tell-the-world-rn

[tell-the-world-rn]

Different View than Normal.

On Thursday it was my 2nd day of being a preceptor. In my last post I mentioned that this was my first time being a preceptor. Well even after 2 days I still feel like there is a lot for me to learn.

Today my new graduate was able to take all of my patient load, which gave me the opportunity to help out a lot of my other coworkers as well as guide my new graduate. I had time to do interventions that normally I have very little time to do, due to the heavy workload I usually have as an RN.

Having more time to work with patients on a one to one level, helping out coworkers by getting IVs or assisting in interventions, and having time to work on learning modules that are required for my job was really a nice change in pace from the usual.

In addition I really enjoyed helping and supporting my new grad out. They asked me some really good questions that I was surprised I knew the answer too. They came to me when they needed advice and I also helped them out when I saw they were behind a bit. This experience has helped me to see my own role on my unit as well as feel better about my job as a nurse.

Precepting has allowed me to see nursing from a different side and it’s been really fun and I have really enjoyed helping out not just my team but the new grad I’m orienting. I know that I’m going to be a preceptor for another two weeks and I’m really excited to learn more about this role. I hope in the future to be more involved with helping to train new nurses on my floor.

[tell-the-world-rn]

I guess I’m a preceptor now

Yesterday I found out that I was in charge of training a new graduate nurse. I had been asked a couple weeks ago if I would want to help in orienting new nurses onto our floor and said “sure”. I hadn’t really thought it would happen so soon and it sort of threw me off guard.

I’ve always been pretty straight forward with my nursing care. Every shift I do the same actions and am honestly really a creature of habit. I make sure that every task on my day is completed in a timely manner, all my patient’s rooms are tidy by end of shift, that all my patients are satisfied and feel up to date on any new changed, I assist my coworkers when they need help, make sure all my charting is done as I go and finished by end of shift; all of these interventions I perform are so ingrained into my daily routine that having a new grad really threw me off my groove.

I have never thought of myself as this all knowing great role model, I’ve been a nurse for nearly three years and I am still learning every day and asking for help from others when I’m unsure. This fact alone made the experience of training a new graduate a little daunting. “What if I mess up and they end up unable to be a successful nurse?”, “What do I do if their nursing style and mine don’t mix?”, “I hope I’m not overbearing”, “How am I supposed to teach this person something that I still feel new at?”. These were all fears I had in my head yesterday when my shift started. It wasn’t until my manager pulled me aside that I saw things a bit differently.

My manager had started off by apologizing for how soon and how little notice this situation had been. They then told me that when the new grad was offered a choice of who they wanted as their preceptor they specifically chose me, because they looked up to me.

I have worked as a nurse for nearly three years and throughout my time I’ve always felt that I was decent at my job, but finding out that someone who’ve I’ve worked with when they were a nurse assistant a few times, was that impressed by how I did my job really changed my perspective of myself and my job.

I’ve been a nurse since before the pandemic, throughout this time I’ve gone from an excited new graduate myself to someone who feels burnt out and tired from all the stress since the start of the pandemic. Watching my patient’s struggle to survive alone with COVID, dealing with serious nursing shortages at my hospital, experiencing increased levels of workplace violence have all changed how I feel about nursing. Somewhere during my career I lost my positivity over my image as a nurse.

Working with this new graduate yesterday really made me see the bright side of nursing again. They took every situation with fresh eyes and every chance as an opportunity to learn something new. I felt like I wanted to do everything I could to help this new graduate succeed and feel supported. I wanted them to see nursing as a way to really make a difference in someone’s life. By teaching them I felt a bit like when I started off, I was excited and everything was new. 

We experienced some difficulties along the way yesterday, and my new grad learned some of the hardships that comes with being a nurse, but at the end of the day they thanked me for the help and expressed they were excited to have me there to help them throughout their orientation.

This single experience has really made me enjoy nursing again. I look forward to helping this nurse grow.

[tell-the-world-rn]

Introduction

Hello Everyone,

I am currently a registered nurse that is enrolled at JMU in their RN-BSN program. I have created this blog as part of my final project, for one of my classes. I plan to for the next week share some of the experiences I’ve encountered as a RN. Below I would like to share a little about what it means to be a nurse to me.

Being a nurse is both rewarding and hard, this is especially true due to recent events. During the COVID 19 pandemic nurses have been put to the test and society has been given a glimpse into what it means to be a nurse.

While some of us work 8hr/5 days a week, others work 10 hr/ 4 days a week, or 12 hr/ 3 days a week. Regardless of how many hours a day we may work, our days are long and hard. Nurses work tirelessly to do the most they can for their patients.

We advocate, we educate, we give medications, we perform a lot of the care that often people outside of the medical profession believe only doctors do. Nurses tend to spend the most time with their patients compared with health care roles and as a result we get to see and experience a lot of different events throughout our days. Nurses get to see people not only at their best but also at their worst.

This pandemic has changed and impacted nursing in a lot of ways. A lot of us are experiencing shortages and are understaffed and overworked as a result. This makes being a nurse extremely stressful and challenging. Many nurses are experiencing burnout as a result/

However even during this time of uncertainty and stress we still continue to do our jobs and work hard to help and care for our patients. No matter the weather, the day, or the event there is always a nurse at the hospital to help care and support those in need.

Nurses are there for their patients and work to build bonds with them which is likely why nursing has been called the most trusted professions.

I am grateful to be a part of this profession. Even during the hardest of days I’ve gotten to be apart of some of the most rewarding and wonderful experiences.

I hope to share a bit of my world with others through this blog.