MedSurg... with no clinical?

allnurses Guide · Dec 15, 2017

The broader question here is.....required clinical hours to sit for NCLEX upon graduation are set by the Board of Nursing. How are they going to ensure you have enough clinical hours by the end of your program to ensure you are qualified for the licensing exam?

KrCmommy522, BSN, RN · Dec 16, 2017

You said you already paid for the clinical but they didn't provide you with a clinical. I'd be wanting that money back! But I know that isn't the important point here

not.done.yet may be correct in stating that the BON requires a certain number of clinical hours to sit for the NCLEX. However, I understood it as though only certain state BONs required a certain number of clinical hours (I may be wrong about this).

Regardless, the school has a set number of clinical hours that they have set for you to graduate. It should be stated in their nursing school handbook. You were not able to fulfill that set number of clinical hours because THEY did not give you a clinical. They should be doing whatever they can to remediate this situation! They should not be failing you because the course you took was supposed to be a lecture and clinical course combined. You were supposed to be able to apply what you learned in lecture to clinical and what you learned in clinical to lecture. They did you a great disservice by not providing you with a clinical when they were supposed to. You paid for a course that included a lecture and clinical but only got the lecture?! That is not right. They should not even of had you take the lecture portion if they couldn't get you a clinical to go with it. I would figure out what steps you need to take. First I would talk to the dean (but as you said, the dean doesn't seem to have any answers, but you need to demand some). Is your school accredited? I would be inclined to report them to ACEN or CCNE if they are accredited and they reported that they are doing a certain number of clinicals. If you fit in one of the states that the BON requires a certain number of clinical hours, I would report them to the BON. It is ridiculous to have you fail a lecture course when it was supposed be lecture and clinical and they did not provide the clinical portion!

On a side note, since I wasn't sure about the BON requiring a set number of clinical hours in every state, I was curious and did some quick research. It actually isn't an easy to find answer - at least I didn't find it to be! So, if anyone can provide more info I would love it!! What I found was:

Board has established a minimum number of clinical experience hours for RN Associate degree programs:

Yes = Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Delaware, Vermont, California-RN, Virginia, Hawaii, Connecticut, Oregon, Guam, Colorado

No = New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Rhode Island, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Georgia-RN, Louisiana-RN, New Mexico, Utah, Arkansas, Maine, Texas, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, West Virginia-RN, Washington, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Florida, District of Columbia, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Virgin Islands, Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada, Alaska, Arizona, Montana

DNA = California-VN, Georgia-PN, Louisiana-PN, West Virginia-PN, Mississippi

The Board has established a minimum number of clinical experience hours for RN Baccalaureate programs:

Yes = Northern Mariana Islands, Delaware, Vermont, California-RN, Virginia, Hawaii, Connecticut, Oregon, Guam, Colorado

No = New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Rhode Island, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Georgia-RN, Louisiana-RN, New Mexico, Utah, Arkansas, Maine, Texas, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, West Virginia-RN, Washington, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Florida, District of Columbia, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Virgin Islands, Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada, Alaska, Arizona, Montana

DNA = American Samoa, California-VN, Georgia-PN, Louisiana-PN, West Virginia-PN, Mississippi

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Source: https://www.ncsbn.org/Educational_Programs_Entry_into_Practice.pdf (Starting middle of pg. 16)

EverySunset · Dec 18, 2017

Thank you - apparently they intend to provide one... laterâ€?? When? I've already struggled in the class! I'm so lost.

malenurse69, MSN, NP · Dec 19, 2017

So I'm a little lost... my nursing friends are too so I appeal to my broader circle of sisters!
Help!!

.....and brothers right? .....right?

EverySunset · Dec 19, 2017

Absolutely of course. Not enough brothers in my program - I welcome everybody's ideas! :-D

KrCmommy522, BSN, RN · Dec 20, 2017

Thank you - apparently they intend to provide one... "later"?? When? I've already struggled in the class! I'm so lost.

Weird! Like when do they plan to provide when...when is later? You only have one semester left? And are they going to wipe the grade from when you took it without a clinical and have you retake the clinical and lecture portion together - which seems appropriate!!

We had a small group of students in my graduating class who failed a course the final semester. Those who failed, and it was the first course, could stay in the program (in our program you could fail 2 courses - the first nursing course you could repeat, if you failed a second nursing course you failed out of the program). Anyways, those who failed the course had to repeat it - only it was the last semester. It was a mess - they knew they were going to provide the lecture and clinical again but weren't sure how.

Most important note, the school was in the process of changing from traditional-based curriculum to concept-based curriculum. As a result, our class was the last class having the traditional-based curriculum courses. They weren't being offered anymore.

So, the course that was being repeated, you had 3 courses after that plus precepting. So, they had the repeated one plus another course the next semester. Since the classes weren't being offered anymore - the one that was being repeated the students only went in for exams. The rest was all online - the got homework online and turned it in online. In order to repeat the clinical (because the course they failed was a lecture/clinical course), they had to join in with the ADN group (this was a BSN class) that had a similar clinical (even though the ADN class was already using the concept-based approach, the clinical was similar enough it was okay). Then, the second course, they did with their class because they were in their final semester. Then, the class graduated, and the group was still left.

The next semester, they took 2 separate courses. Just the tiny group of them and the instructor. Finally, they found placements for them for precepting - oh yea, they started that a semester late, so went a semester longer. But my point is....the school did what they had to do to make it work! Your's should do the same. Not let you miss out on a clinical and only have a lecture!

Julius Seizure · Dec 22, 2017

On a side note, since I wasn't sure about the BON requiring a set number of clinical hours in every state, I was curious and did some quick research. It actually isn't an easy to find answer - at least I didn't find it to be! So, if anyone can provide more info I would love it!! What I found was:
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Source: https://www.ncsbn.org/Educational_Programs_Entry_into_Practice.pdf (Starting middle of pg. 16)

Wow. I honestly thought that a certain number of hours was required to sit for the NCLEX! Does this mean that one could become a nurse without actually doing any clinicals in those states?