What Is Your Biggest Weakness?

Cubby · May 1, 2005

I have noticed in the last year, I just don't handle stupid or lazy very well. If I was not a supervisor this probably would not matter, but it looks bad for the boss to tell a subordinate that they are "a brick short of a....." And I am afraid that it is not getting any better-so I resigned my position as supervisor and now I get to have fun with my ALzheimers residents. I will take them any day to having to put up with the folks who do not have a diagnosis after their name.

Cubby · May 1, 2005

The paperwork.........it takes way too much time. I cannot wait for computer charting.
Jen
http://journals.aol.com/jennerizer/nurse

We have a paperless system. What a joke-for one FSBS(finger stick blood sugar) we get a whole piece of paper-which is immediately thrown away. Prior to our new system we needed one line to document the results-now we get the paper. :angryfire It would not be so bad but there are approx 100 residents who get a daily FS. Our paper budget has tripled since we went to a "Paperless system." :crying2: :angryfire

StNeotser, ASN, RN · May 1, 2005

I don't mind doing anything really. What I do find difficult is attitude. The patient who expects me to fix their television set and will "report" me if I don't, the families who sit around thinking they are at a 5 star hotel for the sick (don't mind getting drinks/cookies for family members if the patient is very sick/dying but in normal circumstances :rolleyes: ) patients who call their lights because they are "testing it"

The thing is, I would attempt to do a lot of non nursing stuff if they had been asked for politely.

AuntMeggie · May 1, 2005

I had this great tell me your weakness story for my first RN interview last week and they didn't ask me. My biggest weakness as a novice nurse is not being able to advocate for my patients. I'm educated and slightly experienced, but whatever the problem is, I'll always second guess myself until I have more experience.

Celia M, ASN, RN · May 4, 2005

SPUTUM, hate the stuff, love my vent patients with their closed system suction. My worst experience was when a confused patient said she wanted to give me something and I foolishly held out my ungloved hand into which she placed a large gob of green sputum, yuk! Give me a Code Brown any day!!!

Tweety, BSN, RN · May 4, 2005

I love ADLs, shaving and bathing and all that stuff. I love starting IVs, inserting NGs, love trached patients and suctioning sputum and total care patients.

My weakness is my charting. I get so boggled down in patient care I rush through my charting. Some days I'm so burned I know I wouldn't withstand a lawsuit. I'm doing better at charting as I go.

allnurses Guide · May 4, 2005

I love ADLs, shaving and bathing and all that stuff. I love starting IVs, inserting NGs, love trached patients and suctioning sputum and total care patients.
My weakness is my charting. I get so boggled down in patient care I rush through my charting. Some days I'm so burned I know I wouldn't withstand a lawsuit. I'm doing better at charting as I go.

Well than I need to follow you around for awhile because in 7 years I've done 3 NG tubes. I hate them . . . . because I don't do very many.

If I was good at it, I'd feel better. I'm so afraid to hurt the patient.

steph

Tony35NYC · May 5, 2005

another weakness i thought of and mean seriously.....my damned standards are too high.
i become extremely exasperated if i see shabby nsg care (nurses and cna's).
when i ran a floor, i would (diplomatically) point out various 'oversights' that hadn't been done. some of the nsg staff grew to resent me but after a few months, the cna's were performing top-notch care when i was on duty; they knew my expectations and standards of care.
so i must consider it a weakness but am still unwilling to lower my standards. i have high expectations and presume everyone feels as i do, which is not the case. and i still choose not to be more flexible.

I don't see this as a weakness at all. Shabby nursing care is not nursing.

barefootlady, ADN, RN · May 5, 2005

deep seated anger and resentments at facility CNO and CEO who will take a unit, a unit that functions well, has a good experienced staff, has its routines down and decided to change everything, either type of patients, new skill added, some new, longer form, or some such stuff. Soon more and more changes are demanded, and then the unit starts losing good people. Not everybody likes to work where their input is totally ignored about everything. This has happened to me twice, both units ended up closing because staff would not stay. Now nurses are leaving the place in droves, all because a new CNO knew a better way to do things. NOT!!!!

mstigerlily · May 5, 2005

So far as a new grad, I would have to say time management but I guess that improves with time.

Other than that, phone calls. I hate calling doctors, the pharmacy, the lab, answering the phone, hate it hate it. I am the type of person who would rather email than phone if calling a store or even a friend. I don't know why.

Melissa

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide · May 6, 2005

So far as a new grad, I would have to say time management but I guess that improves with time.
Other than that, phone calls. I hate calling doctors, the pharmacy, the lab, answering the phone, hate it hate it. I am the type of person who would rather email than phone if calling a store or even a friend. I don't know why.
Melissa

I used to suffer from 'telephonophobia' myself. Didn't like using the phone, especially when I had to talk to someone I didn't know. Although I still would rather e-mail, or talk face to face, being in nursing has certainly gotten me over my fear of phones.

Now, if I could just figure out those multi-lined contraptions and stop disconnecting people when I'm trying to transfer a call....... :confused: I SO was not cut out to be a secretary---I can never find the hole-puncher, I don't know how to print out lab reports, and you might as well have a monkey working the desk, I'm such a klutz with the phones. Last week I even managed to knock the damned receiver off the hook AND disconnect the caller (an MD, of course!) with one smooth move. :uhoh3:

Tweety, BSN, RN · May 6, 2005

Well than I need to follow you around for awhile because in 7 years I've done 3 NG tubes. I hate them . . . . because I don't do very many.
If I was good at it, I'd feel better. I'm so afraid to hurt the patient.
steph

Actually, I hate torturing the patient. I think it's one of the most horrific things we have to do to patients. For some reasons I'm good at it....hmmmm....perhaps I'm a bit of a sadist and don't realize it. :chuckle