I'm a junior already in my school's nursing program registered for my first clinical class in Spring 2009. I'm already registered, note. This semester, the class I'm taking is offering clinicals sections on two different weekdays, 0630-1530 or 1400-2300.
Here's my problem: for next semester (remember, I'm already registered) there's no indication what day or time (or place) the different clinical sections are - only the lecture is scheduled. When I asked the course manager, he said, See the department secretary. When I asked the department secretary, she said, Ask the course manager. When I explained I already had, she very kindly tried to help and had me write her an e-mail seeking the information, which she promised to forward.
The result: I get an e-mail back from the second course instructor saying "In nursing school the clinical hours are very irregular," and I'll have to wait for the semester to start before we can sort this out.
Really? I understand that arranging nine sections among several clinical instructors and several hospitals may be a challenge and subject to changes, but can they really not give us any scheduling information? I don't want to be a squeaky wheel, but frankly, I don't want to let this go either. I have special-needs childcare and therapy to coordinate; I happen to know my classmates have divorces to complete, chemotherapy to coordinate for family members, and jobs to work.
So I'd love to hear:
Has your school ever said "We'll get back to you about the clinicals hours when the semester starts"?
Does this sound reasonable to you?
Has anyone ever pushed back in a similar situation?
Has your school ever said "We'll get back to you about the clinicals hours when the semester starts"?
Does this sound reasonable to you?
Has anyone ever pushed back in a similar situation?
Thanks
Yes, they told us this in the first orientation session and it's proven true through all of school so far. We know our days of the week (ie, we have clinical only on Thursday and Friday), so we can plan to be available those days of the week, but we don't know our specific clinical dates for each class, shifts, locations, or groups until the first week of class, and they are subject to change.
It sucks for us, but it is not really the school's fault- they're in competition with three other RN programs, CNA programs, RT, PT, and the med school for clinical hours at one big but not THAT big hospital. Add in the availability of adjunct professors and politics between the schools and the various units at the hospital and, well, you can see how it gets hairy.
Pushing back probably won't do anything except win you difficulties- everyone, including the instructors, would like to have clinicals set in stone weeks in advance of the semester, but it's a cumbersome thing to organize and they do it as fast as they can.
Don't you think your instructors would also like to have the schedule in advance? Do you feel that they do this just to inconvenience you?
How on earth would you "push back"?
The schools much coordinate with the facilities where you will be doing your clinicals. Yours is likely not the only school attempting to hold clinicals at these facilities. Contracts are often renegotiated on a semester or yearly basis, depending on many factors--the facility's previous experience with your school, their own staffing issues, other educational contracts, your school's requirements and student numbers, etc.
Usually the reason the schools have not set the clinical dates and times is that the facilities have not yet given them this information. So "pushing back" isn't going to earn you any points or help you in the least.
Specializes in being a mom to 3 rambunctious kids.
At our school, we didnt find out our clinical schedule until the 2nd or 3rd day after the quarter started. We were allowed some choice in location, but not in time or day. (Lord knows I wouldnt have chosen 0645!!!!!!!) I have 3 kids under the age of 12, a truck driver for a husband, clinicals that begin at 0645, and noone for childcare. I completely understand. Unfortunately, it goes hand in hand with nursing school. You will be wonderful........ after all, you are a mother! You are already terrific with juggling fire, chain saws, and hungry pirahnas...LOL!!
I used to be the School's registrar and scheduled all students in clinicals. In our case, we needed to hear first from sites when we could conduct clinicals. The inpatient peds unit was a clinical site for 8 nursing schools (it is the only inpatient ped site in an 80 mile radius), and scheduled students Mon-Sun from 7am - 11pm). After we had our time periods for clinicals, we would then schedule the clinical faculty.
We start working on spring semester scheduling in the prior April (9 months in advance), but have times/faculty/locations finalized by October 1 for the spring semester. In this way our students knew the site, faculty, and precise hours before Early Registration occured.
emmy27
454 Posts
Yes, they told us this in the first orientation session and it's proven true through all of school so far. We know our days of the week (ie, we have clinical only on Thursday and Friday), so we can plan to be available those days of the week, but we don't know our specific clinical dates for each class, shifts, locations, or groups until the first week of class, and they are subject to change.
It sucks for us, but it is not really the school's fault- they're in competition with three other RN programs, CNA programs, RT, PT, and the med school for clinical hours at one big but not THAT big hospital. Add in the availability of adjunct professors and politics between the schools and the various units at the hospital and, well, you can see how it gets hairy.
Pushing back probably won't do anything except win you difficulties- everyone, including the instructors, would like to have clinicals set in stone weeks in advance of the semester, but it's a cumbersome thing to organize and they do it as fast as they can.