Dear Baby Nurse,
Maybe you've just started your career. Maybe you're fresh off of orientation. Maybe you've just switched units and have to start all over. How are you feeling? Anxious? Excited? Terrified? A mix of the three?
What you're feeling is totally legitimate. It's completely normal to feel like you have no idea what you're doing, especially if this is your very first nursing job. Heck, it's normal to feel like that during your first shift off of orientation. It's alright, you're going to be just fine. You'll make it, you aren't going to drown.
Your co-workers, especially your charge nurse and former preceptors, are your support system. Please ask them questions. There really is no stupid question, and hopefully you don't feel like you're being a burden by asking so many questions. They would much rather you ask them questions than try something by yourself and make a mistake. The thing is, you're always going to be learning on the job.
If you ever get to the point where you think that you have nothing left to learn...it's time to change something. Because even though the basic anatomy and physiology of the human body might not change, the treatments are constantly changing. There is always something new to learn, research, discover, and implement into your practice.
Every nurse started off as a baby nurse at some point. They've been where you are, and they remember the uncertainty that comes along with being a new nurse. They remember how scary the first few shifts off of orientation can be. Hopefully your preceptors have prepared enough during your orientation that you don't feel completely lost during the first few. But even if they did, and you still feel lost, it's alright. That's why you have a support system. If you completely blank while assessing your patient, putting in a foley, or pulling a central line, it's alright. There is no shame in asking for help. If you need to stop and take a deep breath, collect your thoughts, and say a quick prayer before going into your patient's room, do so. If you need to talk through the steps of a skill with another nurse, do so.
You might look at the other baby nurses who have been off orientation and think, "how the heck did they get all their crap together so quickly?" That's how I felt, and after about two months off of orientation, I still feel that way sometimes. I'm still very much a baby nurse. I'm still learning, and growing, and becoming more confident in my nursing practice.
However, that uncertainty is still there. I still question myself, and I don't know when the uncertainty goes away. Part of me thinks that maybe it shouldn't. Maybe it's healthy that we do question ourselves. If you don't question yourself, or if you're uncertain and don't ask questions, there's a good chance you might make an error. And as we both know, nobody wants to make a mistake, especially one that could harm a patient.
Unfortunately, the truth is, you're going to make a mistake. It's going to hurt your pride, and hopefully it's not going to cause harm to your patient, but every nurse makes mistakes. Even some of the best nurses I know, even ones that have been working for over 10 years, have made med errors. A lot of mistakes can be attributed to simple human error. Sometimes we get so caught up in what we're doing that we stop to think, and double check that what we're doing is correct. Which is why taking a second to stop and question yourself is important.
There are going to be times when you get frustrated with yourself and think, "I should know the answer to this, what am I overlooking?" Or you might ask, "why are none of our interventions working the way they should?" It's alright. You're going to have hard days, and you're going to have days that are okay. You're going to figure out what type of patients you work well with and feel comfortable taking care of, and there will be patients that you find you just don't know how to care for. It's alright. Eventually you'll become more comfortable and more confident with those harder patients. It takes time, and it takes a lot of patience. You have to be patient with yourself and remember that you are still learning every day. Give yourself some grace, friend.
You're going to make it, and next time, you'll be the one writing this letter. Trust me.
