Personal Narrative: My Life As A New Graduate Nurse

Life is full of change and transitions. I had to transition from high school to college, living with my parents to being on my own, and easy prerequisite courses to extremely difficult nursing courses that challenged me intellectually and emotionally. In a few short weeks, I will experience my most important transition to date, moving from a nursing student to a working RN. It is a thrilling but daunting concept. Other than babysitting, I have never had an official job. I have been blessed with never having to pay bills, file taxes, budget my finances, or take out loans. As a working RN, these are some of the challenges that await me; however, this is not the greatest challenge that I will face as a new graduate nurse. I believe that the biggest challenge that I will face as a new nurse is gaining patients’ and staff trust. It was common during clinical while in nursing school to have patients doubt my ability with some skills, which is understandable. If I were in their shoes, I would most likely be hesitant to let a student nurse care for me, even with instructor guidance. As a new nurse who just graduated from
Establishing a rapport with a patient fosters a connection between the nurse and the patient, and this connection increases a patient’s trust in the nurse. A patient wants to know that the nurse is in his or her corner and have his or her best interest at heart. I will talk with the patient and take my time, never rushing, so that the patient knows that I care and will do whatever I can so that he or she can get better. Also, I will always act and perform tasks with confidence. As I have seen first hand, patients are prone to doubt when a nurse appears apprehensive or requires longer than necessary to perform a task. Acting confident, even when one does not feel confident, can trick people into thinking that you