We’ve all heard the saying, “Nurses eat their young.” The phrase describes the jarring treatment of new nurses that can unsettle them to the point that it affects their job performance.
Being the most trusted profession, we as nurses are expected to be caring, compassionate, and selfless in our service to others at all times. However the reaction from a certain portion of social media users is decidedly different.
No one downplays the reality that the idiom is more than likely true. Yet in spite of this, the growing number of comments by users responding with choice memes and comments seem to express an apparent indifference to it:
The general consensus is that it comes with the territory. Simply put, it’s a hard job that will eat you up and spit you out if you aren’t prepared for it. And while this may be true, preparing someone to succeed in the profession is more than a quick pep talk of “listen you’ve gotta get thick skin.” It’s much more than that.
Similarly, this why the role of the preceptor is extremely important in developing our newest members. It’s this preparation that will make or break the new nurse. Question is, which side of the link are you on?
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