Rut

Work is getting stale. Pneumonia. Acute Renal Failure. Acute Alcohol Withdrawal. Uncontrolled Diabetic. And my favorite: Abdominal Pain. This is pretty much what we get. I am still learning but at a much slower rate. The challenges that came along with being a new nurse are basically over. I don't get stressed out over giving report at shift change. I don't bat an eye for having to call a doctor at 3 in the morning. My time management and prioritization skills are pretty good. I never have to stay late to chart or catch up on things I fell behind on. Of course I still have to ask questions and run things by my fellow nurses every now and then, but sometimes I wonder if I can even completely trust the advice I am given. Let's say the med/surg floor doesn't exactly attract the most ambitious nurses, generally speaking.

I really am nervous that I have become too comfortable too fast as a new nurse, but it's hard not to do that on my floor where we see the same conditions all the time. And our patients are mostly stable and not in imminent danger of sudden unexpected death. I am afraid that I am going to be woefully underprepared for the next step in my nursing career. I so badly want to work with more critical patients where I have a lot more responsibility than I do now.

I guess I should enjoy this period of relative confidence while it lasts because as soon as I transfer to another floor, it will be back to square one in so many ways.