Can they give you clinical times on weekends?

lifelearningrn, BSN, RN · Jun 9, 2013

Absolutely. I've had two semesters of weekend clinicals.. I never mind them though.

lifelearningrn, BSN, RN · Jun 9, 2013

Then they probably don't but you can ask.

I'm in a day program and there are plenty of Saturday, Saturday and Sunday and evening sections for clinical.

Shorty11, BSN, RN · Jun 9, 2013

I attend a day-time traditional BSN program. At the beginning of every semester, we fill out a "clinical preference form." The form asks if we are are able to attend weekend clinicals. It also asks our preference of day shift or night shift for clinicals. Everyone's exact preferences can not always be met, but our faculty did their best to accommodate. This last semester I put that I was available for weekend clinicals and that I preferred day shift. As a result, all of my clinicals last semester were the day shift on both Thursdays and Saturdays. I actually really enjoyed working Saturdays. Most people who put that they were unable to do weekend clinicals did so because they work on weekends. I am currently not working so I figured it would be no problem for me to attend weekend clinicals.

KimberlyRN89, BSN, RN · Jun 9, 2013

We had a couple of clinical rotations that were on Saturday mornings. I even had to do a Sunday clinical for my maternity class. Like another poster mentioned, it is difficult for some programs to get "good" clinical slots, mainly due to the competition from other programs. My school is in Baltimore City and there's about 10 other nursing programs in the city/county alone.

wooh, BSN, RN · Jun 9, 2013

Depends on the program and what the area hospitals have available. Ask the program in question. But it's like all of nursing. People need care 24/7. So get used to being available 24/7.

Jill2Shay · Jun 9, 2013

Yes. My clinicals for block 2 are 12 hours shifts on Sundays.

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · Jun 9, 2013

Depends on your program. I haven't encountered too many schools that do weekend clinicals but it is possible.

hopefulnurse24 · Jun 10, 2013

I will be attending Duke University's School of Nursing in the fall and I know for a fact that we do weekend clinicals, as well as some nights for preceptorship...

luckydaisy84 · Jun 10, 2013

The University that I graduated from had several different clinical days with each semester. It mainly depends on their contracts with the hospitals in the area and what they have available. My program director was very out there (all over the county) to get several contracts so that we were able to have some variety. I had weekend clinicals for over a year of the program :shy: ! It was exhausting because I worked through my program, so my days off during the week, I worked. Practicum is different though. Practicum you can be scheduled all kinds of crazy hours (depends on your site/preceptor). There is no guarantee that you will never have to do a weekend....but then again.... it's nursing....we work all kinds of crazy hours;)!

HM-8404, BSN, RN · Jun 10, 2013

Second semester I had clinicals on Saturdays with some Fridays added in and this semester my clinicals are Tue and Thurs 1400-2345. Not sure where they came up with those crazy hours. I would assume students get placed in days/hours that a clinical instr. can do them since most are full-time nurses and do clinicals on their off days.

JenTheSchoolRN, BSN, RN · Jun 10, 2013

Yep. My clinical office warns you that while Sundays are less common (but possible), expect at least one Saturday clinical rotation, especially if you are hoping to be placed in one of the major hospitals in the area (for me, Boston). Most of the Saturday clinicals were 12 hours vs. the 8 hour weekday shifts. Yes, it was a Saturday, but with the 12 hours, it was less Saturdays vs. more Tuesdays.

FurBabyMom, MSN, RN · Jun 10, 2013

Yep. The university I attended, I had weekend clinicals one quarter (there were more offerings but I scheduled other sections/blocks for other terms). Our university's program had been around for forever, great relationship with the hospitals. So they were able to offer (at time of scheduling once a year) options for clinical. You picked "Nursing ABC: Lecture" (two days a week for at least 3 hours, M/W or T/TH, and generally an hour on lecture days before/after class for labs) and then a "Nursing ABC: Clinical". Options included a day and a time period (ex Mondays 0700-1730, Mondays 1300-2330). Mondays and Wednesday (with some Saturdays) for Tuesday/Thursday lecture, Tuesdays, Thursday (some Saturdays) for Monday/Wednesday clinical. The range of time gave us a good idea to budget the entire time even though clinical was often on that day 0700-1530, cause sometimes post conference lasted long or there was traffic returning back to school/home from clinical, and for evenings it was imperative cause we had our conference time before clinical about the prior week (and sometimes, the patients you'd written your prep about had been discharged so you got to quickly complete as much as possible on a new patient).

I did a Saturday clinical, and I loved it. For my preceptorship my hours were 0600-1430 or 0530-1400 and I was driving almost an hour to get to my clinical site (two to three days a week). But, I loved my placement and learned so much so it was worth it!