Phases of Nursing and Bad Behavior

There are several phases of nursing:


The Honeymoon Phase -  It is wonderful to be out of nursing school, just passed boards, giddy with excitement to make a difference and be practicing as a nurse.  The novice nurse feels EUPHORIC!  Advice for this phase is to find a nurse at the facility you are working that is positive, open, and you want to model your nursing practice after.  Steer clear of negativity.  Be positive and don't allow anyone to steal your joy! If a nurse is negative, chances are the clients she serves will not have optimum patient outcomes! If your preceptor is not positive, let the manager know NOW and request another!! (A nurse must command the room....remember when we told you this in nursing school?)


The Shock Phase - Realizes that nursing IS not what they expected and is far from perfect. The preceptor they are learning from does not follow protocol or do anything like they were taught in nursing school.  They don't know EVERYTHING.  Communication is unclear, bullying is vividly present among other nurses and professional behavior is very poor. The novice nurse may have experienced humiliation by other health care professionals and their colleagues because nurse bullying is allowed to go on.  Advice for this phase is to know it is NORMAL to feel dismayed and overwhelmed in your new profession.  It is okay to talk about this with the Nurse Manager, your preceptor, or the director of the floor you are working on.  Give yourself credit for all the things you DO know:  how to perform a thorough head to toe assessment and check for skin integrity, how to electronically chart that assessment, how to pull and administer the medications, knowing what the medications are, developing a patient specific care plan that will promote your patient to their highest level of wellness on the health continuum AND an assortment of other things.  YOU KNOW MORE than you GIVE YOURSELF CREDIT FOR!!!!  So go ahead and give yourself a high five for being a communicator, collaborator, educator, and advocate for the patients.  Observe the nurses you value and copy skills from them.  Make them your own and ignore the bad behavior!


The Recovery Phase - Finally understands the only person responsible for their nursing practice is "YOU".  By observing, you begin to see that each nurse has their own description of their nursing practice and each nurse is responsible to be the nurse they want to be....no one else is responsible for this.....turn around and LOOK IN THE MIRROR....and  "get it". How can you understand, be respectful, provide dignity and integrity to the patients AND all you work with?  Journal!  Write what is working and what you need to improve on.  ALWAYS keep a sense of humor and treat everyone you come in contact with the way you want to be treated! Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity, integrity, and respect.


The Resolution Phase - The novice nurse is beginning to set goals, define their mission and values.  Hopefully you have not started to picking up bad habits (we tell you about this in nursing school) just so you feel that you "fit in" with the rest of your peers.  This phase can be celebrated by knowing your successes and rejoicing in them.  ASK questions and if someone says anything to you, remind them that nursing is life long learning and when a nurse no longer ask questions, the nurse is a danger to herself, her peers, and the patient she cares for.


Where am I going with this?  I spent the afternoon with a novice nurse who is in the "shock phase" of nursing.  She has passed the "honeymoon phase" and is no longer elated.  She shared with me that she and several of the other 2014 grads are already burnt out and ready to find a new career.  This saddens me because these nurses are amazing! Very well educated, smart, compassionate, therapeutic, and holistic!


She experienced nine preceptors during the orientation period, one of whom was the poster model for a "nurse bully".  This particular preceptor wanted to know why there were so many things she didn't know.  (I only wish I could jump in her body for a few minutes to let this preceptor know a couple of things!) To begin with nursing school does not teach the student all there is to know.  Nursing school is to provide the student with quality, safe, and effective education.  This education forms a solid foundation for the student who passes boards to build upon.  The novice nurse really learns when she gets her first job as a board certified nurse.


Nursing is LIFE LONG education.  Whenever a nurse thinks they know it all, they are a danger to themselves, their peers, and the patients they serve.  To humiliate another human being, embarrass or  bully them should be grounds for termination.  Zero tolerance!! 


As I spoke with this novice nurse attempting to tell her she is normal, a good nurse, to believe in herself and continue to make a difference,  I knew from the look in her eyes, she has her mind pretty much made up.  There are two nurses she works with that she feels "safe" enough with to ask questions of.   I told her she can transfer to another department or she may want to go work for an insurance company, look into becoming an employee health nurse, care coordination, etc.  There are so many avenues for nursing besides floor nursing.


I hope that by listening to her and providing some attention and "tender loving care" (TLC), this novice nurse will see what a blessing and gift she is to the world of nursing!  There is a nursing shortage and we truly cannot afford to lose any of the gems!