My Flu Shot Experience

Time for a recap of my flu shot experience. Let me set up the stage for you. It was at a health fair in Duquesne’s student union. The flu shots were only available for students and faculty, and a line for the shots formed about 30 minutes before the health fair began. Behind the scenes, there were about 25-30 nursing students, all of us a little nervous, but anxious to get started. Four stations were set up, so only four students could administer shots at a time. Then we would rotate after about 8 shots so everyone could get a chance. Experienced nurses were at every station to make sure we were doing everything correctly and safely. Well, I was a part of the second string. So I got to observe a nursing student in action, then it was my turn. I have to say, I was pretty nervous. And when I get nervous, I cannot fake my way through it because I shake. If I’m talking in front of a group, my voice shakes. If I’m administering shots (as I found out on Wednesday), my hands shake. I was doing everything correctly for the most part, but was pretty shaky. I didn’t think this a huge problem, but before giving maybe my 6th shot, the nurse at my station bent in and told me “Please try to stop shaking so much.” Well, this seems like an easy enough task, if you’re in control of the shaking. I was not. So I was a little bit crest-fallen, feeling as though I was doing badly, and that the nurse was in agreement. After about 8 shots I handed the task over to a fellow student, and was pretty sure I would not be doing anymore shots for the day. But later on, a teacher of mine who was the nurse at a different station, saw me sitting in a nearby seat, and asked if I wanted to give some more shots. I told her about my shaking problem, and she responded by saying, “All the more reason to get in some more practice.” So under her more understanding supervision, I was able to administer some shake-free shots. Although I look back on it as a frustrating day, I do appreciate the experience, and hope that it will set me up for some more confident medication administration in the future!