Does this seem right to you??

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Ok, what do you all think of this?

In my nursing program you are required to take a basic skills lab. I'm not in the lab right now, but what others have told me about it causes me to be very concerned. Apparently when the students get in the lab they are given a handout of skills they need to perform, and a brief list of steps on how to do the skill, and then are told to do the skill in small groups. If they have any questions, they can ask the instructor for assistance. Sounds ok? Here's the problem, the instructor is not demonstrating the "correct" way to do the skill, nor doing any teaching on the skill unless someone asks a question, and then it is only in the small group. One of the students requested that the instructor spend the first 20 or 30 minutes of the class time demonstrating the skills for everyone, since a lot of these students have no medical background at all. (There are a few CNAs in the class who are teaching those in their groups.) The instructor refused, stating that she didn't have enough time to demonstrate the skills!!!

Is it me, or does it seem a little crazy to expect students to be able to do the skill without seeing it demonstrated properly first??? It scares me to think that I would be expected to do a skill without having a clue how it is supposed to be done! And for the skills test, a bunch of skills are listed on slips of paper that are drawn from a hat, and you do the skill that you draw, and aren't tested on any of the others!! So if you can do that skill great, you pass. That's fine, but what about the other skills?? How will you know if you are doing it right if the instructor doesn't observe you??

Sorry this is long, but the whole thought of this makes me very uncomfortable. How can I learn anything if the instructor is refusing to teach???

Shannon

This school isn't the only one that is disorganized. My friend was told on the first day of orientation that 4 people would be chosen to revert to alternate status. The school insists that they informed everybody about this. No one was told a thing prior to the first day. They won't know for awhile. My friend quit her job to enter this class. If she reverts to alternate, then no job, and no school. The next class won't start for 2 yrs. She is furious.

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We have too many people for our lab too. We have the LPNs, 1st year RNS & 2nd yr RNS. We have 1 lab that is open for a few hrs for free open lab time & for a few hours of sign off time. We only have 1 lab instructor. She must sign off each student, on each skill. We are alone in the room with the instructor during sign offs. It is very difficult to schedule the time for each student. We are practically fighting over empty time slots! We have begged for there to be more hours of lab time, but there is an instructor shortage. I guess they figured that soon the students would begin weeding out & there would be more spaces available. In the meantime we all have to suffer.

Lisa :)

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I think the reason that there wasn't enough lab space was because they are starting this new program where everyone enters at the same place, then exits where they want - LPN, AD, or BSN. This is the first year for this program, which will phase out the existing programs for these levels. But they have both programs running this year, so that they have twice as many students, does that make any sense? So they said they either had to drop 30 students from the program, or have 30 students take this lab next semster. There are no pre-reqs for this program, so there are some students who have never had any college courses. The old program had pre-reqs, so a lot of us can fit another class into our schedules next semster. That's why they didn't drop 30 from the program. I hope that makes sense.

Thanks for the thoughts and prayers for my family. We need them now. The bank told my parents last night that they have 90 days to sell off our dairy cows. This farm has been in the family for over 50 years. But they were thinking of getting out of it eventually, anyway. Our farm used to be in the country, now it's on the edge of the city. Kinda hard to dairy in the city!

Shannon

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That is why I love my program. We are expected to read the Lab info prior to appearing at lab. they show us how to do it. We practice doing it in lab. Then we get checked off on doing it only during clinical. They have a you will do it over and over again until you are checked off and can handle it. I love my school and I love my instructors. I have never been so happy! At least so far.

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In our program, the first 3 weeks we were on campus every thursday and friday evening. We were split into groups and watched videos for head to toe assessment, bed bath, oral care, bed making and vital signs. We then had the instructors help us practice. Then we had a skills test that we had to perform in front of the instructor. We are now in a clinical setting for a few weeks then we'll go back to on campus to learn about meds. My program is great. Very organized. I'm glad that we didnt have to do this on our own. If they made us responsible learning on own time, I dont know if i would be that discipline to give it enough of my time because of all the other stuff we have to do.

Good luck!

Amy

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wow...shannon i am so sorry about all you are going thru @ this time...things are tough enough w/ school...i'll be thinking of you...

as far as the lab issue goes...i have to do it to learn it - e.g. when we were learning patient transfers i had to watch it, do it, be transferred... all aspects - ya know...so i signed up for open lab hours, i read and reread, and talked the steps through to myself

SADLY, the day i signed up for open lab THERE WAS NO FREE LAB SPACE when we got there - UGH:( - so there were 15 of us practicing IM injections on mannequin (sp?) on a little rolling cart in the HALL - UGH - UGH:devil:

i am often stunned by the paradox of how nursing school expects us to be the most efficient and organized beings walking the earth - yet they can't even manage to keep track of open lab hours!!!

anyhow - i think i just went off on a rant - sorry

i'll be interested to hear how everything turns out for you

Sarah:D

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originally posted by rhona1

that is why i love my program. we are expected to read the lab info prior to appearing at lab. they show us how to do it. we practice doing it in lab. then we get checked off on doing it only during clinical. they have a you will do it over and over again until you are checked off and can handle it. i love my school and i love my instructors. i have never been so happy! at least so far.

:crying2: :bluecry1: waahhhh i am jealous..i wanna go to your school...wanna trade???:D

just kidding - that's so nice. imho every school should want to produce students that feel that way

sarah

:p

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see olie.......we should have gone with dorothy............

:cool:

this all gives me the willies....except that the director of my nursing program.....appears to me to be from the old school of nursing .......

see one....

do one........

teach one......

and that is a plus......

i have been told that our couse (lpn) is the same that rn's take.....another plus?

for the first day of class......i have to have completed 9 homework assignments......this will be no cakewalk.......thank goodness......i was worried..

(although, i havent seen the lab yet......hmmm?

cheers....

k:kiss

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Just to update you all, I guess they had a skills test in this class and a lot of people did poorly on this test. Imagine that! So supposedly there is going to be some reorginization of the way this class is taught! My concepts teacher is in charge of the new program and she said that "you have to realize there is a learning curve for the instructors, as well." No that does a lot of good for those who failed the first test. At least they have seen the error of their ways!

Shannon

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I highly doubt the students are expected to learn skills without demos. I think you were given some bad information.

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Could have been bad information, but it was from several people in the same lab section. According to the curriculm director when she was commenting on the lab problems they were "self-learning modules." That's a direct quote. Guess I'll find out next semster!

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Originally posted by shanzo89

I think the reason that there wasn't enough lab space was because they are starting this new program where everyone enters at the same place, then exits where they want - LPN, AD, or BSN. This is the first year for this program, which will phase out the existing programs for these levels. But they have both programs running this year, so that they have twice as many students, does that make any sense? So they said they either had to drop 30 students from the program, or have 30 students take this lab next semster. There are no pre-reqs for this program, so there are some students who have never had any college courses. The old program had pre-reqs, so a lot of us can fit another class into our schedules next semster. That's why they didn't drop 30 from the program. I hope that makes sense.

Thanks for the thoughts and prayers for my family. We need them now. The bank told my parents last night that they have 90 days to sell off our dairy cows. This farm has been in the family for over 50 years. But they were thinking of getting out of it eventually, anyway. Our farm used to be in the country, now it's on the edge of the city. Kinda hard to dairy in the city!

Shannon

Best wishes for you and your family.. very sad when this happens to farm families, it's hard to let go of something passed down from generation to generation. :)

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