clinical vent...

[grownuprosie]

I am in my second med surg rotation. this is the 5th week. I had not yet had a diabetic pt this rotation, so I had to do a skills check off with my instructor before I could use the glucometer at this facility. This morning, my instructor tells us to wait by our rooms for report. I wait for 40 minutes. I cannot find the instructor or any nurse that acknowledges my pts. The nurses do most of the report just outside of the room with a mandatory (in theory) portion at the bedside. I did not want to miss it. The techs have the VS carts, so I cannot do them yet and we are not allowed to utilize the techs. I find out that my nurse got report from the evening nurse in the break room 30 minutes ago! My pts have ordered breakfast. I am not allowed to check their blood sugar without checking off with my instructor who I cannot find. So, they cannot get their insulin or eat. I spend 20 minutes trying to find my instructor. We are now an hour into my shift and I have gotten NOTHING done. By the time I get the BS checks done, my instructor has disappeared again before I get the chance to give the insulin. My nurse was no where to be found. My pts are getting frustrated that this student who they have never met is keeping them from eating. My access to the pixis is not working because my instructor did not turn in my paperwork, so i have to wait for her to give meds (The other students can pull the meds and confirm with their primary RN). She is no where to be found. My meds were an hour late. My assessments were almost 2 hours late. My pts were patient, but you could see they were not happy about it. The entire day went like this. I spent cumulatively more then 2 hours looking for my instructor or nurse today. Maybe giving 2 insulin dependent DMII pts to the student that does not have access to the medroom or clearance to use the glucometer was a poor choice? What a waste of a clinical experience. Rant over. Thanks.

[BostonFNP, APRN]

Some days are just destined to go badly it seems at times!

The real victory is that you did get it all done, the pts were cared for, your assessments were done. You rose to meet the challenge!

[grownuprosie]

You rose to meet the challenge!

I did not look at it like that! Thanks!

Also, I dont know if you intended that as a pun, but it made me giggle. (Check out my user name if you are wondering what I am talking about.)