The infamous question from new grads to preceptors is, “How long does it take to know what I am doing?” For many, the answer is one year. Nursing school starts with fundamentals, where students learn how to give a bed bath and safely transfer a patient to the bathroom, to Medical-Surgical Nursing III, where students learn complex disease processes such as Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome and Shock.
Clinicals aim to transfer the knowledge learned in lecture to practice with real patients. Due to the lack of preceptors, clinical facilities, and strict student guidelines, it is often hard to create a realistic nursing experience as a student. Students often only learn how to care for one patient at a time, and then receive up to 6 patients on a Medical-Surgical floor and are expected to manage their time and priorities.
It takes a year after nursing graduation to really feel confident in our abilities. That year mark is where instead of simply recognizing abnormal assessment findings, we learn to provide recommendations to physicians about a potential intervention.
When I first began teaching one year ago, I was also told to “give it one year.” However, the first year of teaching was way different than a first year of nursing. I know how to be a bedside nurse, but teaching brought on many unique challenges. I feel like I forgot the minute details that we teach and is tested for our complex medical topics. I still study with my students and have started to adapt creative ways to teach content. My stressors as a new grad far outweigh my stressors as a novice instructor. In my first year of teaching, I have improved on exam writing, active teaching strategies, and connecting lecture to clinical practice. But, I still have much to learn just as my students have much to learn on their nursing journeys.
Until next shift,
Shania