Welcome to our blog! Keith Carlson has worked as a nurse since 1996. He received an Associate Degree in Nursing from Greenfield Community College in 1996, and a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in 2001.
The old adage that “nurses eat their young” is probably as old as the modern nursing profession, but perhaps even Florence Nightingale’s nurses sometimes “ate their young” during those stressful days of the ghastly Crimean War.
This famous adage is accepted as truth by many nurses, and when the feet hit the floor of the unit or workplace, it’s often put into practice by nurses who just can’t—or won’t—see another way.
But there is another way, and the nurturing of our young and/or novice nurses is an essential ingredient of a vibrant, growing, healthy and self-preserving nursing workforce.
1. Reject the old paradigm
The first thing that nurses need to do, individually and collectively, is to categorically reject the old paradigm. It doesn’t matter if you yourself were treated poorly when you first stepped into your scrubs and hit the floor running. It doesn’t matter if you never learned how to properly precept and guide a new nurse. It’s up to you to reject the old ways of doing things, and instead welcome new nurses with open arms and a willing heart. We were all new nurses once, and even if we skipped the frying pan and were thrown directly into the fire (or thrown to the lions, for that matter), we don’t have to perpetuate that practice by turning our back on new nurses out of spite for our own past.
2. If there’s no system, create one
Nurses sometimes complain that there’s no system at their workplaces to accommodate for the time and energy that it entails to take a new nurse under your wing. In some facilities, a nurse who takes on the training of a new nurse receives no extra help or compensation in exchange for these extra duties. Work together as a team and create that system. Perhaps the nurse who has a new nurse in tow is assigned one less patient than everyone else, or maybe two nurses have to be teamed up for a group of patients so that the mentoring nurse can focus on his or her responsibility for a novice nurse who needs guidance. Remember, these new nurses will be your full-blown colleagues as soon as they’re trained, so if you treat them well and train them well, they’ll only be a benefit to your workplace and your work flow.
3. Listen to the new nurses
New nurses sometimes bring enthusiastic ideas for innovation to their new careers. They are full of enthusiasm and fresh perspectives. Some newly minted nurses are former psychologists, marketers, entrepreneurs and businesspeople who have just entered into a new and exciting career. These nurses are, after all, the nursing innovators of the future, so listen to them and realize that they may have as much to teach you as you have to teach them. Their life experience brings something fresh to the table. Don’t overlook their knowledge, expertise and experience, even if it may be in an area outside of nursing. Also remember that some new nurses are simply great thinkers and innovators in their own right, and their insights could be invaluable.
4. Communicate
If you’re mentoring a new nurse, be clear in your communication and expectations. If your workload is intense, make it clear how they can be helpful and the ways in which they might make your work harder. Take breaks, ask your colleagues for help if you’re behind the eight ball, and remember that communicating your needs and frustrations can lead to improved relationships and increased satisfaction for everyone involved.
