What do you fear most on the job?

[tiroka03]

I was thinking about different things that scare me on any given day as far as being a nurse. I am not paranoid (really), but I would like to hear what are the common fears that you have. I think it would be good to air them, and to find solutions.

For instance, I am afraid of is hanging a wrong IV bag. I don't know why that scares me more than anything else. I go to extremes to make sure I am hanging the right one. I know of a nurse who did that and got fired instantly. So, it has always haunted me.

[tntrn, ASN, RN]

I fear missing one stupid little thing on the computer charting (that was probably charted in the other 4 or 5 places, also), and getting scolded or fired for it. The computer has become a nurse's number one priority. I find that sad.

[CathyLew]

Pt. falls. We have become obsessed with fall prevention.

I hate it to, but it seems it is the patient's right to fall... back in the day we threw a posy vest on anyone who had bad sundowners and was a high fall risk. Now you can't use restraints, management won't put extra staff on as sitters... you can't watch them all at once. It just takes a second. By the time the bed alarm sounds, you have already heard the crash!

[Vernie08]

:nurse:In my facility (ltc) there is soooo much documentation of the same thing on different reports, sheets, charts, etc. So, i fear making documentation errors and them ending up in the court of law.

[mRpeNa]

Getting a phone call the day after I worked a 3-11 shift, asking me "what the heck happened last night?"!!!!!!

me too! i can not sleep that night after i have finished a shift! and i work 6-2!!!!

[canesdukegirl, BSN, RN]

What I fear MOST is any harm that comes to a pt under my care. This can be a plethora of things...like wrong site surgery or anesthesia giving something that the pt is allergic to without telling the surgical staff what they are giving (I caught a CRNA about to do this very thing before I stopped him), a freshly extubated child going into laryngospasms, pt's waking up during surgery...EGADS! My list could go on.

On a selfish note, I always live in fear that I won't hear my phone when I am on call, then come to work the next morning and walking into a Pandora's Box of emergency cases. This is the main reason I don't sleep well when I am on call. Another selfish thing that I live in fear of is that I am actually supposed to be working on a day that I thought I had off.

Great. Now I won't sleep tonight!

[turnforthenurse, MSN, NP]

Making a med error, but especially a serious med error that results in either harm or the death of a patient.

Also not knowing everything (I'm a new grad!)

[Leelee2]

Serious Eye injuries

[Datu]

For me medication error and bad grammar on my chart

[Bezoars]

I worry about everything as a new grad, but I don't obcess about it. I refuse to be ruled by the computer so I do everything I can to chart well and proper and then if I miss something... I don't let it keep me up at night. My number one priority is making the patient feel validated and cared about. If it's a choice of getting that medication out just in time or spending that extra five minutes with my patient who needs someone to listen to her/him... I choose the patient every time. I want my patients to not only be cared for, but feel cared for and - hey - since it's all about customer service... that's what the hospital ultimately wants, right? I mean, seriously, we can't be the best at EVERYTHING, so if I have to pick, I pick being really good at making my patients feel cared about.

[Popwhizbangz, LPN]

More than anything else, I fear letting others get hurt, patients or staff. It really bothers me when someone gets attacked when, maybe, I could have prevented it (as I often do). I deal with a lot of bark, and sometimes bite - pretty good at finding the real risks and managing it all, but every so often something gets past me.

[time4meRN]

getting fired for poor customer service scores. ( not for lack of critical care scores or experience, or because we put out hearts and soles into pt care, but because we were short staffed, pounded with critical patients and ****** someone off because we may have been curt for responding to a rude comment by a pt)

[NoviceRN10]

My biggest fear is a code blue. I take care of post-surgical pts and thankfully they are usually stable, but I fear not knowing what to do if I walk into a situation where someone has gone south. I will be smart enough to call for help, but the unknown/not experienced situation scares me.