WOW, the other day we had a new group of students in our facility, and I am still in SHOCK over what their instructor let them get away with! First of all, they were constantly sitting in the nurses' station, taking up most of the chairs. When I was a student, we NEVER sat in the nurse's station!!!
If that wasn't bad enough, THIS just shocked me, too! A student who moaned and groaned last week "I'm BORED" would NOT do a major dressing change on one of our patients, saying "I DONT HAVE TIME"....OMG----she was writing a CARE PLAN while sitting at the nurse's station----MUST BE NICE!!! We were NOT allowed to write care plans while at clinicals---they were on our OWN TIME!!!:angryfire I thought she'd be THRILLED to get this major wound experience, ESPECIALLY because she had complained of BOREDOM last week!
I swear, if we had said "I"M BORED" at my school, our instructor probably would've sent us home, OR said "FIND something to do!!!" Even if it was to go sit with a lonely patient, and we have PLENTY of those!!!
What happened to being DRILLED on meds/ recent labs/ pathophys/ having to explain EVERYTHING that's going on with their patient? Nope, their instructor was hiding in a break room somewhere......MUST BE NICE!!!!:angryfire
Yes, I've spoken to the "higher ups".....maybe something will change, but who knows!
I think I pretty much pointed out that I was referring to first and third semester nursing students in my posts (not last semester). ....A nursing student during their leadership semester being precepted and managing 4-5 patients is a completely different ballgame.
Forgive my confusion, but was this supposed to be directed at me? Because last semester I was a 3rd semester student. I won't get leadership until next semester.
that is just unprofessional on the part of the students and the instructor. Those students should be learning, not doing care plans and sitting behind the nurses station.
I am shocked after hearing this too. The nerve of some people.
You have every right to be upset. That clinical instructor should be ashamed of herself.
I'll save my shock for another day Already shocked enough today, LOL...
But, I will say, I wouldn't want to have been the student announcing that she was bored. I understand the position that perhaps her instructor had set the tone for the day/week/whatever such that she didn't have enough to do. But this same student COULD have had opportunities to do dressing changes, observe procedures and such just by asking. The OP did say that an opportunity like that already existed, and was shot down.
For what it's worth, the student who has made the choice to be bored (yes, I see it that way, as there's LOTS of learning opportunities if you want them--no matter who the instructor is) is also shortchanging her own education. When she's out in the field, struggling through orientation (probably being anything BUT bored) I imagine she'll have some catching up to do. I have never denied a single student the chance to ask questions, get answers. I don't care if they're not "my" student: if they have time to kill, they can ask me ANYTHING.
All the rest, well....I'm too tired to be surprised today
My last med surge clinical instructor would take an hour long lunch. ALONE with only telling maybe one or two of the students.
She would camp out in the break room on her cell phone checking in on her father--who was taking care of her dog while she was at clinical!!!!
She would have her head down grading the paper work we turned in that morning so she could turn it back to us that day---gee no homework for her!!! and she was famous for losing paper work and then swearing we did not turn them in--after week 3 I started making copies of everything!!!
Of course if we told her how cute the pictures of her dog was on all then photo buttons attached to her bag, or commented that "suzy failed last weeks test ya know" and got her started on some juicy gossip, then you could pretty much get away with anything.
Ya I learned that trick early on. I played it for all it was worth so I could go on as many observations as possible--I was able to spend a day in ER, a day in cardio vascular surgery, a day in a peds outpatient clinic (this wasnt even a peds clinical) and a day at the hospice hospital-cause I always thought hospice was really amazing.---I learned much more away from her!!!!
Many of us complained to the school, but you know how hard it is to get a clincal instructor?? they really dont get paid well for the work they do. So I think schools are happy to just have a teacher show up each week.
Back to the orginal topic---complain to hospital administration---as clincal floor are a scarce commodity and there are many other schools out there right now that would kill for a good med surge floor. So start at the top, The hospital admin and nurse mgrs should not let the students be a distraction, the instructor should be held accountable and the school should be contacted!!!
