During Clinicals, What Were You Afraid Of?

CrunchRN, ADN, RN · Oct 16, 2016

Everything lol. But, I survived and you can too.

kakamegamama · Oct 16, 2016

Primarily medical surgical units. Long story---traumatized by a less than kind instructor. She was the only one who ever made me feel stupid, incompetent, and I was so very glad when I survived and passed the semester in which she was my clinical instructor.

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide · Oct 16, 2016

My psych rotation on a locked unit was pretty scary, but I did just fine once I accepted that I had to do it. I participated in groups and even joined a drumming circle, which was incredibly therapeutic for all of us.

Years later when I was an inpatient on that unit, we had student nurses come in and I encouraged them to listen to our stories and ask questions. I think it helped put them at ease.

purplegal · Oct 16, 2016

Demonstrating any skill in front of a patient while my instructor was present.

It always made me so nervous. I knew it was necessary, but was still a source of anxiety for me.

pixierose, BSN, RN · Oct 16, 2016

Demonstrating any skill in front of a patient while my instructor was present.
It always made me so nervous. I knew it was necessary, but was still a source of anxiety for me.

ITA on this. I can do many skills by myself with greater confidence than when my instructor is there with me, mostly because we're in "teaching mode" (rightfully so) and she's asking, "and what would you assess first before "x"?" Or "what would you be looking for when you are giving "y"? So ... she's waiting for the correct answer and so is the patient :blink: .

Shookclays, ASN, BSN, CNA, RN · Oct 17, 2016

My psych rotation on a locked unit was pretty scary, but I did just fine once I accepted that I had to do it. I participated in groups and even joined a drumming circle, which was incredibly therapeutic for all of us.
Years later when I was an inpatient on that unit, we had student nurses come in and I encouraged them to listen to our stories and ask questions. I think it helped put them at ease.

Woah! It was LOCKED?!! Was it at night?

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide · Oct 17, 2016

Woah! It was LOCKED?!! Was it at night?

Yes, many if not most psych units are locked. In fact, I've never been in one that wasn't. (Not that I've been in a lot of them.) This is done to keep patients safe and to minimize distractions. And no, it wasn't at night, so it wasn't creepy at all.

allnurses Guide · Oct 17, 2016

Yes, many if not most psych units are locked. In fact, I've never been in one that wasn't. (Not that I've been in a lot of them.) This is done to keep patients safe and to minimize distractions. And no, it wasn't at night, so it wasn't creepy at all.

Most psych hospitals really aren't as scary and creepy as people think anyway. I've had freakier things happen in LTC!!!

Shookclays, ASN, BSN, CNA, RN · Oct 17, 2016

Most psych hospitals really aren't as scary and creepy as people think anyway. I've had freakier things happen in LTC!!!

When I volunteered at a LTC. A 90+ yr old man came out of his room stark naked asking where his pipe was(he was an avid smoker when he was younger). It was hilarious.

OCNRN63, RN · Oct 17, 2016

Woah! It was LOCKED?!! Was it at night?

I worked on a unit that was locked most of the time. Being "locked" just means that you have people there who are there against their will; if not for the locked door, they might be out and be a harm to themselves or others.

It really was no big deal. I thought of it as the same as critical care for mental health.

barcode120x, RN, NP · Oct 17, 2016

Was scared of my clinical instructor drilling me on the spot. For the most part, all my instructors were great, but once in awhile they would grill. I also wasn't a fan of post conference (group meeting at the end of the clinical shift to discuss what you did and stuff) simply because my days were simple, short, and easy. All my other classmates always seemed to have full-experienced days :x