Scared to be on my own!

ERNurse752, RN · Jan 31, 2006

Ask for more orientation if you really think you need it. Will you be working the same schedule as your preceptor for awhile, for some backup by someone who knows you? Is there good support around you?

Seems like a short orientation to me, since you're learning both OB and the high risk stuff.

But that's just me.

Pekoe-RN · Feb 1, 2006

I started in October and after a 7-week orientation on a tele floor, they said I was "ready" - !!! My digestive is STILL recovering!!! - cause even though - like you, I learned "tons" during my orientation, there is truly so much more. AS LONG AS YOU HAVE A SUPPORTIVE TEAM - you will be OKAY!!! I STILL tell everyone - I haven't done or seen xyz -please let me know if it happens, cause I want to be there!!! And I ask TONS of questions - even though I "know" the answer or it's something I went over in orientation - cause it's definitely different on your own!!! I didn't sleep through the night for the first 4 weeks as I constantly re-lived my day, going over what I did - what I will do next time, what I can improve. I just really learned to PAY ATTENTION - but it takes time to coordinate yourself and get yourself a routine. There is SO MUCH going on, and there always will be!!!

I am so lucky that my floor doesn't expect me to know everything!!! I ask questions of nurses who have 2 or more years experience, and THEY say to ask someone more experienced!!! And there are older nurses who are open to doing something a new/different way! WE ALL ASK QUESTIONS AND WE ARE ALWAYS LEARNING - I've discovered that's the nature of the profession!

Good luck and God bless; remember, the only "dumb" question is the one NOT asked.

Pekoe

SmilingBluEyes · Feb 1, 2006

We all are scared at first. I used to go to work with nausea and vomiting, I was so nervous. Obviously, I got over that.....lol

I recommend you keep in close touch w/your preceptor and coworkers. After nearly 9 years in OB, I am NEVER afraid to cooperate and consult w/coworkers whenever I am unsure of anything. Heck just recently, I had a coworker check a cervix behind me, as I was unsure what I was feeling. The thing I am trying to say is, never, ever be afraid to ask for help or advice when you are stumped. Believe me, nobody expects you to be an expert just off orientation/preceptorship. Please never pretend to know what you don't. ASK!

tammki5g · Feb 6, 2006

Dear BeginnerRN

when I was new to nursing and then again to OB I felt the same way. I will always remember what my preceptor said to me when I was close to "graduating" orientation she told me that the minute I think I know everything and feel completly comfortable taking care of a labor patient that I should get out of the field. She was a nurse with 20+ years experience and she believed (as I have come to believe) that we can never know everything or be sure of everything because anything can happen.

that is what is great about our profession we are in it together we help each other and confer constantly with each other.

If you are very uncomfortable and want more time on orientation then ask for it. don't be shy. you know you best and if you feel you need it you probably do. even if it just another week or two for you to get your feet.

good luck!

Pixie Dust · Feb 11, 2006

To me it's one of those things. You have to be on your own in order to think for yourself and start being more independent. Hopefully the other nurses will be understanding and know to help when you need it and won't be put off by questions and need for checking with someone else. Two minds are always better than one. Truthfully, I think this is the best time to take some high risk patients also so you can ask questions. My experience has been if I put that off, before you know it more experienced people have quit and your the one with the most experience on shift. That's scary! Remember to give yourself a pat on the back once in awhile too for what you have learned.

epiphany · Feb 22, 2006

You have my sympathy. I am lucky to have a 6 month orientation, or longer if I needed. We also have high risks, we scrub as well as circulate, and have a birth center. But that's the longest orientation of hospital I know.

LPN1974, LPN · Feb 22, 2006

Will you be the ONLY RN during your shift, or will there be other more experienced nurses there also?

Sometimes you might feel you are on your own, but you're really not, if you have other nurses with you.

I have been an LPN for 30+ years, and I STILL call on my co-workers and say, "Hey, come here, let's talk about this or what do you think about this?"

It's ok to do that. I know L/D is a more high risk area and faster paced than where I work, but if you have other good experienced nurses they shouldn't mind you asking for support. Good nurses don't mind.

tryingtomakeit, RN · Feb 25, 2006

Ohhhhhhhhh how I feel your pain! I have been in L&D for nearly two years now and was also hired as a new grad. When I first started, I can honestly say that I probably would have never made it if it hadn't been for the encouragement I got from a thread I started (Have I made a mistake?).

The unit I work on is in a hospital in a rural area and most of the time we are there alone in L&D. I only had a few weeks orientation, then was "fed to the dogs". I quickly learned who my resource people were - a former L&D nurse who worked ER on most of the shifts I worked, a hospital supervisor who had worked almost every area imaginable, a post partum nurse who had originally started in L&D ... etc. I wasn't shy at all about calling on them when I was in doubt (which was most of the time).

To make a long story short, I'm not sure exactly when it happened, but one day I realised "I CAN DO THIS!". I am still learning every day, and I still have times when I cry all the way home because the night before was so stressful to me, but I feel more and more capable every day. You'll get there too.

At the very least you will have coworkers you can call on when the going gets rough and you find yourself in doubt. This was a luxury I would have killed for. Use them. But most of all - keep your head up. Better times are a comin'! :nurse: