My unit has a staff meeting every quarter. Usually, we are given an option of three dates the time is the same 7:30am to 8:30 am. It’s a way to review the prior few months, share any new goals, classes available through the hospital and to celebrate nurses and techs. We just had our January meeting, and I was recognized for completing my first year. I am very proud I made it through my first year of nursing.
#1 You will never feel ready.
The first day of orientation I was extremely nervous. Not that I expected anything weird to happen on my first day or even my first week of orientation. The years of classes, exams, and stress all lead up to this moment. I was embarking on new territory.
They did not just let us graduate nurses go ahead and nurse, we had 10 weeks of preceptorship. We worked the 40-hour work week, but it wasn’t like the other nurses. In between the 12 hour shifts we were attending classes. A review to make sure they weren’t just throwing us to the wolves. Well, when the 10 weeks were up, and I was on my own. I didn’t feel ready. No one feels ready. In honesty, I don’t think we are supposed to feel prepared. Those first few shifts were the scariest, but I made it, as will every other new nurse.
#2 You are never alone.
The most important thing I learned early on feeling alone, as long as you’re on a good floor, you are never alone. Especially in the first few weeks, whenever a patient did look good, or my gut did not feel right about a situation I would ask another nurse or my supervisors. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, you have people’s lives in your hand. The supervisors soon became my best friends, and to this day I go to them for advice. Over a year in and I still talk things out with other nurses. Nurses who have been there five years still talking out situations with other nurses.
#3 Your First Code
You will have a “first code.” Everyone has a first code. At the moment you will think it is lasting forever. Afterward, you will realize that it’s the quickest 15 minutes that has ever past. A great appreciation for the nurses that enter into a code situation and are able to take over. The nurses who have done this for years. It’s inspiring to learn more about the process of the code. Remember to know the diagnosis and history of your patient. As the primary nurse, you’ll have to stay there until the patient care is taken over by another nurse in ICU.
#4 Internet searches are your friend.
Internet searches will become your friend. The medical environment is continuously changing, and it’s impossible to know everything new that is available. New wound care devices, unique or rare surgical procedures, and medications are up for a quick internet search. Keep a small notebook so when you come across something new or foreign you will be able to jot it down and research more extensively on your own time. Don’t fear to have an internet browser up, I guarantee that there will be other nurses that have never heard of it either.
#5 You remember more of nursing school than you think.
An amazing thing that I slowly stumbled upon was that amount of stuff, random knowledge, that I remember from nursing school. Surgeries, disease processes, would come out of nowhere and facts would pop into my head. You remember a lot more than you think from nursing school. The most random trivia will surface, and you won’t realize where that even came from.
So, whether you are a new nurse, nursing student, or a seasoned nurse, keep in mind, every nurse had been there first. Whether it was their first-day or first code, you are not alone, if you feel you need help, reach out.