Related: Charting, Nurse Relationships, Organizational Skills, Teamwork

I spent the better part of this afternoon helping my 9-year-old clean her room.

The term "pig sty" is fitting. She has avoided the task for weeks because it was simply overwhelming. I would have yelled more were I able to walk through the garage or guest room. The apple did not fall far from the disorganized tree.

Throughout the day, Kira kept saying, "This is so [...]

Related: Attitude, Gossip, New Grad, New Nurse, Nurse Relationships, Professionalism

Nurses need to put a lid on the gossiping: “Did you hear what so-and-so said at happy hour?” “Did you see what she did at that party?” “Did you see those pictures of so-and-so wasted?” “Did you see what happened between that nurse and doctor?” It all might seem like harmless chit-chat, but there’s always a real person at the other end of the [...]

Related: Assertiveness, Attitude, Communication, Management, Mindset, Nurse Relationships, Nurse Support, Professionalism, Quitting, Seasoned Nurses, Teamwork

In the last blog we established that if you're in a job you hate, you need to find another one. If you hate your job, how effective a nurse can you really be? That's the question I want to take a look at now.

Contrary to what my last entry may have sounded like, I believe in being a change agent for our profession. [...]

Related: Attitude, Compliments, Failure, Feedback, Feelings, Goals, Learning, Mindset, Motivation, New Nurse Tips, Nurse Relationships, Nurse Support, Stress, Success, Teamwork, Truth

Everyone has to work to stay positive. It’s human nature to focus on what went wrong. As a new nurse faced with situations that are terrifying and challenging, you have to work doubly hard at it.

All new nurses have been there: at a point of giving up because they’ve repeatedly told themselves they know nothing and will never get it all right. But you will. [...]

Related: Authority, Complaints, Learning, Mistake, New Nurse, Nurse Relationships, Scapegoat, Seasoned Nurses, Truth

Sometimes it feels like I’m not given the time—or opportunity—to learn.

As a new surgical nurse, I’ve noticed that the nurses who have been around for a while don’t want to let me do some of the procedures. I’m nudged out of the way. I’ve talked with other nurses, and they say that they’re afraid of getting into trouble if the new nurse blunders, or they [...]

Related: Conflict, Drug Addiction, Nurse Relationships

Is it your job to be the moral conscience of your floor/unit/clinic?

A nurse recently wrote, “I caught a co-nurse slipping drugs into pocket for personal use. What should I do?

I prefer the gray answer of “it depends.” If he or she is taking Lipitor, Zyrtec, or a Z pak, I would let it go. If, however, they’re taking narcotics, that’s a different story. [...]

Related: Abuse, Assertiveness, Authority, Boundaries, Bureaucracy, Confidence, Conflict, Doctor-Nurse Relationships, Doctors, Fear, Handmaidens, Hostility, Management, New Nurse, Nurse Relationships, Power, Professionalism Sabotage, Scapegoat, Seasoned Nurses, Stress, Support, Teamwork, Truth

The new nurse was doing the best she could. But it wasn’t fast enough for the emergency room doctor. As the doctor struggled to triage the patient, he became more and more agitated. Finally, he yelled and threw a bloody sponge at the nurse—right in the middle of a procedure.

When physical and verbal abuse takes place in the workplace, immediate action should be taken. But [...]

Related: Assertiveness, Bureaucracy, Communication, Complaints, Confidence, Conflict, Doctor-Nurse Relationships, Doctors, Management, Mindset, Mistake, Nurse Relationships, Nurse Support, Patient Advocate, Power, Professionalism, Stereotypes, Teamwork

Doctors and nurses have been trained to be suspicious of each other.

So writes Suzanne Gordon, author of Nursing Against the Odds (Cornell UP, 2006). And while this has historical roots, it is particularly dysfunctional today. In this RealityRN interview, Gordon describes the complicated relationship between nurses and doctors—and gives practical advice for nurses to help remedy the situation.

RealityRN:  Describe the history of nurse/doctor relationships.

Suzanne [...]

Related: Assertiveness, Communication, Confidence, Doctor-Nurse Relationships, Doctors, Expectations, New Nurse, Nurse Relationships, Patient Advocate, Patients, Professionalism, Respect, Stereotypes, Success

Suzanne Gordon, author of Nursing Against the Odds (Cornell UP, 2006), says new nurses need to train others for respect. Here are four tips to do just that:

1. Introduce yourself in a professional manner.
When you introduce yourself to doctors, don’t say, “Hi, I’m Susie.” If you want to be respected as a nurse, you shouldn’t be “Susie in the angora sweater” or “Cheerful, smiley Susie.” [...]

Related: Mentor, Mindset, New Grad, New Nurse, Nurse Relationships, Nurse Support, Prioritizing, Success, Support

“Find a mentor” is a phrase verging on cliché. But it became a call-to-arms because it worked. If you are a new nurse, a mentor relationship can work for you—to answer your questions, guide you through conflict, or discuss your next career move.

RealityRN senior advisory board member and nursing professor Cecelia Gatson Grindel, PhD, RN, CMSRN, FAAN, talks straight about the benefits of a mentor, [...]