What do you expect of students?

[natrgrrl]

I just finished my first week of clinicals in acute care. The nurses flat out ignored us and didn't check on any patient that had a student assigned. There were 8 of us students, some students were paired with a patient and some were one on one with the patient.

I thought that we would be following a nurse and doing anything we knew how to do and observing the things we haven't learned yet.

Obviously I was wrong but what should I expect from the staff? And from my instructor?

[truern]

What I expect: you find me when it's time for report. I have several nurses I have to get report from on several patients. I don't have time to find you to get report on your one patient.

Please tell me what you're responsible for. There have been days when I had three students assigned to me and each of them had different responsibilites. One "forgot" to tell me she wasn't allowed to give meds that week (why?? I never did find out)...anyway, please don't mislead me to save yourself embarrassment.

Please don't sit at the nurses station looking thru charts when its the only place nurses have to take off orders. It's only common courtesy. Yes, sometimes charts are interesting reading, but have consideration for those trying to do their job.

It's not my job to take on students...it's my choice. I do it because I love to teach and share. I *do* have the option, though, to refuse students.

Believe it or not, it's much easier to take care of my patients on my own. It's much more work on me (the one responsible for the patients) to have students. Please don't get the attitude that you've "made my day" taking care of my patients for part of the day. I still assess them, double check medications, take off orders, keep up with procedures and tests, check lab values, communicate with the MDs, etc etc etc...all things you're not allowed to do AND I check the things you've done. I am responsible for that patient, after all.

Show me you're excited and anxious to learn new things and I'll go out of my way to find those things for you to experience. Tell me you've not done IM injections yet and you'll be the one I save my pneumonia and flu shots for. Haven't done a catheter yet? Hmmmmm...doc just ordered one for Mr Jones. You wanna??

[grace90, LPN, LVN]

The nurses flat out ignored us and didn't check on any patient that had a student assigned.

Uhm, yikes! Shouldn't they be concerned about their licenses if something went wrong with the patient and they hadn't been in the room? At my facility, we're required to do a full assessment and charting on the student's patients.

[smk1, LPN]

I'm wondering if they are used to students further along in the program and thought you guys were handling things. They should have checked up on you though. Sounds like miscommunication on both parts.