Clinical placements
The emotional toll of nursing
Caring for patients with cancer on her first clinical placement taught nursing student Charlotte Milliken about the emotional resilience required to be a nurse

Caring for patients with cancer on her first clinical placement taught mental health nursing student Charlotte Milliken about the emotional resilience required to be a nurse
My first placement as a first-year mental health nursing student was on a surgical ward. I read the placement profile and felt I was as prepared as I could be, but being so new to nursing, I had not anticipated the emotions I would feel.
One of my first tasks was to remove surgical staples from a patient. I couldn’t get the final two out as they were set under a lump of dried blood, so my mentor took over. While watching him, my skin went cold then hot, and I felt dizzy as my whole world swam. I had never thought of
...Want to read more?
Unlock full access to RCNi Plus today
Save over 50% on your first three months:
- Customisable clinical dashboard featuring 200+ topics
- Unlimited online access to all 10 RCNi Journals including Cancer Nursing Practice
- RCNi Learning featuring 180+ RCN accredited learning modules
- NMC-compliant RCNi Portfolio to build evidence for revalidation
- Personalised newsletters tailored to your interests
Already registered or subscribed? Log in

This article is not available as part of an institutional subscription. Why is this?
