thestudentnurseblog

[thestudentnurseblog]

10 Things Nurses Wish You Knew

1) We chose to be nurses, not doctors. It’s not a case of “oh i couldn’t be a doctor so I became a nurse”, no. It’s what we wanted to do. 

2) We are often over-worked and understaffed. So if we don’t get your relative that glass of water you asked for within 5 minutes, please do not yell at us. We have lots of things to do. 

3) We do more than clean people and beds, thank you very much. A registered nurse often has numerous tasks to do, such as medications (including injections and IV fluids), taking bloods, doing constant observations of patient’s physical and mental health, and some of us can even prescribe meds too. Nursing has progressed massively in the last few decades.

4) I look tired because I am. 

5) We’ve seen many different bodies in all shapes and sizes. We’ve seen all sorts of bodily fluids, so not much will phase us. Please don’t be embarrassed. 

6) We had to go to university to get here. A lot of non-medical people believe that nursing is an easy profession to get into, but it’s actually not all smooth sailing. To become a registered nurse, you must go through at least 3 or 4 years minimum training before you get on that nursing register. We are educated.

7) We see a lot of stuff. During the duration of a nurse’s career, we are bound to see more than our fair share of death and other upsetting events. We’re likely to be there when people take their last breath, or when a patient has decided that they no longer can go on and attempt suicide. I am a student nurse and I have seen both of these already. Sometimes we will get nightmares about it, I know I do. But we carry on, because there’s always someone else in need.

8)  We really shouldn’t tolerate verbal abuse from patients/families. We understand that you’re upset or distressed, but yelling at your nurses is not going to help your situation. Ever. Just don’t do it, don’t be a dick. We’re trying to help.

9) I love my job, but sometimes I really would rather be at home, or with my family, or at that birthday party i missed because i was working, or on that holiday I can’t afford to go on. 

10) Listen to us, because we know what we’re talking about. Sometimes a nurse will be able to spot something before a doctor will. Sometimes the nurse will be right and the doctor will be wrong. 

[thestudentnurseblog]

When you finally get that vein

[thestudentnurseblog]

Hello, I’m sorry to bother you. Do you follow any nursing students from the uk? I am considering doing nursing school in the uk as an international student and I’d like to ask some questions about nursing in there so I can consider. Thank you very much 🌻

Hi there! I’m qualified nurse now but I did my training in the UK, anything I can help with? x

[thestudentnurseblog]

To be a Mental Health Nurse

Most people don’t realise that working in mental health is not all therapy.

Most people don’t realise that working in mental health increases your chances of being assaulted at work significantly

Most people don’t realise that working in mental health can leave you with as much trauma as some of your patients may have.

Most people don’t realise that working in mental health is mentally draining on all involved.

Most people don’t realise that working in mental health can involve restraining people twice your size because they are a risk to themselves or others. Often this is after they have assaulted someone or harmed themselves. We have restrained after being punched in the face, we have seen colleagues restrain after being headbutted. Because there’s no other staff to take over from us. We have restrained covered in blood. We have restrained in puddles of urine.

Most people don’t realise that a mental health ward can feel like a prison. Overflowing with patients that should be elsewhere, understaffed and non therapeutic.

Most people don’t realise that mental health wards aren’t full of ‘psychos’ and ‘lunatics’. A lot of the time patients have addictions, severe depression, psychological trauma, or are seeking refuge because they can’t keep themselves safe from harm.

Most people don’t realise that mental health nurses are specifically trained in mental health. But this doesn’t mean we know everything.

Most people don’t realise that working in mental health can affect us too. We unfortunately have patients end their lives. Whether this was intentional or not. And we are heartbroken for the people we couldn’t help. But we work on.

Most people don’t realise that we’re not just washing people and following doctors around. We carry out therapies, medications, run wards, carry out clinical tasks such as bloods and syringe drivers, comfort patients and families, and in the NHS, we even have holding powers if we believe a patient isn’t safe to leave the hospital. We can be there in your lowest points in life, and help nurse you back to the best you can be. We can also be there on your last days of life, when dementia wins its battle. We will preserve your dignity and respect your rights and wishes.

