" or just plain undereducated, i worry that i won't be able to satisfy the veteran nurses around me, no matter how hard i try. how many weeks of orientation should i expect? (yes, i'm off topic, but this thread has really got me wondering how i will be perceived in a new unit.)
if you're willing to work hard, study at home and be challenged, i'm sure you'll be welcomed in any unit. the new grads i've had difficulties with are the ones who were unwilling to work hard, not able to think critically or refused to study at home. good luck!
To clarify I mean that there are people (not less intelligent at all) who are simply unable to think critically. It just does not work for them. This makes it very hard for them to ever be a good nurse. Also, there are some people whose personality is simply unsuited to nursing.
I am not a hospital nurse because although I think critically just fine I absolutely hate being around sick people and blood and guts! :lol_hitti
Seriously, I have meant some student nurses and some experienced nurses who simply are not cut out for the unique blend of skills and qualities that are required to be a good nurse. I think no one does them any favors by not telling them that. There are some things that cannot be learned no matter how hard you amy try and wish to do something. That applies to many fields, but in nursing or medicine it can be life or death.
(My bold)- I have to disagree with you on one point- sometimes they are less intelligent.
I'm throwing PC out of the window, and just being honest here.
Very interesting thread. I agree with the sentiments of Ruby. I am still a student nurse myself, but have encountered this type of thing in past careers. I really think that people do not appreciate the opportunities to learn / paradigm shifts / etc when they are presented. Also, a lot of people forget to withhold judgment until they really know what the point of a lesson in life / work or whatever is all about. The ones who often appreciate these things, are also often rewarded with better opportunities, upward movement, etc. It is never due to luck, but rather they are really understanding of the situations they are in, and how to solve problems out of understanding, rather than just blindly following protocols or check lists.
Someone mentioned back about skills come with experience. I can't agree on that more, and as I have said, I have not learned this in nursing. All too often, the newbie is focused on "looking the part", or "doing it better/ as good as the other guy" and forgets to see the what is causing the issue in the first place and how it can be done right, in a "simpler" way, (maybe physically simpler, but usually mentally more challenging) if you just bothered to know what it takes to understand.
I recently had a paperwork issue, and thought that the instructor and nurse where just "screwing with the new guy" to get me to follow some stupid protocol. I got all bent out of shape, and in my correction process, realized that a) they were doing this to PROTECT MY ASS, and b) nearly missed a big time assessment on my client as a result, one that could have had disastrous results. It was a real eye opener for me, and I could not thank the instructor or the nurse enough as I walked out that door at the end of my shift. I spent the entire night awake, just marveling at my stupidity, self absorbed behavior and just plain hardheadedness that could have resulted in a client's suffering, or worse.
from your post I read you seem to think it was all about jealousy there are dfficult nurses out there an I have found that out the hard way. I do have another job to fall back on but i wanted the ICU experiance
I agree with much of what you said, especially the respect part. Its hard for anybody to learn if they feel put on the defensive or embarrassed. However, I have seen my share of "wet behind the ears" doctors. The smart ones learn from the nurses too. Just want to add the corny line that learning never stops. And teaching ops are continuous and don't have to be formal. There are always new and safe "tricks" to be shared...especially with computer charting. Sorry, I digress.
Freedom42
914 Posts
I wholeheartedly agree with the idea of mandatory internship. Right now I find myself in the same position as scores of other December grads: Entry-to-practice jobs have all but evaporated. I'm incredibly fortunate to have found a med-surg position, but it won't come with the one-on-one preceptor experience that I'd hoped for. Yes, I'll get some orientation, but I worry that without that ETP commitment, I'm headed for some baptism by fire.
For what it's worth, I'm particularly excited about working at this particular hospital because my practicum experience in the ICU was so positive. From the unit manager to the CNAs to my preceptor and even the unit secretary, each and every staffer was happy to teach me something. I saw a classmate treated in the same manner. I credit the unit manager for setting the tone. She believes that the unit is responsible for contributing to the education of new nurses, and she leads accordingly. Those nurses set the bar high, but they also made it clear that they believed that with hard work and experience, I would clear that bar right along with them. (Hmm. Sounds like positive feedback.)