What are some tips on getting ready to be in a hospital?

[daisey_may]

I

[daisey_may]

I am new in nursing, (I'm in my second semester of my first year) and last semester was the first time I had ever stepped into a hospital. It was very intimidating and looking back on it, I didn't have a very good experience. I get so nervous just making a bed! I'm trying to take the test right now to become a CNA, but other than that I feel awkward in the hospital and caring for patients nad it's difficult in class to pay attention when I have no experience. What more can I do to feel ready? I nearly die when I think about in a year I will eb taking the boards to be a nurse and I still get nervous giving someone a bath...

[Daytonite, BSN, RN]

After a couple of years of experience you'll look back at this and wonder why you were so nervous. All through nursing school and for the first couple of years as a nurse I was scared to death that I would accidentally kill a patient. I would nearly get physically sick and throw up before every clinical day when I was in school. As I was walking into the hospital from my car, my stomach would just be churning and I would be getting light-headed. I think it really was more of a defense mechanism and served me well because I double checked everything I did. Looking back at it many years later I realize that I had a tendency to rush into doing things and so it was probably a good thing that happened. My subconsious mind must have realized the seriousness of what I was undertaking and took over.

For years when I worked the night shift I had a fear of finding a patient dead that I could have saved if only I had checked on them. Therefore, I hardly ever sat down during my shifts. Before I would sit down I would take a walk around and check all the patients just to reassure myself that they were all breathing and safe. It actually worked in my favor because I found a fair number who were in the process of climbing out of bed and would have fallen or pulled their IV's out had I not been checking in on them.

Your awkwardness comes from inexperience and clumsiness (I mean that in the nicest way). Remember what it was like to learn to ride a bike or to roller skate when you were a kid. Well, learning all these nursing procedures is the same thing. The more you do these different procedures the more proficient you will become at them. Over time you will do them with ease, I promise. Like mastering the playing of any instrument it takes practice, practice, practice. There is no way out of that part of it. So, for now, you just have to endure the awkwardness. We all went through that phase. We all started with no experience. So, take heart in the fact that you are not alone in this, but have many sisters who went through the same thing. We got through it and you will too.

[rhapsodyRN]

I'm so glad to hear someone else say that. :) I seriously almost turned around and went home 2 weeks ago before my first hospital clinical. Our first semester clinicals were in the nursing home and I felt so nervous there but got used to it and the slow pace. Then when the first day of clinical came around I literally felt like I was going to be sick. Second day wasn't so bad. And then I have had 2 weeks to think about what I didn't do and what I might do better. I was excited until about 2 hours ago when I started thinking about it again and now I want to get sick again..LOL. I think it's what you say..I tend to rush things and my subconscious is taking over and making me realize what it is I'm doing.