Most people continue to spread the stigma about mental health. Some people don’t realise that we all have mental health, whether it be good or bad. Mental health workers are there to help when your mental health isn’t it’s best. Someone is not weak for seeking help for their mental health. They are brave. Most people don’t realise that mental health nurses are fighting a losing battle. We are critically underfunded. Understaffed, under appreciated. Mental health issues and illnesses are on the rise and are reaching crisis points. This has already affected staff and patient safety. And it will continue if something isn’t done. If we are not supported. We are tired. We are drained. But we go to work, day in day out. Because we care. This is what we’re trained to do. And sometimes it gets too much. We’ve seen lots of nurses leaving the NHS recently. Because it’s better for their mental health to work elsewhere. That’s not quitting. It’s practicing what we preach. Our government promises to put more money into the NHS, but they’ve been promising this for years. They’ve promised more mental health funding, but there are still long waiting lists to see a mental health specialists. There are not enough staff employed, not enough beds and not enough people being trained. So don’t be like most people. Support your mental health workers. Nurses, doctors, everyone. We are soldiers in a hospital setting.

[thestudentnurseblog]

[thestudentnurseblog]

Hi there! I'm well past the common age of entering nursing school, but I'm not happy with my current job (accounting), and since I've always had a passion for medicine but never wanted to be a doctor, I've considered applying for an internship to see if it's for me. Now I'm really anxious about this, because it would mean going back to studying, to financial troubles etc, all the things I don't want. Any advice?

From my experience, there were students of all ages studying nursing! There were lots of people that have had long careers in other areas but found their nursing call. As a student nurse you can also work at the same time (Which is obviously difficult) but I would encourage you to at least give it a shot, and if it’s not for you, you can at least say you’ve tried! Best of luck x

[thestudentnurseblog]

Only a Nurse...

…can bite their tongue when the doctor comes around and rips off the wound dressing that they just spent the last 20 minutes perfecting. …silently notes a subtle change in their patient’s once sunny disposition. ���knows exactly what the patient is asking for through the mumbling and garbled speech that is now their new norm. …watches from sun-up to sun-down, dusk til dawn, day in, day out, to see if the patient will improve. “Will they ever improve?”, they ask themselves. Sometimes silently, sometimes out loud. …wishes their patient’s family makes them a DNR so that when their time comes, they can go peacefully; let the illness take their body quietly while they sleep. Let their suffering end with a quiet sigh, not the bone crunching, heart breaking sound of an already frail body turn to dust underneath adept hands. …will cry when the day comes that they must say their final goodbye. A nurse is there to hold a hand, a tissue, a bucket, a life. They balance the good and bad, the happy and sad. They do not wish for death to come to end a life abruptly. A nurse walks beside death every day, sees it in the faces of their patients. A nurse can calm the crying colicky baby, the scared teenager who just can’t seem to quit no matter how many times they tried, the elderly hospice patient desperately clinging to the last embers of an explosive life. When everything seems bleak and the end seems near, look beside you and see a nurse there. For they hold a spectrum of knowledge, experience and life in their hands. But what do I know…I’m only a nurse.

[thestudentnurseblog]

Checking on patients during Night Shift

[thestudentnurseblog]

10 Things Nurses Wish You Knew

1) We chose to be nurses, not doctors. It’s not a case of “oh i couldn’t be a doctor so I became a nurse”, no. It’s what we wanted to do. 

2) We are often over-worked and understaffed. So if we don’t get your relative that glass of water you asked for within 5 minutes, please do not yell at us. We have lots of things to do. 

3) We do more than clean people and beds, thank you very much. A registered nurse often has numerous tasks to do, such as medications (including injections and IV fluids), taking bloods, doing constant observations of patient’s physical and mental health, and some of us can even prescribe meds too. Nursing has progressed massively in the last few decades.

4) I look tired because I am. 

5) We’ve seen many different bodies in all shapes and sizes. We’ve seen all sorts of bodily fluids, so not much will phase us. Please don’t be embarrassed. 

6) We had to go to university to get here. A lot of non-medical people believe that nursing is an easy profession to get into, but it’s actually not all smooth sailing. To become a registered nurse, you must go through at least 3 or 4 years minimum training before you get on that nursing register. We are educated.

