Accused of lying re: dig error kicked out

i just read your original post about this, and i am truly sorry for what has happened to you. i can totally see how nursing is your passion & calling in life, i hope you continue on this journey and use that experience as a learning one.

please find it in yourself to see it through.

http://www.excelsior.edu

I *think* NC is okay with the program. Look in the distance learning forum.

I did this route because I detested being tortured by instructors and decided not to be.

Good luck, queenjane. I know you must be devastated.

Bit of advice from an instructor? If this is in your heart to do this, pursue it. If you genuinely know you were not in the wrong, appeal this up the chain of command. It might not get the results you hoped for, but at least give it a shot. Whether you decide to stay if readmitted would be your decision.

I have seen some amazing transformations in terms of ability and maturity level in some of my students who have not passed due to one issue or another (sometimes family or health problems, sometimes grades). The huge majority of those who return end up at the top of their class.

Word to the wise from E. Roosevelt "No one can make you feel inferior without your permission."

Good luck in whatever avenue you pursue.

Bit of advice from an instructor? If this is in your heart to do this, pursue it. If you genuinely know you were not in the wrong, appeal this up the chain of command. It might not get the results you hoped for, but at least give it a shot. Whether you decide to stay if readmitted would be your decision.

I have seen some amazing transformations in terms of ability and maturity level in some of my students who have not passed due to one issue or another (sometimes family or health problems, sometimes grades). The huge majority of those who return end up at the top of their class.

Word to the wise from E. Roosevelt "No one can make you feel inferior without your permission."

Good luck in whatever avenue you pursue.

Thanks, it's good to hear from an instructor's point of view. I just happened to have an instructor who was very aggressive/confrontational, and it wore me down, made me question myself, so of course, I made some dumb mistakes that I personally believe I would never have otherwise made. (in case you wonder, I did not harm a patient!). So perhaps if I can get back in to another program, get my courage back up, and develop a way to deal with this type of instructor, which I'm sure I will encounter again, I can succeed. This particular instructor literally followed me around on my last clinical day last week, writing down everything I did on a piece of paper, she didn't even try to hide it, she would just ask me a question, write down my answer, watch me do a task, write some more on her piece of paper. It was the worst thing I could imagine. I knew it was all over when she started doing that. How many hours can you sustain any type of self-confidence and care for your patient with any kind of focus, prioritizing correctly, with this going on behind you all day?

Just as an example, I had documented a patient's skin was warm to touch, she complained I falsified documentation because she felt his hands were cold. I documented that his speech was "clear and understandable" because I had an extended conversation with my pt. in the morning assessment about his wife, family, how long he had been in the hospital, how he had slept the night before, etc. She again questioned that and said his speech sounded "thick" to her and I documented incorrectly. She had me so rattled I eventually went in with her right behind me to give meds and totally forgot to identify my pt. which I have never ever done before! I just think if she had given me a little breathing room I would have had a successful day.

Isn't that harrassment?

Maybe it's a blessing in disguise.

Have you thought about doing something else, like radiology tech or ultrasound tech?

I'm confused! How could they kick you out after one med error? Did they view it as doing the pt undue harm? Did you do the necessary checks before administering the dig - like the apical pulse and labs? While reading your post, I got that you went in the room to check the apical. I am also at a CC but there has to be a paper trail to fail a student. There has to be time for the student to improve before they can be failed. Unless you have a history of write-ups during previous clinicals it seems that they can't just fail you after one offense. I was written up for not having enough Lasix and my teacher at the end of the clinical wrote a letter on my behalf stating that I had improved and made no other med errors and it was placed in my file. I had to write a page about what I did and how to prevent future errors. What does your student handbook say? That just doesn't seem fair at all. I feel so bad for you! I, too, graduate in April and can't imagine. Well, if there is no way you can appeal the decision, please do not give up! Do what needs to be done and re-enter when you can. I have so many classmates that failed for one reason or another and they made the commitment to restart. I know you must be devastated right now, but you have another chance, don't give up! You have the makings of a wonderful nurse and do not let this one obstacle stand in your way! You're in your last year, you can make the necessary accomodations and get back in! Good luck!:redbeathe

I'm so sorry. Please, take care of yourself and if you can, dust yourself off and give it another go 'round whenever you're able to. I agree that what she did to you seems extreme, if not outright harrassment, and think that if you can, you should follow this up the chain of command at your school. Even if it doesn't help you out in the long run, you may be able to save someone else from a similar fate.

Hugs to you.

I'm sitting here dumbfounded that this happened to you. I know you felt like asking her what was up hey? Following you around all day writing who knows what down. It's a wonder she found any time to be with other students. I'll be starting my last clinical this Jan. and some of the instructors are horrid. I'm there to learn and begin to gain some confidence in my newly acquired skills. You would think they would help you, not break you down. I've had two instructors that have grilled me and rode at least 1-2 students every clinical until they cave. Not all cave, but most do. Do you think its personally satisfiying for them or do they sense something that us students don't see? Because sometimes it seems they get a ton of satisfaction from riding you like a bull.

I wish you big hugs and a quick entry into a program. It's like you never really exhale during your whole nursing school experience. At any time, it could be me. Good luck to you and I'm so sorry you are going through this. I just want to puke!

while reading your post, i got that you went in the room to check the apical. i am also at a cc but there has to be a paper trail to fail a student. there has to be time for the student to improve before they can be failed. unless you have a history of write-ups during previous clinicals it seems that they can't just fail you after one offense. :redbeathe

this is not true of my school. starting in third semester one med error can fail a student. you do not need a history of med errors. even if the instructor or nurse prevented you from making the error, this can fail a student. the reason being, no one really makes high scores on med passes. you make average scores, which meets expectation (no med errors). so there is no real way to make it up.

op: what you went through is every student's worse fear. i had one instructor who did not like me, but she was a substitute. she almost made me fail clinical last semester because she pretty much lied about me the one day she evaluated me. the only thing that saved me were my witnesses (nurses with whom i worked) and documentation. i also spent the rest of my clinical days with my instructor (not the sub) to show her i knew my stuff and i made up a day during a time when i could have been studying and getting some sleep before finals. this made me a nervous wreck because my instructor, who was fair, is also a note taker and lack of sleep throughout the rotation did not help!

on the other hand, the experience made me believe in myself because i had no choice at the time. i decided that either the substitute was right about me or that she was dead wrong! if she was dead wrong, then i needed to prove myself. i took one event, one activity, and one patient at a time to get through the rest of my rotation clinical safely. i performed clinical skills, provide patient care, passed meds, and had an answer to questions while under a great deal of pressure in order to pass!

i am so sorry, that you did not come out on top... it sounds like your instructor did not have confidence in your abilities and was nit-picking until she found something that she could use to fail you. however it is not your end. that is your decision.

are you able to re-apply? in my school if you fail clinical, you do not have the same clinical instructor the second time around (we are allowed one fail), so maybe that can be an option? i have not had a chance to read your other post so do not flame me if this was already mentioned. gl!

-soon to be new grad december '08

I think that clinicals are just another word for "torture". If the CI isn't breathing down your neck, the RN's are. It's like these people have forgotten what the definition of student is. We are LEARNING. I am in my second semester. My CI doesn't drill us, she basically ignores us. We have learned NOTHING. Then, when we do something wrong, everybody screams at us. Seems to me these people we are supposed to look up to and learn from are just waiting for us students to make one little error and then they loom down like a bunch of vultures after the kill. All my life my dream was to become an RN. I waited 20 years to go to school. I was so excited my first day. Now I hate it.