I have a Clinical instructor (Medsurg3) who is unlike all others I've had. She is an employee at the hospital where we do clinicals and let us know right off the bat that she doesn't "hover" over her students. When we need her, we are supposed to call her on the phone. She does not stay on our floor but spends her time on the floor where she works. In three weeks time the only RN level skill I have performed is giving oral meds once. I had an opportunity to do a wound dressing change but she "wasn't able to make it" to oversee me. Then I had an opportunity to insert a urinary catheter. Once again, didn't get to do it. All I am doing is bed baths, feeds, linen change, assessment, chart assessment. Other MS2 clinical groups in our class have two patients. Our CI only gives us one and here's why: She pulls us off the floor by 10:30. (Really early) We are done with post-conference by 12 noon or earlier. This violates the rules of the program and when I asked "what do we say if we run into someone from our program who asks why we are leaving the floor so early" her response was "tell them I had a family emergency." She is unable to make it to clinical this week one day. We have been told that she is going to tell the course coordinator that we will add time onto subsequent clinicals to make up the lost time. She then told us that we wouldn't be doing that and that if we all keep quiet, it can be our little secret. She is glued to her cell phone at all times and answers e-mails while we are in the midst of pre/post conference. She's good at working the system but a lousy clinical instructor. I feel as if I am being manipulated into working the system with her and am completely uncomfortable at being asked to participate in group lies. The underlying message is "If you show up and do a little CNA work for three or so hours and leave me alone" then we'll all be happy.
I feel so completely frustrated at not learning practicing any RN level skills. I am also anxiety ridden by the fact that clinical instructor holds a lot of power over me and my future. I do not trust her enough to go and talk to her about all of this... Her behaviors : avoidance of work, lying, asking me and others to engage in the lying is really upsetting for me. By the same token, if I whistleblow, she could make my life hell. Nursing school is stressful enough when all is going well but I'm tied in knots here. Comments/Input/suggestions?????
From what you stated in your original post, I would not talk to this instructor first. She will retaliate, I guarantee you. You have two choices as I see it: let it go and move on, or go above the instructor to the department head. Without support, your chances of favorable resolution are low. You could be placing your position in the nursing program in jeopardy by going this route. I am only warning you because I have witnessed similar occurrences and have been on the receiving end of retaliation myself.
Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.
let me give you an analogy that might help you. let's say you work at a restaurant chain and you went through a little orientation program with a bigger group of people but now work on one shift with a supervisor you never saw before. the first thing you notice is that she doesn't follow all the rules they were clear to go over with you in orientation. you see her not washing her hands, tasting food, dropping food and putting on the dishes and serving it to patrons and whispering, "don't say anything, it's our little secret. we'd never get things done if we followed all the rules." what do you think you should do? would talking to her help? i would go to the people who oriented you, or the big boss and let him know what she is doing because she is very wrong. supervisors like this are supposed to be roles models. what happens is a knucklehead comes along and starts mimicking her behavior thinking it is perfectly ok and then another, and another. pretty soon there are a bunch of bad employees giving patrons bad service and bad food and the bog boss finds he has a huge problem and doesn't understand quite how it happened.
one of the things you will be required to do as an rn is take a leadership position and solve problems. here's you first dilemma.
Keep your mouth shut and go with the flow. Please so not start anything or else you will be humilated by this instructor. Be very careful of this instructor she can fail you for nothing! Just do your best to pass the class and move on.
I strongly disagree with each and every person in this thread who has told you to keep your mouth shut for fear of "rocking the boat", so to speak. You're paying for this program, aren't you? Committing your time and energy to it? Trying to learn so that when you get to med-surg 4 with a half decent CI who expects you know all the stuff from med-surg 3, you DO know it and won't be putting patient's at risk because you missed out on vital learning experiences.
You have every right to speak up - and speak up loudly and clearly - about this situation without being bullied, abused, threatened or having your education jeopardized in any way. I understand that in reality things aren't so black and white. For all you know this CI is sitting the the pocket of her supervisor and that's how she gets away with what she does, which might threaten your position.
I suggest you knuckle down and do some research. What is the role of the CI at your school? What are they expected to be doing with you in order to assist and facilitate your learning needs? Something like this should be in your student handbook (or something of the like) and if it is not, you should easily be able to obtain this information for the appropriate department (like the clinical practice unit) at your school.
