So you’ve just started your new job as a new graduate nurse. You have a great preceptor, you like your unit, and your manager seems pretty cool. But you dread going to work. You get report and you’re already an hour behind. You’re already an overwhelmed nurse. There are so many things to do right this second that you shut down. You can’t do this. It’s too much. You struggle through each day, just trying to get to the end of the shift. You are elated for days off. You dread going back. Is this really what you signed up for? Will this EVER end?
time management
S1E11 – Time Management Tips for New Nurses
This episode discusses why time management is essential for every nurse to consider as well as practical tips for the floor and critical care environment.
Perfecting Your Craft – Week 2, ICU Time Management Tips
Craft beer this week: Coffee is for Closers, an iced coffee stout by Fullsteam Brewery in Durham, NC. The ICU is dynamic and things change constantly and quickly. Patient conditions and staffing change significantly in an instant. No two shifts will be the same. However, it is important to know what your routine would be […]
Nursing Time Management for When You’re Totally Overwhelmed
This post contains affiliate links It never fails. You start your day with the best nursing time management intentions. You started your assessments and meds on time (woo hoo!), and then all of a sudden three doctors round at once and expect you to implement their orders immediately. One patient needs to pee, one needs […]
Delegation Tips for Nurses
Delegation is a tough thing to master as a new nurse. While the NCLEXNCLEX tells you which tasks are appropriate to delegate, it doesn’t exactly outline how to go about doing it. I realize that not all units have certified nursing assistants (CNAs) or patient care technicians (techs), but many do. This post is for […]
Why Are Nurses Always On the Computer?!
A nursing student recently emailed me and asked me, “why are nurses always on the computer?” It seemed like a silly question at first, but then I realized that unless you’re responsible for charting on multiple patients (or if you have students or preceptors, making sure it’s accurate), you don’t really understand all that is […]
Becoming An Awesome Nursing Preceptor: Phase Three
This is my third and final post in my nursey series about precepting new graduate nurses. Here’s the link to the first post. Here’s the link to the second post. Thanks for catching up! Onward.. Once your orientee has mastered caring for 1-2 patients, it’s time to start putting the on the heat. Phase three is […]
Becoming An Awesome Nursing Preceptor: Phase Two
Hello good friend! Welcome to my second post in a series of three about how to become an awesome nursing preceptor. Please keep in mind that this is aimed towards the orientation of a new graduate nurse on a general medical-surgical floor. However, it’s pretty general so it can be adapted to fit the needs […]
Becoming An Awesome Nursing Preceptor: Phase One
I was very fortunate to have some amazing preceptors both when I started nursing and again when I transitioned into critical care. I’ve also had the privilege of precepting people myself. I pray I was a tiny fraction of the awesome that my preceptors were to me. Because of an awesome question I received via […]
Tips for Switching From Night Shift to Day Shift – From a Nurse!
Many nurses start out on night shift but then transition to day shift. While the work is technically the same, the flow of the day is quite different. Here are some tips/tricks for the nurse transitioning from night shift to day shift. #1 – Pay attention to meds with meals Insulin is the major medication […]
How to Manage Your Time in Critical Care for Nurses: Part II
This post contains affiliate links One of the most important things to master in critical care is prioritization.. what do you do first? It’s kind of like prioritization on the floor, except the stakes are higher. Instead of doctors rounding, patients being hypertensive, patients in pain, families wanting you to discharge them 10 minutes ago, […]
How to Manage Your Time in Critical Care For Nurses: Part I
I’ve worked on both the floor and intensive care. In both units time management is absolutely essential. However, time management on the floor is very different from time management in critical care. I’m going to go through some tips to help you appropriately managing your time in a critical care setting. I know it […]
The Nurse’s Famous Last Words: “But the Doctor Said it Was Okay..”
One of my BFFs is a rapid response nurse (I know, coolest job ever). Whenever a patient is going downhill or looks not-so-hot, she gets a call. Many times, the call could and should have occurred hours before. However, what she is told most frequently is “but the doctor said it was okay”. Notify MD, […]
Nursing Time Management Scenarios
Something that is essential in your development as an efficient and safe care provider is appropriate time management. Below are some sticky situations and the safest and most efficient way to address them. Q: You’re assessing your new admission. She’s crying in pain. Her blood pressure is 162/38. She needs an IV. There are pended […]
How to Survive in the ICU
This guest blog post comes from Natalie Bridges, RN. She’s a critical care nurse who jumped into ICU nursing straight out of school. Below is her guest post about ICU survival for newbies. After my first shift in the Intensive Care Unit, I thought to myself, “maybe this was a mistake.” Not knowing any […]
Nursing Time Management Tips
Learning your own time management style is one of the toughest parts about being a new grad. Here are tips I developed after working on an acute care nursing floor with cardiac and stroke patients. I typically had 4-5 patients on day shift and 5-6 on night shift. Report was 30 minutes and ended at […]
How to Keep Calm & Prioritize When Things Go Nuts
Many times in your nursey career, your seemingly awesome shift will turn crazy in a moment. The mark of a good nurse is staying calm in the midst of chaos. This is when your prioritization skills need to be on point. You should think, “what is the most important and time sensitive thing at this […]
Nursing Priorities for Post-Op Patients
These nursing priorities for post-op patients will help you keep your head and give the best care to your patients. You are rocking through your shift, feeling awesome because you kind of know what you’re doing now, and your charge nurse comes up to you to say you are getting a patient from the PACU. […]
Nursing Priorities for Ischemic Stroke Patients – From a Neuro Nurse
What are the most important nursing priorities for stroke patients? Oh, these are so important! I love my stroke patients. They have a special place in my heart. As a neuro nurse, I wanted to share what you should do if you encounter a patient having an ischemic stroke. These are the most important nursing […]