I don't mind having students with me, as a matter of fact, I enjoy teaching them what I know (L&D, POSTPARTUM). However, it irks me tremendously when they are sitting at the nurses station in all of the chairs and the nurses are standing taking off orders, etc. I had to get on my knees, to save my back, to put orders and care plan into the computer. Not ONE student offered a chair. Finally, I had to ask (nicely, of course), if one of them minded giving up a chair so I could chart. Only then did one get up, the others still didn't the message for the other nurses who were still standing. When I was a student, my instructor didn't HAVE to tell me that I should give up a chair for a nurse or doctor. I knew that they put in long hours and have charting, etc to do and would appreciate a few minutes off my feet. Also, I stand probably 10-11 of my 12 hour shift and have severe plantar fasciitis and relish my few moments to get off my feet.
I just can't help but reply. I am an LPN in RN school, so I am in clinical rotation as an RN student but also have LPN students assigned to me when I am on the job. I think we need to remember that often students just don't know what to do or where to go. I had a student just yesterday whose instructor just basically dropped her off on the floor, I had been pulled to a floor (psych) I wasn't familiar with and really couldn't help her a lot. I tried the best I could, but I do admit I let her get lost in the shuffle trying to figure out myself what was going on and she ended up sitting at the nursing station looking lost.
In clinical's I have been very bored as an LPN, we were only allowed to do certain things because most of the students are newbies, and as you all know because you have all been to nursing school, what you do or don't do is guided by your school and instructors. I could get away with working on care plans as long as my instructor trust that I will do what I am expected to do for my patients. Anyway, I think we should realize that the students are sometimes just lost and looking for some guidance, and we should provide that to them, they may just not know any better!
As a student, I usually started my care plans in clinical, and I would sit a the station, but I would move if anyone needed the seat. I was a nurse tech though. I saw more and did more at work than in clinicals. The only time I just sat around was when the rest of the nurses were doing the same.
that is just unprofessional on the part of the students and the instructor. Those students should be learning, not doing care plans and sitting behind the nurses station.
People do learn from careplans, they learn what to look for, they learn how to find information in the chart, they learn lots of things. I think the issue at hand is people having a problem with people sitting down. Just because people define one thing more important than another, or they learn differently, doesn't mean one person isn't learning. Don't get me wrong, clinicals is all about hands on time, but as stated before, sometimes there is really nothing to do. Although some schools are 6 hours long for clinicals mine arent. The first rotation of clinicals is 8 hours long, and after that you do usually two or three 12 hour shifts a week for all the other semesters. So assuming that students are there for 6 hours and are "wasting" time for care plans is unfair for all the schools. If nurses expect the students to be busy for 12 hours straight, then that's just being silly.
These students will become the new RNs I'm working with. The ones that think patient care is just a minor inconvenience to thier social time at work. This seems to be the new standard- 1hr pt care, meds, assessments- 10 hrs of sitting in the back room eating pizza and watching TV, followed by that pesky last hr of the night when you have to round and see which of your patients are still alive! Sounds like they are training them to fit in well with the new nurses I'm working with these days.
These students will become the new RNs I'm working with. The ones that think patient care is just a minor inconvenience to thier social time at work. This seems to be the new standard- 1hr pt care, meds, assessments- 10 hrs of sitting in the back room eating pizza and watching TV, followed by that pesky last hr of the night when you have to round and see which of your patients are still alive! Sounds like they are training them to fit in well with the new nurses I'm working with these days.
As a 'by the way', you have just appropriately described a 20-year veteran and a 10-year veteran of nursing, both of whom work with me. It isn't just the 'new' nurses who have poor work ethics. Nurses like this have managed to graduate all along, or they simply got comfy and became like this--fast.
My point is: just because we're standing (I know better than to sit while all the nurses have to be on their feet) around doing nothing and looking bored doesn't mean we wouldn't much rather be learning something.
Please talk to our instructor if it bothers you! We've tried and they don't always listen to us like they listen to you.
OK, my turn to play devil's advocate.
To be fair, I've also heard of instances where staff don't want to work with nursing students, so they're either ignored or given as little information as possible.
To the poster above, I'm suspecting perhaps you've had a similar experience?
Already shocked enough today, LOL...
vashtee, RN
1,065 Posts
Forgive my confusion, but was this supposed to be directed at me? Because last semester I was a 3rd semester student. I won't get leadership until next semester.