Helpful Tips for the New Nurse

To avoid future regrets give 100 percent every day to your nursing profession and expect nothing in return. You will not sleep well at night if you go to bed knowing that you did not do your best you could do for your patients.

Coffee Anyone?

When I started nursing in 1967, I was expected to get up and give my chair to the doctor entering the nurses' station. The nurse was instructed to offer the doctor a cup of coffee, and no matter what the nurse was doing it was part of her job to get that cup of coffee and bring it to the doctor. Everything was put on hold when the doctor came to the floor.

I am glad those days are over with because when I am was busy taking care of patients, I did not have the time for these games, as I called them. The nurse's time is now as valuable or more valuable than the doctors'.

By the time I neared retirement, I had begun to see a role reversal, and many a doctor was offering the nurse coffee and refusing to take any chair a nurse was busy in doing her work.

There are lovely doctors these days that work well with the nurse and appreciates all that the nurse does for their patients and them.

I believe that there are some basic tips that all new nurses need to remember. Seasoned nurses need to keep these tips in mind because seasoned nurses can become too confident in what they are doing so that they are apt to mess up.

A Few Tips about Doctors

There are many exceptional doctors today who would give their life for their patients. Many doctors provide the utmost respect for the nurses who care for their patients, and back the nursing staff 100 percent.

Most doctors these days want to be questioned about the medication and treatment orders they write. When the nurse asks the doctor about an order that does not add up, most doctors are very appreciative to the nurse.

Unfortunately, there are some doctors who you do not question. In spite of how you know that select few doctors will react to being challenged, you overlook this and ask questions to protect yourself.

Most doctors expect the nurse to look out for them and in turn, they look out for the nurse. If the doctors, nurses, and technicians work together as a team, this only benefits the patient fighting to get well so they can go home.

Nurses should be aware of the few doctors who do not share this view. There are a few doctors out there who do not appreciate any nurse to question their actions, nor do they ever say "Thank you" for a job well done.

All the nurse can do is to keep checking these doctors as they do any other doctor and (as said in the nursing profession), continue to cover your butt against the negligence of that doctor.

Nurse Dos and Don'ts

Number One Tip - Cover your butt.

The number one tip for a nurse is to protect one's self. As we say in the nursing profession,

"Cover your butt at all times because no one else is going to cover for you."

On a couple of occasions, over the past 43 years, I have had a doctor make a wrong decision or do something and try to blame me. To unfairly blame a nurse for any wrongdoing is not beneath any doctor to do this. I knew a few doctors who were determined to not take the blame for anything they did wrong. You should know who these doctors are and stand your guard at all cost.

Never assume that the other nurse, aide, or doctors are going to go to bat for you. A medical professional is looking out for one person only, themselves. I do not care how friendly, trusting and compassionate other medical professionals are to you, never believe this person to help you out of a problematic situation or take the honest blame for a wrong that they are responsible. That person could blame you.

Second Tip - Err on the side of caution.

Medical professionals are human and subject to error. If a medical professional says, "I have never made a mistake," that person is lying. I learned to make sure my errors were due to being overcautious. When a medical professional is dealing with life and death matters, a professional must always err on the side of caution. Never get into a situation where you have to admit to a mistake because of negligence on the job.

Third Tip - Show true compassion to co-workers and patients.

I have always had compassion for those who are in pain, suffering from an acute illness, terminal illnesses, and those who have needed surgery in a life and death struggle.

I am sorry to say that there are a few instances in some areas of nursing that I found it difficult to gather the compassion needed to care for the patient appropriately. I would instead ask for a transfer away from that patient because I did not feel I could do my best. If I could not transfer, I pulled up my boot strings and honestly did the best I could in spite of the situation. These times in my nursing career were rare.

I avoided specific areas of nursing such as drug abusers, alcohol abusers, mental illness, including depression as these nursing areas were not my expertise, and I felt uncomfortable dealing with these patients. Try to nurse in areas where you are comfortable. You will do a much better job. Some nurses embrace specific areas of nursing while other nurses cannot, and this is alright.

