This is from a document I post for my students at the start of clinical. Doing any of these things will probably result in failing clinically. Remember, we faculty have wide leeway in making a call on this. It often boils down to not letting you move on if you are unprepared, unprofessional, unsafe, unskilled, are unable to critically think, or communicate poorly with others or fail to take responsibility for your actions.
The following infractions may result in a clinical failure:
Tardiness or absenteeism (See course syllabus).
Recurrent or flagrant dress code violations
Rude, disrespectful, undermining or uncivil behavior toward a patient, family member, staff member, peer, or faculty; OR repeated actions that create unnecessary conflict and turmoil for others.
Serious complaints from the agency nursing staff concerning the student's behavior
Being unprepared to provide safe patient care to patients, OR inability to answer common questions or explain the client's pathophysiology or medications, treatments, procedures and/or nursing interventions.
Inability to create or communicate a reasonable plan of care, or inability to through and evaluate the client outcomes
Serious lack of organization that leads to late treatments or medications, or that forces others to assist a student so that care can be completed on time.
Failure to follow up on an action after being specifically directed to do so. For example, failing to recheck I&O or vital signs or a client's response to a med after being directly told to do so by the instructor or a staff nurse.
Repeated failure to convey important changes in the client's status promptly to the staff nurse of the instructor.
Breech in confidentiality or HIPAA violations
Administering medication without the instructor or without having attained prior approval to administer a medication with a licensed RN
Misleading or misstating facts or events, or fabricating client assessment data
Repeated submission of late or unsatisfactory work (even if ungraded); failure to redo and resubmit written material as requested by faculty.
Delay in responding to or noncompliance with a faculty directive to undergo remediation to address a skill or knowledge gap.
Actions or inactions deemed unsafe by the faculty.This goes beyond serious medication errors; it includes actions or inaction that puts clients at risk for avoidable complications or potential harm.
Violations of the Code of Conduct found in the School of Nursing Student Handbook. Failure to achieve master the skills or knowledge needed to provide safe care to patients, including physical assessment skills; or failure to meet any of the other course objectives.
I would add to this that a NO CALL/NO SHOW (unless you were in a serious accident) is an automatic failure.
Nursing faculty take seriously their responsibility to protect the public from anyone who does not live up to these standards, or who lack the thinking skills, judgment, and organizational skills needed to provide safe, effective care. There are times when we recognize that a student simply is not ready to move to the next clinical, where he or she will encounter sicker, more vulnerable patients; in that case, the student may benefit from repeating a clinical, and go on to be a stronger, better nurse as a result. It is not easy to fail students clinicallly; no one I know does it lightly or looks forward to doing it. But it does happen. That said, it generally can be avoided by coming very well prepared, following the rules, being on your best behavior, communicating well, and by seeking and being open to early feedback.