7) We see a lot of stuff. During the duration of a nurse’s career, we are bound to see more than our fair share of death and other upsetting events. We’re likely to be there when people take their last breath, or when a patient has decided that they no longer can go on and attempt suicide. I am a student nurse and I have seen both of these already. Sometimes we will get nightmares about it, I know I do. But we carry on, because there’s always someone else in need.

8)  We really shouldn’t tolerate verbal abuse from patients/families. We understand that you’re upset or distressed, but yelling at your nurses is not going to help your situation. Ever. Just don’t do it, don’t be a dick. We’re trying to help.

9) I love my job, but sometimes I really would rather be at home, or with my family, or at that birthday party i missed because i was working, or on that holiday I can’t afford to go on. 

10) Listen to us, because we know what we’re talking about. Sometimes a nurse will be able to spot something before a doctor will. Sometimes the nurse will be right and the doctor will be wrong. 

[thestudentnurseblog]

Do you ever lie to your patients?

[thestudentnurseblog]

[thestudentnurseblog]

Vaccines save lives!

[thestudentnurseblog]

Routine shout out to all those student nurses out there

[thestudentnurseblog]

Me when I see a patient’s family member outside of work

[thestudentnurseblog]

When a patient calls for something unnecessary when you’re busy

[thestudentnurseblog]

When a visitor comes up to you on shift and asks “How’s my mum/dad/husband been?” and you have no idea who they are

[thestudentnurseblog]

No Longer Newly Qualified

It has been nearly a whole year since I completed what I thought was the toughest 3 years of my life. Nearly a whole year since I qualified as a registered nurse. 

And boy have I learned a lot. 

I thought id make a little list of all the things I’ve learned/adopted since qualifying;

1- Take time for yourself. It’s so easy to make work your number one priority. I find it hard to say no when asked to stay late or pick up extra shifts, find myself sometimes worrying about work when I’m not even there. I’ve slowly began to realise that I need to put myself first, and my job second. 

2- There is SO much responsibility that’s attached to being a registered nurse. People’s lives are literally in our hands. Unfortunately this can also lead to a blame-culture, where people (usually management) look to find someone responsible. This is usually down to the nurse in charge, which more often than not (due to staffing) is myself. 

3- You learn so much more about nursing when you’re qualified. I’ve learned so many things about my specialist area!

4- Not everyone you work with will like you. And that’s OK. 

5- You should never accept abusive language/actions from patients or their visitors. My specific health trust has a respect campaign, that reminds patients/families that it is never Ok to be rude to staff. Unfortunately i have witnessed this, and have had to ask visitors to leave the ward. 

6- Your friends from nursing school will most likely be on opposite shifts from you. A lot of my friends moved to different health trusts, and a lot of the time, if I’m off Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, they’re off Friday, Saturday, Sunday. It sucks.

7- It’s always best to own up to your mistakes straight away. This can include drug errors, mis-identification or even wrong documentation. It may be embarrassing and lead to further consequences but it’s best to be honest and allow the situation to be fixed as quickly and efficiently as possible. 

8- You will make mistakes. It’s a natural thing. 

9- You develop a thick skin. By the time I’d qualified, I already had been given quite a few insults/jabs by patients, but this has only multiplied since being qualified. I find them amusing now.

10- You don’t realise how helpful student nurses are until you aren’t one anymore. It’s like having a little helper by your side, an asset!

11- My colleagues can literally make anything funny. It could be 3 in the morning and we could be cleaning shit off of a wall and someone would find something funny about it.

12- Your family probably don’t find your nursing stories as interesting as you do. Turns out my mum doesn’t want to hear about the time I found a patient making art with their blood....

13- A year goes by fast. Only recently did I actually stop and think; wow, it’s been a year. An insane year. I’ve worked countless shifts, nursed many patients, and I’ve settled in well to my ward. It’ll be weird not referring to myself as newly qualified anymore, it’s an easy excuse for not knowing somethings haha, but I’m sure i can handle what’s to come.

Let me know your newly qualified stories!