Trouble with New Grad Orientee

[FrancescaF]

I feel like I've exhausted my family and co-workers about the issues I have with my orientee. I'm reaching out to experience nurses and new grads to help me with my situation. I work at a very large hospital in Pre/Post. I'm an older nurse with only a year and a half experience in the nursing field. I have a new grad orientee currently that is 10 years my senior in age. She has been incredibly condescending, indignant, and generally annoying since day one. I have a true lack of experience in this field but have had an orientee put on my because I have a reputation to be extremely good with patients and kind, receptive to new nurses. She questions everything I do and say, attempts to correct my charting, invents problematic issues with patients. She is very intelligent and I respect her questions and continual desire to learn. But, I leave work everyday feeling resentful and irritated. How can I learn to cope better in this relationship and make it mutually beneficial and not shrouded in a passive-aggressive power struggle?

[Nurse SMS, MSN, RN]

Have you talked to your manager?

[SpankedInPittsburgh, DNP, RN]

Yeah. This is a fit that doesn't work. Have her orient with somebody else. If your manager won't allow a itch the three of you need to talk this through & put all your cards on table. We nurses often try to fix the unfixable & usually to bad results.

[Okami_CCRN, BSN, RN]

I agree with SpankedinPittsburgh, the best course of action would be for the new hire to orient with another nurse. I would reach out to the nurse educator overseeing the orientation and ask that another preceptor be paired with her as you feel that the match as it stands would lead to a successful orientation.

[JKL33]

I have a reputation to be extremely good with patients and kind, receptive to new nurses.

You may be the perfect person to address (report) this, then. It's too bad for her because even though I'm sure you'll discuss this with mgmt in a professional manner choosing your words carefully, they will recognize that she has managed to try the patience of a very patient person.

How can I learn to cope better in this relationship and make it mutually beneficial and not shrouded in a passive-aggressive power struggle?

Don't get roped into continuing this; it will be of no use to anyone.

Sometimes a perfectly reasonable way to cope is to say no. Though it's prudent to take stock of one's own actions in a situation like this, we nurses don't always have to immediately feel there is something we could be doing better that would fix everything. The reported behavior is unacceptable, end of story.

[FolksBtrippin, BSN, RN]

If she asks more questions than you can handle, try structuring your orientation of her to include times for questions. Tell her to write questions down and save them for those times.

If you don't know the answer to her question, don't get frazzled. Tell her you don't know. Refer her to policy, ask her to look it up and report back to you.

I'm not sure what you mean by correcting your charting. Does she point out legitimate errors or something else? If possible, give her the reigns. Let her chart while you look over her shoulder.

What is going on when she is indignant?

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

"invents problematic issues with patients." What does that mean? If she is that much of a troublemaker, one word to your manager should take care of the issue.

I precepted every body that came through the door and enjoyed the mentoring process. I would not have tolerated what you are describing.

Sounds like you are trying too hard to be responsible for her success.

[NuGuyNurse2b]

"invents problematic issues with patients." What does that mean?

Probably what a former manager would do to me. Ask the patient leading questions like "did your nurse control your pain" and suddenly someone who hasn't asked for pain pipes up and says "oh yeah, no they haven't asked me".

[Been there,done that, ASN, RN]

Probably what a former manager would do to me. Ask the patient leading questions like "did your nurse control your pain" and suddenly someone who hasn't asked for pain pipes up and says "oh yeah, no they haven't asked me".

This is all about Medicare reimbursement. Leave it to the government to screw things up. You had a bad manager.. seems to be going around.

[cleback]

Could just be a personality clash. If it's really unbearable, try to approach your manager but chalk it up to learning/teaching styles or the like. It doesn't sound like she's doing anything particularly dangerous or negligent... just a pita.

[Workitinurfava, BSN, RN]

Talk to her about it first. You may be able to help her. Either she will comply or who knows, end up asking for a new preceptor :).

[TruvyNurse]

Oh yikes. This one sounds like she won't do well with any preceptor! A bad attitude is a bad attitude. Speak with your supervisor. Good luck with everything. Don't let it get you down! It sounds like your heart is in the right place.