Have you ever had a dream that had been obliterated into nothingness just because someone told you that you weren’t good enough?
Being a student is the time when you have too many high hopes about yourself, too many expectations. But nothing hurts more when you become disappointed with your own capabilities, just because a single disappointed opinion from a clinical instructor robbed you of your needed confidence and potential to do your job as a student nurse.
All of the nurses are required to undergo the same angst of being pressured whilst performing a procedure for the first time on a real person. And students better be at their top form all the time! After all, most of the patients do not want to be used as a practice material, right? So better keep your game up, better do it like a pro, make it on the first shot, and so on, and so forth. All of these thoughts are running around their brain, cultivating fear, as the students are now aware that they are going to take responsibility for their own actions.
“…there is already that misdirected expectation of making no faults in any given time.”
As early as being a student, there is already that misdirected expectation of making no faults in any given time. That’s just how the cookie crumbles in this field, you can’t make mistakes. To add to the pressure, some clinical instructors thought that the poor clinical experience of a student nurse is a valid excuse for them to berate, display a harpy attitude, and act superior around them. This is actually doing more damage in amplifying the anxiety of the nurse performing the task instead of relieving the tension.
Come on. Was there honestly a good reason as to why these instructors have to be so rude just to make a point go across?
There might be one applicable reason though: These clinical instructors enjoyed being terrorists in the nursing world, for the sake of who knows what.
In the video, Karyn speaks about wanting to quit because she initially listened to the hateful criticism coming from her detestable instructor. But if we look into the story, there was something missing. What was the instructor doing aside from spewing obscenities to her ear? Was the instructor guiding her? No, there was no indication of such actions from the instructor at all. And that is a strike one, two, and three for the said instructor on teaching strategy.
Without the proper coaching, it is so easy to make one mistake after another. There will be those moments when you thought “I got this!” but after someone humiliates you in front of someone else, your brain turns to soup. And then right at that moment of failure, it is always an adorable idea to just quit, go home and binge on ice cream and yoghurt, and mend one’s broken ego, all the while asking yourself “What is wrong with me? Why can’t I do things right?”
“beware of these mentally deranged individuals.”
Student nurses, believe it or not, beware of these mentally deranged individuals, for their existence is never going to meet an extinction – YET. There will always be clinical instructors hovering behind you, calling you ridiculous insulting names that will make your dead great grandma turn on her grave, rattling your heart.
But also believe that it is not yet the end of the world. Always believe that there is someone out there who sees so much potential in you without your knowledge. Always listen to the bigger person in the group, and eliminate the disapproving remarks of the ones who lacked the sensitivity to your feelings and dignity.
Too many instances has it been that a single encouragement could fortify a seemingly impossible idea into reality. It is always better to listen to those who encouraged you and was insightful enough to consider your feelings.
“For all the student nurses, do not ruin a fresh start by holding on to frustrations that doesn’t really count in your growth as a professional nurse.”
For all the student nurses, do not ruin a fresh start by holding on to frustrations that doesn’t really count in your growth as a professional nurse. If you do commit a mistake, accept the lesson, then let it go. These mistakes are lessons that are necessary for you to be a yardstick of quality in the near future. Learn to sift through criticisms, choosing the diamond from those that are just stones in the pile.
Whatever you do, do not give up on your dreams. Don’t let someone ruin your vision of your own self worth.