I enjoyed the emergency room, pediatrics, medical/surgical units and sometimes the cancer unit. In these areas, I found all the compassion I needed to care for my patient. If a nurse works in a particular unit and feels uncomfortable caring for that specific patient, full sympathy is not going to be in her heart.

Fourth Tip - Learn to listen with full attention and talk less.

I am a talker, plain and simple. Early in my career, I had no problem spilling my guts to patients. Talking too much is an easy thing to do for most new nurses. I found that I was at my job location so much it became my home away from home.

Overstepping your informational network is easy. Remember that patients are in your care to make comfortable and help heal. You are not their friend per say. Do not get personal with any patient or co-worker, and learn to draw the line. You can still offer compassion and excellent care.

Be smart and remain friendly to patients and co-workers, not a close friend. Setting boundaries are hard at first, but these boundaries are the only way that I could stay strictly professional.

If you are in a supervisory position, remember you have no friends, and the higher you climb the corporate ladder, the more lonely it becomes. I experienced staff nursing positions, director positions, assessment positions, and management positions.

You cannot supervise staff and be a friend at the same time. Never, think you have friends in "high places of employment," or "friends" in those you supervise. Being a supervisor and a friend is impossible. Acting in this manner only brings you grief.

It is difficult to give written work assessments or reprimand co-workers if you consider them your friend. If co-workers consider you a close friend, this becomes a heart-breaking situation and makes that person you thought to be a friend a possible enemy.

Fifth Tip - Hold patient or co-worker confidences.

Refrain from gossip.

Hold patient confidence unless the confidence will affect a patient's health or treatment outcome. There were times when a co-worker or patient felt the need to tell me something and may have requested I hold what they said in strict confidence. Never promise a co-worker or patient that holding trust is even possible until the issue is presented and then be honest with them.

Sixth Tip - Know and set your priorities.

Every nurse is an individual and has different priorities. Every nurse needs to set individual priorities and stick with those priorities. My preferences may not be the same as another nurse.

I always put God first, then my family, then my job, and on down the line. Some nurses put their position as the biggest priority. I found that these nurses cannot understand when another nurse does not set their role as a number one priority.

As an example, the following happened to me a long time ago.

One day my husband, who never gets sick, came home and fell on the couch. He had a fever of 104-degrees with nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, the typical flu symptoms in the fall season. I worked second shift, and our three children were 2, 4, and 6 years of age.

There was no way my husband could take care of the children, as he was down for the count. I placed a call into work that I would not be there due to my husband being very ill. The following was my supervisor's reply,

"Your husband is a big boy, and I am sure he can take care of himself. You need to get your priorities in order and get to work."

I was angry with this supervisor as she made my blood boil. This supervisor was known for her rude abruptness to the staff. I took a deep breath, and in the calmest and sweetest voice I could muster I said to her,

"Mrs.________, my priorities are in order. You are the one with mixed up priorities. You need to realize that my priorities may not be your priorities, so I will not be at work tonight. Furthermore, if my husband is as sick tomorrow night as he is tonight, I will not be in tomorrow either. I will let you know tomorrow."

I then hung up the phone.

The next night my husband was under the weather, however, felt well enough to take care of the kids, so I went to work fully expecting termination from my job.

This supervisor was cheerful to me and asked me how my husband was, but never said anything negative to me. From that night on, I never had a problem with this woman. She always treated me with respect, and in turn, I treated her with respect.

Last Tip - Give 100 percent to your nursing position and expect nothing in return.

When you give 100 percent to your job every day, you will never experience any regrets. When you, a nurse, carry out all your duties to the best of your abilities, this allows you to go home without any regrets and lets you experience more restful sleep.

I realize that it is tiring, but the result is fulfilling and worth every minute. When you do your absolute best for any patient, co-workers, and your employer your rewards are countless.

Lastly

No, I do not know it all, because life is a learning process and you continue to learn until the day you die. You are never too old to learn new and exciting things that may help in some small way to make your job a bit easier.

I embraced all that I was told years ago from those seasoned nurses in the know. These nurses desired to give me valuable tips and information that made my life as a nurse a bit easier. In turn, I desired to pass on what I learned with the hope that it helps someone else.