What do you require for clinical (and other questions)

[meluhn]

I am a new instructor in a brand new LPN program. I was wondering what everyone else requires of their students as far as documentation/care plans etc for clinical. Currently I have them doing an assessment form that I found on this site that has been helpful as well as 3 nsg dx and 2 nurses notes/clinical day. I teach last quarter med/surg to students about to graduate. I am afraid that my students are still not getting it. They are not connecting the dots and seeing the big picture of their patient. I am about to start a new semester with new students and I would like to do what will help them learn the most.

The problem is that the school has been going through so much transition and there hasn't even been a director for the past month. Next week we will welcome the 3rd director in a year. When I asked what I should be requiring I was told that it was completely up to me, and while I do love the autonomy, I feel like I need a little guidance/advice in this matter. So far I have not found a real mentor. Plenty of other perfectly nice instructors but we all have our own way of doing things. Any advice?

PS--I was also wondering, Do most of you seasoned nsg instructors feel good about the quality of the students you are graduating? Or do you have an uneasy feeling that maybe they are not ready. I don't know if I should be scared or if they are just inexperienced and will blossom into great nurses.

PSS-If anyone has any good forms please send them to me via PM as an attachment.

[HazeKomp, BSN, RN]

I have them doing an assessment form that I found

would you please send to me via email or PM? I'm a new instructor, too.

Haze

[Whispera, MSN, RN]

I like to use the systems approach. One day in clinical, the students assess the integumentary system (in detail, by observation and interview) and write a diagnosis and interventions pertaining to what they find....the next day they assess the respiratory system and do the same, and so on. If they can't find anything wrong with their particular patient, they still turn in the assessment and then write a diagnosis and interventions for something that is possible within that system. At the end of the semester they assess the whole person, in detail, write 3 diagnoses, pick one and write three interventions, yada yada.

Do your students chart their nursing notes in the patients' charts or just give them to you? Having them comply with facility format is good practice, if they give them to you. Then you can critique the positives and negatives. I like to use a comment "sandwich". In this you tell them a good thing about their work, then give a suggestion about something that needs some tweaking, then finish with another comment about something they did correctly. The positive comments seem to cushion the blow from the negative one. I have them rewrite until the notes are adequate too. When a student can do it consistently, then he/she can write in the patient's chart.

Remember you're taking them from knowing not-so-much to knowing quite a bit. It's logical that they wouldn't get it at first. You have to break the assignments down into little chunks they can grab and add to. I assume they'll be giving meds, learning about the meds, doing dressings, and all of that too. It's a tremendous learning curve to climb! My biggest thrill is seeing them catch on and feel so proud!

As for worrying about the quality of current nursing students...most I've seen are pretty amazingly caring, motivated, and hard-working. Some though, I wouldn't want to care for anyone I love. I do fail students who don't do what's expected of them. Maybe standards need to be raised more so the baddies can be failed before they hurt someone? It's a huge question I don't have an answer for!