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Discussion

Ready to call it quits

I'm a new grad (May 05), with no experience in the medical profession. Second career (I'm 40). Hired for a 48-bed telemetry/step-down unit, and my orientation to nursing has been horrible.

I was hired for days, and on day one the woman (preceptor 1) they were going to put me with wasn't there so I was with someone else. The second day I was with the original person (we'll call her preceptor 2), but she was having issues at home and didn't want to take anyone. So the Patient Care Director asked me if I could go on nights (preceptor 3)--I said "fine" being the flexible new grad that I am. Nights were fine, and after four weeks (in which I missed a week--was away, so it was actually 3 weeks), they put me on days to get up to speed for daytime pace for my remaining two weeks.

Well, the woman they put me with on days (preceptor 4) is very... (lets say it wasn't a good fit) basically I just can't do anything correctly, or fast enough. When I ask her a question I get a "you don't know?" and a heavy sigh. She's had me in tears a couple of times and I've been completely overwhelmed with 3 patients (they usually have 5, sometimes 6). On nights I had up to 5 patients (they usually have 6-8 depending on how many people are on) and juggled pretty well and had time to eat. On days, I was a complete wreck (some days didn't eat anything all 12-hour shift).

I spoke to (that's code for got "really teary") the Patient Care Director and I'm going back on nights (till I get my confidence up--is what she suggested), and I'm fine with that. But in the meantime, I'm also beginning to not like the patients, they're all pretty sick, and needy, and it's beginning to annoy me a little bit (not a good sign). Or maybe I'm just stressed and projecting on the patients. I also wonder if I'm in the right job for me?

So basically the last three weeks have been very stressful, and horrible, and I've been dreading going to work and I'm wondering if I really want to do 'bedside' nursing at all. On this floor or anywhere. I'm back on nights now for a couple of weeks (with preceptor 3), and just don't know what to do--at least I'm not crying on the drive home anymore.

I'll be looking into other options for nursing, maybe a doctor's office, maybe another hospital/unit. But in the meantime do you think it would be "OK" to talk to the nurse recruiter at the hospital to see what else is out there? My husband doesn't think I should talk to her, that she would go right to my boss. I also wonder if there is any resource out there that gives you an idea of what each specialty is like (my ASN program was obviously not much help). As much as I browse this forum, there is a whole lot of data to sift through. Any thoughts? Pep-talks, suggestions?

thank for listening to me vent.

smarge

:crying2:

Featured Replies

  • Experts

I'm so sorry you're having such a rough time. I had something similar happen to me when I was orienting on a stepdown unit and I was an experienced nurse of 25 years at the time with 5 years of previous stepdown unit experience under my belt! The preceptors and the managers were driving me nuts and putting me in tears. I ended up leaving after 4 weeks of putting up with that nonsense. Some people can be incredibly mean spirited to new employees. When I confronted my nemesis who was doing to me what your Preceptor #4 was doing to you, she broke down in tears and couldn't appologize enough. She was better after that, but the damage was already done.

However, as a new grad, I've got to say that a stepdown unit is not always an appropriate place to put new grads. If you want to stay with hospital work I think you would be much better off on a regular old surgical unit or ortho unit. Things tend to be more routine on these units compared to stepdowns. If you read enough of the posts in this forum you will hear people talking about their terrible experiences on stepdowns and in the nursing homes. You won't hear a lot of complaints about surgical or medical units other than they are busy. (That ought to open up a can of worms, but at least if I'm wrong about this, you're going to hear what kinds of problems those units have! :wink2:)

Smarge,

First of all, my first place to work after my ADN program was on a 64 bed Telemetry Unit. I worked the day shift during my orientation, then stayed on days for awhile. I handled 5 patients okay, yet often missed out on a lunch break. Then, I decided to work the night shift d/t a substantial differential. I usually had 8 patients on the night shift. Most of my geri patients always seem to have a case of sundowners. So, along with 24 hr chart checks & patient care the night shift was fairly busy. Plus, it seemed like I usually had one very sick patient that ended getting transferred to ICU by my relief day nurse. So, I ended up accepting an ICU RN position at another hospital.

It is true that a Telemetry/Stepdown Unit can be a challenge for a new grad, especially on the day shift. I chose the Telemetry Unit d/t I enjoyed my school rotation on this Unit. Plus, I had a desire to work with heart patients.

