Making The Most Out Of Placements

Nicola discusses how to make the most out of placements and gives tips on ways you can find enjoyment in them, even if you are becoming frustrated.

Topics Covered In This Article

Introduction

Work Out Why You’re Not Enjoying Your Placement

Remember That It Won’t Last Forever

Try To Stay Positive

Remember Your Support Network

Remind Yourself Of The Skills You’ve Gained

Conclusion

Introduction

Hi guys, my name is Nicola and I'm a Neonatal Sister.

Today, I'm going to be giving you five tips that will help you out if you are not enjoying your placement.

So, the first thing that I always say to people who tell me that they're not enjoying their placement is, what is the reason why?

Work Out Why You’re Not Enjoying Your Placement

Is it because you don't like the speciality?

Is it to do with the working hours?

Is it to do with the people that you are working with? Is it to do with the workload?

Is it because you don't understand something?

What is the reason why you are not enjoying your placement?

Once you identify your why, it makes it a lot easier to help address that particular area of concern.

Remember That It Won’t Last Forever

My second tip for you if you are not enjoying your placement, is to remember that you are not going to have to be there forever.

It is very difficult being a Student Nurse, and it is very, very difficult working on placement in an environment that you don't enjoy, and it can feel like there's no end in sight.

But remember, if you are not enjoying your placement, for whatever reason that may be, you are not going to be there forever.

So, hold onto that and know that there is an end in sight, and don't let a placement that you're not enjoying have a negative impact on your entire perception of nursing or your entire perception of what your nursing studies is going to be like.

Try To Stay Positive

My third tip for you would be to alter your mindset.

It's really easy to get into a negative mindset when you're not enjoying your placement.

You start to nitpick a little bit.

You start to look at things in a certain way.

And it can sometimes really make your placement experience quite negative.

So, sometimes it's all about your mindset, altering your mindset, having a bit more of a positive attitude, and going back to my last point, remembering that you're not gonna be here forever.

And sometimes a change in mindset can make all the difference.

I also just want to add into that, that it's also okay if you don't enjoy your placement.

You're not going to love everything.

You're not going to love working with everybody.

You're not going to love every speciality that you are involved in.

And that is okay as well.

So, don't feel like, if it's your first placement and you haven't enjoyed it, don't feel like that means that the next three years are going to be miserable, because that is not the case.

Remember Your Support Network

My next tip for you would be to not suffer in silence.

Use your support network around you.

Your friends, fellow Student Nurses, your university lecturer, the education lead on the unit.

Particularly, if it's to do with any bullying that might be happening, if it's to do with any issues with your practice assessors, if people aren't being nice to you, if it's to do with, the placement is very disorganized.

Don't suffer in silence with issues like that that need to be addressed.

Make sure you use the support network around you.

Remind Yourself Of The Skills You’ve Gained

And then my final tip for you would be to ask yourself, what can you take away from this placement?

There's always something to be learned.

There's always a new skill, new knowledge, new experience to be gained.

And whilst you might not particularly like the placement you are on, it's really, really important that you utilize and you maximize all learning opportunities at your disposal.

As you become more qualified, once you become a Registered Nurse and as you progress throughout your career, those sorts of learning opportunities, those experiences, to shadow, to watch, to look, they're not as frequent as what they are as a student.

And I think regardless of whether you do or don't like a placement, you can always get something good out of it.

So, just ask yourself, take a step back, what can I learn from this placement?

What are some good things that I can really, really get to grip with on this placement to make it that little bit more enjoyable?

Conclusion

And so, I hope that helps.

And I just want to, just to, encourage you and to remind you that there will be times that you might not enjoy your placements and that is okay, but there are also gonna be some really, really good times.

And there are also going to be some placements that you will absolutely love and you will absolutely enjoy.

So, don't let one negative experience taint your experience, and your perception, or your journey, as a Student Nurse.

I hope that's been useful and thank you so much for watching.