The Beginning to an End

[AlmostBSN]

Hello All,

I am a senior in a BSN program and I feel like I am not at all prepared to be a nurse. I have no clue how to adequately care for an individual patient beyond a care plan or concept map. I have had many rotations (i.e. Med-surg, pediatric, geriatrics, OB etc..) and I am still unprepared. As I go into my last and final semester in January 2010, I would like to push myself 200% to fill the gaps I feel my nursing school has left wide open.

I seriously have a 4+ panic attack just thinking about being actual nurse to multiple patients. I feel like I have not been prepared as much as I'd prefer. I guess I need some suggestions and/or words of encouragement because at this point I feel doomed. I know I should be happy, but I fell that so many other people are more experienced and understand exactly what to do from beginning of shift to end without hesitation, and I am honestly not at the point.

Please Help...

So close yet so far away :trout:

[PostOpPrincess, BSN, RN]

HANG IN THERE!!!!!!!!!!

It's doable, very, very doable!!!!!

[Ivanna_Nurse, BSN, RN]

Hang in there! We have all felt that way, and anyone who denies it is fibbing. Nsg school teaches you about the book parts, and preps you for the NCLEX. Clinicals aren't an accurate representation of what is in store as a graduate nurse, however... that time gives you the exposure to the hospital atmosphere, the ebbs and flows of a typical day and a general idea of how things work. You will find that much of your training is hands on, and begins when you step foot on your unit in your nurse shoes. Keep up the good work, and remember.... you can do it! :) Ivanna

[Tait, MSN, RN]

A lot of process comes into line during that last rotation and orientation at your new job. It is quite amazing how the learning process suddenly becomes exponential as you see more and more of your learning applied to real people.

Don't worry, it will get there. You have a whole semester left!! Sometimes you just have to let go a little, enjoy the ride and before you know it you will be two years along wondering how you could have doubted yourself!

:icon_hug:

Tait

[sunnycalifRN]

Don't worry. What you're experiencing is perfectly normal, I know I felt the same way. But, when you are hired, you should be placed in an orientation program with a preceptor. When you start working, you will get to apply what you've been learning in nursing school and everything will start to "click". You'll do fine.

[Lacie, BSN, RN]

Hang in there and if there is the possiblity of finding an externship to work weekends before you graduate will help a great deal. Some hospitals will hire starting in your junior year. I did this an it helped me so much for the transition. When I graduated I obtained my first RN position on the same floor (CCU) in the same hospital. Did my first post grad year there then moved on. Not sure how the availablity of those type positions are for you in your area with the economy but worth checking into. It will fall into place once you actually get out and working with a preceptor. Big thing is work on your self confidence as I bet you know much more than your giving yourself credit for.

[iHeartNICU]

Totally normal! I felt like I learned close to nothing about how to actually care for patients while in school. I learned lots of things but the physical, taking care of people, didn't seem to be one of those things, despite skills labs and clinicals. Until you get to the real world and see how things work on real people it makes almost no sense. I know for us, we had one patient for a whole clinical day. It's hard to do that just one day a week for 8 hours only. How many times can you take vitals and give pills...that's what I felt like I was doing...not actually taking care of people. it wasn't until my orientation that things started clicking and I could use all of that knowledge that I cactually learned. So, participate in everything and learn everything you can but I think the most important thing is making sure your first job is one with a great orientation program! That is so super important! keep your head up, the way you are feeling is normal. Ha, sounds kinda weird that normal is feeling like you know nothing but that's just how it is it seems :) Good luck in your last semester!!

[Mandylou]

It is okay! Nursing school builds a foundation. Working on the floor as a nurse gives you experience and real life lessons. There were procedures, surgeries, and concepts that I had no clue about until I started working. Here I will embarrass myself a little and give you an example.

When I first graduated I had a dialysis patient that had gone to dialysis that day ( I worked night shift) in talking to another nurse I was very concerned that the patient had zero urine output! They never told us in school that some dialysis patients don't void at all. When I stopped to think about it it made sense but it caught me off guard at first. I realized after that there were so many real life things that we never touched in school. Best of luck, it will be fine. :)

[helpsme]

What you are feeling has been felt by most of us. I have an associates degree and have been doing this for 18 years. Except for the "hands on learning" in nursing school (how to do foleys, NGT, sterile technique etc) I'm not sure how much more I used from nursing school. This career, in my opinion, is a hands on, on the job training. You won't be thrown to the wolves, hopefully. New grads have preceptors and resources out the butt now. The key thing is DON'T BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR HELP.You will be putting yourself and your patients a in a bad place and question your decision to become a nurse in the first case. Every nurse in whichever field you go into has been where you will be soon.

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

You'll be fine. We all feel the same way, we all fumble about for about a year, and then somehow we survive.

Just do what you can to be the best student nurse you can be, learn all you can, get as much experience and you can, but try not to have anxiety about things to come. Stay focused on the present.

Good luck!

[zofran]

Dont worry almost bsn, we have all been where you are right now. What I like about you is--you KNOW that you DONT KNOW ---which is exactly where you should be right now. You also seem to have an intrest in learning as much as you can. These are two good qualities a new nurse should have. Good Luck and best wishes!!

[nursemike, ASN, RN]

Heh heh...try to look on the bright side: in a few short months, you'll be much too worried about NCLEX to even think about what comes after.

But these anxieties are pretty universal, and the reality is rarely as bad as you imagine. Speaking of NCLEX, if you can graduate, you can pass. You do need to do some prep--practice questions and such, but you know the material. It's just a case of getting comfortable with the test format and controlling your anxiety. And it's a lot like that with the actual nursing, too. You have the knowledge base. You may not know you have the knowledge base, but it's in there, and it has a way of floating up into your consciousness when you need it too.

Of course, as has been noted, what you learn in school is your foundation. The bulk of your practical knowledge will come with experience. You'll learn from more experienced nurses, you'll put your head together with other newbies, and you'll figure out stuff on your own. It won't be easy, but it's obviously not impossible. Mainly, if you're willing to work hard, listen to good advice from successful nurses, and use some common sense, you'll be fine. On my unit, we want to know: are you lazy? and do you care about your patients? If you are not lazy and you do care, you'll get the rest.