Do you really like the kind of patients on your floor? A previous post suggested you could consider a med-surg, or post-op ortho floor. Yes, you could consider this possibilty as a transfer to a similar floor at your hospital. Yet, keep in mind the nurse to patient ratio on these floors will be much higher; more than likely 1:10, at least on the day shift.

Is it too late for you to ask for a different preceptor on the day shift? You need to orient on the day shift, if in fact you will be working on the day shift after orientation. BTW, my first preceptor was not much older than my youngest son and we did not get along at all. Then, when I was placed with a much older preceptor on days my orientation went much better.

Anyway, good luck... and don't give up on nursing!

.

gee, it sounds like you and i were hired by the same hospital...... :uhoh3:

i was hired as a new grad on a post-partum/ mother/baby unit, and was given only 3 weeks orientation, and had to beg for an additional 3 weeks. i had 4 different preceptors in that time period. i oriented on days, and work evenings, which are always understaffed (i've frequently had 10-12 patients). 3 weeks ago i requested a move to 12 h days, which have a lower pt ratio. (my request was denied) when i had an evening with 13 patients, i threw in the towel and gave 2-weeks' notice.

i have no advice for you, except to let you know that you aren't alone in your experience, and to send you a big cyber hug.

  • Author

Thanks for the support.

I've already started back on nights. After a long talk with the nurse educator on our floor (who I really like and admire), I decided that I would go back to nights first before I decided to go to another unit. It's a big new hospital, but they are hurting, so I'm sure they don't want to lose me just yet.

I don't know about the patients. I find myself spending a lot of time talking to them, which is probably not good on the faste paced day-shift, but for some reason bodily fluids are starting to get to me--I did fine with them in school. So part of me is thinking that I need to be in an area where I can spend time with themr, (not interested in psych though). One option is to go on to become a nurse practitioner or something like that, but I've got a two year degree and would need to work while working on that, so that's way in the future, and doesn't address my current issues.

I did do a preceptorship in the OR and one of the things that I really liked about it was one patient at a time--that patient is your only focus, I also liked the 'technical' feel of it. But they really drum it into your heads during nursing school that you need a good year of med/surge type of experience before you (basically) do anything specialized. I know that that isn't the truth, but took it to heart.

I'm sooooo confused!

  • Experts

I always spend as much time as I can spare talking with patients. It is never wasted time. It is therapeutic for them and helps get you more data about a patient. You are showing them that you are interested in them and see them as an individual. While so many of my co-workers were having problems with people who were always "on their lights", I wasn't because I took the time to talk with people, find out what they did and didn't need or like, and was able to anticipate their needs before they had to ring their light. I almost never left a patient without asking if there was something else I could do for them before I left. You would be surprised how it facilitates your work. Sometimes patients need to talk out things rather than a prn medication. This is Nursing 101 and a lot of nurses have forgotten about it.

I think just about everyone has some body fluid that gets to them. Mine is bits of brain tissue on the linens of open head injury patients. I don't particularly like getting blood on my uniforms since it can be such a pain to get out.

If you find an OR job, take it.

I'm so sorry to hear from your experience. I'm new nurse in US too and accept position in postpartum unit, where they have over 400 deliveries a month. I'm in new grad program for 12 weeks and I got perceptor only one and she is great teacher. she is only 26 years old, working there for 4 years and we get along well. she is there allways to help me out. First days I got with her only 2 couplets(mommy-baby), now we have three, and I work nights - this is even easier.

Some nights are busy but is not so bad for new nurse and I like it.

Maybe you should find big hospital that offers you 12 weeks or more training program and easier unit.

i'm so sorry to hear from your experience. i'm new nurse in us too and accept position in postpartum unit, where they have over 400 deliveries a month. i'm in new grad program for 12 weeks and i got perceptor only one and she is great teacher. she is only 26 years old, working there for 4 years and we get along well. she is there allways to help me out. first days i got with her only 2 couplets(mommy-baby), now we have three, and i work nights - this is even easier.

some nights are busy but is not so bad for new nurse and i like it.

maybe you should find big hospital that offers you 12 weeks or more training program and easier unit.

thanks for the reply. :)

i haven't quite decided what to do (or where to apply next). the large mega-hospital corp in this area, does have 12-week preceptorships, but you must stay at the job for 2 years or pay them back $7,000. i'm going to look at some of the medium sized community hospitals, and see what they offer.

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