Sunday 5 October 2008

Learning To Change

There's this odd jump I've apparently not made yet from student nurse to real nurse and this is what has caused the problems over the last couple of weeks.

2nd Year Students....

  • Do everything while being watched, e.g. dressings, running IVs, paperwork, etc.
  • Do all the work of a CSW / auxiliary nurse
Students at the end of the course....
  • Can do dressings / paperwork / referrals / ward rounds without being watched
  • Can do drug rounds with minimal supervision (we still need the signatures and observation till qualified)
  • Can work on their own without constant prompting / suggestions / support
  • Are essentially mini nurses
I'm stuck somewhere between these two places. It's the working on my own, I think, that's the problem.

Things I can do....
  • Dressings / running IVs / direct patient care
  • Some of the day-to-day paperwork / some of the admit/discharge paperwork (and I can't do it fast enough)
  • Finding things to be done and doing them if I can
  • Finding things that don't seem to be right but apparently are
  • Dragging doctors to patients when they need them
People say I'm missing the confidence to fill in the gaps between these things I can do. Hmm, right. So what do I do now?

More to follow....... when I find some answers.

3 comments:

Carin Diaz said...

Good for you, just 3+ something months, huh. Goodluck!

Nurse Sandra May said...

I am very surprised you are left to "run IVs" unsupervised. Most (eg. all) student nurses in the area I train in are not permitted to touch IV at all- so can't turn them on/off/cap them/flush lines. The only thing we are permitted to do IN ALL YEARS is prepare and prime them.

If you are- good luck to you! Be careful though!

WardBunny said...

I know not long to go! So excited now!

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