Sometimes we have to stand up for ourselves as a new nurse and semi-new nurse.

[burnoutward, BSN, RN]

I am in my 2nd year as a nurse starting over. I worked in a psych facility for adolescents. I loved it, but decided I wanted to take a step off in another direction and be a floor nurse. Here I am 5 weeks later, severely overwhelmed and pissed.

My first preceptor was a by the book woman, who had been there herself less than a year. Our personalities and ideas of patient care clashes. After meeting with my supervisor for advice and planning the whole just a couple more days you can do this. I realized it was not a good experience and she was just rushing me through everything.

My second preceptor was a 30 year nurse with amazing experience, everyone told me I was very lucky but many times I didn't feel lucky. I was just more overwhelmed with her due to the changes of style and expectations, being scolded for mistakes in front of other people or patients (something I do not handle well personally), and being told that my skills were too far "gone", I am not fast enough, and maybe I should look into a nursing home instead of acute settings.

So here I sit only 5 weeks later, and I am just in shock. I was terminated, or forced into resignation. I am amazing with assessments, I am great at patient care, but I am unable to get everything together quickly enough. I get angry at that because what it means is I am not fast enough. On Monday I am speaking with the nurse retention specialist.

I am just writing this for all you first timers and others taking a chance with nursing. We get screwed over. 3 months in nursing to know what physicians get 4 years residence time to know. It is an injustice to us.

The older nurse has no right to "eat their young", but instead should advocate for us. We also should be advocating for ourselves so we get as much time as we need on orientation, because it is what we deserve.

[deeDawntee, RN]

OMG, that makes me sooo angry...I am sooo sorry that you had to go through that! Obviously, your facility was not unionized? Or if there was a union, it in not very effective, because I can tell you that something like that would never have happened in the facility where I work. People are given the support they need to succeed. You have already paid your dues, you have your nursing license and you deserve all the support you need to make it.

What are you going to do next? Are you going to try acute care again? Is there anyway you could get into a new grad program where you won't be so rushed through? I have seen that happen where I work, where people with similar situations as yours requested the new grad program and were allowed to go through it. A much more supportive orientation and "skill-building" and confidence building program.

You have the absolute right to be angry. It just isn't fair and I would bet that you could get hired for another acute care job, if you explained the situation and what you think your needs are. If you handle it in a mature and insightful way, it may even help your chances of getting rehired right away.

Good luck and don't give up.

[burnoutward, BSN, RN]

OMG, that makes me sooo angry...I am sooo sorry that you had to go through that! Obviously, your facility was not unionized? Or if there was a union, it in not very effective, because I can tell you that something like that would never have happened in the facility where I work. People are given the support they need to succeed. You have already paid your dues, you have your nursing license and you deserve all the support you need to make it.

What are you going to do next? Are you going to try acute care again? Is there anyway you could get into a new grad program where you won't be so rushed through? I have seen that happen where I work, where people with similar situations as yours requested the new grad program and were allowed to go through it. A much more supportive orientation and "skill-building" and confidence building program.

You have the absolute right to be angry. It just isn't fair and I would bet that you could get hired for another acute care job, if you explained the situation and what you think your needs are. If you handle it in a mature and insightful way, it may even help your chances of getting rehired right away.

Good luck and don't give up.

I spoke to a nurse from another floor and the floor did a couple things not right, like not follow the orientation outline. So, tomorrow I am going to the nurse retention specialist and discussing what happened with her. I am going to tell her what happened on the floor. I don't want to go back there. The problem was the floor was hoping to have me out in 6 weeks due to the fact I was an "experienced nurse" and when they realized they had to put more effort into me, they sort of gave up. That is unhealthy and unrealistic for me.

I have an unfilled out orientation book, that I asked several times about. I didn't get fair treatment due to the fact I graduated a year ago. No one deserves to go home crying after work every night or get scolded in front of patients about something they didn't know. It is unprofessional and inexcusable. The one chance I was going to talk to my clinical supervisor about things, I got terminated due to the fact I wasn't what they wanted.

So now I am taking my assertive not good enough for them butt to the person who is in charge of the education and preceptor roles in the hospital to discuss different options and my experience. I already applied for one job and a friend is giving me another option on Monday. That is one good thing about the nursing shortage, there will always be jobs for us. :monkeydance:

[jjjoy, LPN]

... 3 months in nursing to know what physicians get 4 years residence time to know..

And even three months is sometimes considered generous! When I started my preceptorship, I followed the nurse for a day, and the next day handled one patient and assisted with the others. Had two patients the next day or two. Three patients the next day or two. Four patients the next day or two. At that point, I felt I could've used going back to three or at the very least holding at four as at that point, I wasn't able to keep everything straight, get everything done, ask the questions I needed, get the help I needed, etc. They reluctantly gave me an extra day with four, warning me that I'd have to carry a full load soon and had better get faster quick! At five and six patients, I didn't feel I could do a good job... not yet... I was learning lots but there was so much to know. I apparently wasn't learning fast enough and since I wasn't "up to speed" enough by 10 weeks, they decided to let me go. Didn't offer any other position. Made suggestions like "try something like subacute." Of course, if you go to inquire at subacute, they are quick to point out that subacute isn't easier. The patients are relatively more stable but you've got more of them and need to be that much faster at your assessments and the like and know what's what. Anyway, I hear you!

So vent about the unfairness... and then figure out what you want to do about it... try again, find a local refresher course, try something else... good luck!

[deeDawntee, RN]

I spoke to a nurse from another floor and the floor did a couple things not right, like not follow the orientation outline. So, tomorrow I am going to the nurse retention specialist and discussing what happened with her. I am going to tell her what happened on the floor. I don't want to go back there. The problem was the floor was hoping to have me out in 6 weeks due to the fact I was an "experienced nurse" and when they realized they had to put more effort into me, they sort of gave up. That is unhealthy and unrealistic for me.

I have an unfilled out orientation book, that I asked several times about. I didn't get fair treatment due to the fact I graduated a year ago. No one deserves to go home crying after work every night or get scolded in front of patients about something they didn't know. It is unprofessional and inexcusable. The one chance I was going to talk to my clinical supervisor about things, I got terminated due to the fact I wasn't what they wanted.

So now I am taking my assertive not good enough for them butt to the person who is in charge of the education and preceptor roles in the hospital to discuss different options and my experience. I already applied for one job and a friend is giving me another option on Monday. That is one good thing about the nursing shortage, there will always be jobs for us. :monkeydance:

Great Job! It sounds like you are taking all the right steps to make certain what happened to you doesn't happen to someone else. After being treated like that, you are definitely handling it in the best way I can imagine! And the fact you already have other positions ready to be interview for is pretty darned impressive.

Way to go! You are truly an inspiration of how best to deal with situations like you described. No doubt, your story will touch others.

You can be my nurse anytime!

:bow: