New graduate nurses’ experiences of bullying and burnout in hospital settings (2496 hits)
Preceptor Conflict
Yet again, nurses have been chosen as America’s most trusted profession. Increasingly, nurses are depicted as honest, trustworthy, and compassionate. Notably, Johnson and Johnson’s campaign for nursing advertisements tug on the audiences’ heartstrings evoking feelings of love and portrays nursing as emotionally satisfying. With the always changing health care atmosphere and the rise of the baby boomers, nurses are needed more than ever. Accordingly, projected growths of 26% by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics and attractive job opportunities lure swarms of individuals. In spite of nursing’s increasing popularity, media outlets have failed to report a rising development in the nursing arena, which are increasing accounts of lateral violence and burnout among new graduates. Above all, it is concerning that the most respected profession participates in a culture of negativity and intimidation.
Each work day, I experienced anxiety because I could not anticipate which personality I would encounter. One day during lunch, my preceptor communicated a negative situation she had encountered as a young nurse. During her reflection, I pondered, “Why continue this vicious cycle of lateral violence?” One day, in particular, she was noticeably moody and her disdain was virtually palpable. That day, we were assigned the sickest patient who was receiving Vasopressin, Epinephrine, Levophed and hemodialysis. Certainly, as a new nurse I did not work as efficiently as my preceptor. Nevertheless, I did complete my tasks. Once I completed administration of the patient's medication, I quickly began charting my patient’s physical assessment and medication administration on the EMAR.
Upon my completion, I informed her that I had submitted my assessment for evaluation. Her analysis noted that I failed to chart the status of the patient’s catheter. From there, she expressed disappointment and remarked, "I don't know what I am going to do with you." To some readers, those words may not appear humiliating. Except, imagine that this is your 4th week as a nurse and that remark was aired in the presence of colleagues. That very instance, I questioned whether I was skilled enough to work as a nurse and if I had chosen the wrong career. Each day, I left work saddened and dissatisfied with my performance.
…And the Cycle Repeats
The following week, my preceptor and I were assigned different work patterns because I was scheduled to speak as a podium presenter at a national nursing conference in New Orleans. So, I was assigned to work with another nurse. Particularly, my new preceptor was esteemed as one of the best nurses on the unit; though he was branded as giving new nurses a difficult experience. At that time, I was unaware of his reputation and I welcomed the chance to work with a new coworker for a week. Quickly and early on during our shift, I recognized that this might develop into similar situations that I had experienced with my original preceptor. Within an hour together, he suggested that my assigned preceptor had poorly instructed me. To continue, he remarked, “For what it is worth you can accept or not accept what you will learn when you are with me”.
From that moment on, to say the least, our week together continued to add towards my waning confidence. Several times during the week, he snapped his fingers at me in likelihood to encourage me to improve my pace. In my eyes that particular gesture was demeaning and I reached my threshold. I became emotionally exhausted. During my lunch break, I called my mother crying and overwhelmed, and I expressed that I could not continue to work under these stressful conditions. In the midst of our conversation, my mother encouraged me to speak with one of my former-nursing professors because she may steer me in the right direction. After the end of my shift, I alerted my instructor of my situation and she advised me to speak with my nurse manager regarding my feelings concerning experiences with my preceptors.
Consequently, I spoke with my manager and expressed my sentiments. However, I did not receive the reply I anticipated. In fact, my nurse manager articulated that I happened to be the first co-worker to express reports of these occurrences. Moreover, she shared that if she was my preceptor that she may have used similar teaching methods. The shock and bewilderment of her reply proved to be overwhelming. Additionally, she voiced that it would be extremely difficult to work on this particular unit while I was enrolled in graduate school. As I exited her office, I was stricken with a sense of abandonment and discouragement. At that moment, I made the conscious decision to resign my nursing position and focus all of my energy on graduate school.
Resolution
Once I expressed my thoughts to my former professor and other mentors, they intensely communicated that I should request a transfer and refrain from departing my position as a staff nurse. With their guidance, I requested a transfer to another division. At that very moment, I was overwhelmed, emotionally exhausted, and certain that my sanity was teetering on the edge. Consequently, I felt that following this path I had nothing to lose. The next step was communicating with my manager and requesting a transfer. Soon after, I asked if she would grant my request. Once I explained my rationale behind my decision she was shocked. Moreover, she expressed that I had shown no clinical signs that would justify my choice. Actually, she communicated that my preceptors articulated that my orientation was going well and I had shown great potential and growth during my orientation. In the end, she granted my request. If I had been shown emotional support and guidance from my preceptor perhaps decisions may have been different and my experience may have been positive.
Authors of the article “New Graduate Nurses’ Experience of Bullying and Burnout” published in the Journal of Advanced Nursing noted that new graduates experienced...