Whoever said it previously: document, document, document. Don't they teach that at your school in regard to patient care? Why do they teach that? For lawsuits waiting to happen. It applies in your situation here, also. If at all possible, I would encourage the other students in your group to do the same thing - the more evidence the better. Two heads are better than one in the same way that corroborating evidence outweighs the word of one person.
What is the role of the RN, educator and NUM on the ward you're working on? (I'm Australian so perhaps it's a little bit different.) The people in these roles are supposed to assist with our learning experience also (i.e we could do some of the procedures you've listed missing out on without our facilitator but with an RN on the ward if they were happy to do it with us.) Also, the NUM is responsible for the students on her ward, also (largely because she probably has to deal with staff complaints about them on occasions!) That NUM is going to want to know that you are a) going unsupervised on her unit and b) not there for the purposes you are supposed to be there for (i.e. you are supposed to be there to be learning RN skills, which extend beyond first year basics of bed making and taking vital signs, though you should be a pro by now!) If it is clear (and exceeding clear) that the NUM and other staff on the ward are not buddy-buddy with the CI in question, see if they would also be able to provide evidence that corroborates your own and the other students. Again, the more evidence the better.
The last step is to make an appointment with the highest higher up you can get (would this be your dean?) If at all possible, see if you and your clinical group can attend this together for a) moral support and b) to get the message home loud and clear. Go with an agenda. Go prepared. Make a list of everything that needs to be addressed and make sure you get through that list. Take all your evidence (and this should not just be word of mouth but solid, documented evidence with dates, times, names, places, named witnesses etc) to this meeting and present it clearly. Do not take no for an answer at anytime. It may even be appropriate to take with with you a draft list of ideas for compensation/accommodation/remedy of the situation to show that you are proactive and really want to learn and are not simply dobbing for the sake of dobbing.
If it appears that the highest high up that you can speak to is also in the pocket of this CI, make it clear to this person that you will be reporting the matter on to the board of nursing and to the university (or whomever would be the appropriate authority) and/or consulting with a lawyer (unis often provide free/discounted services to their students, as would the BON.) Make it clear what you will be reporting for - fraud, for one thing!
Do not let this go. For your sake, your education's sake, your career's sake and for all those after you who will have this woman as a CI. Report it. Whistle-blowing is NOT a crime and you should not be persecuted for it. &, if, in the unfortunate event that you are, there are ways OUT! You do not deserve this treatment (especially when you are paying for it) and should not have to settle for any less than best.
This is the most insane thing I have ever heard!! Is there some reason why you can't go to your actual class instructor or department head about these issues? I, along with many of my other classmates, have complained about LESS with other clinical instructors in the past and have never suffered any reprecussions. I absolutely disagree with all of these people telling you to keep your mouth shut! You are paying her to be there and to teach you vital nursing skills! This would also make me questions HER skills as a nurse. Is this someone who is actually employed by your school or as an adjunct? My advice would be to tell on her in confidence to your actual class instructor or director. If they have any couth or respect for you they will not tell her that a student blew the whistle...they can always claim that they have heard these things from other hospital staff, etc. Don't let your clinical buddies make this call for you...they clearly just don't feel like being at clinical for 8 hours. Do what you think is right for YOURSELF not others.
This lady is wasting your time, money, and education. It's ridiculous that she's acting unprofessional and getting away with it. In the real world, wouldn't you report a nurse for making a mistake if you saw it? It's easy for her to walk away from what she is doing because she is already an RN. You on the other hand are NOT an RN yet and she is supposed to be there to pave the way for you and prepare you for the real world and NCLEX. How will you ever learn new skills, if she is not enabling you to carry them out? If she cannot handle the stress and organization of being a clinical instructor, then she should not be teaching.
Yeah, sounds like she's a real corker. My advice, from personal experience, keep your mouth shut, your head down low, and your fingers crossed. Hopefully your next CI will make up for this lack of professionalism on her part. Don't rock the boat because you're likely to be tossed into the ocean without a lifevest. Good luck.
I don't agree with this. Her next instructor EXPECTS her to know her skills! She could possibly fail the program if she keeps her mouth "shut".
Stick up for yourself and do the right thing. I know it might feel like you are going against the program by defying one of their clinical instructors, but more than likely you are not the only one who feels this way about that lady. That makes me wonder about the people in your group.
In my first quarter of nursing school, I had a HORRIBLE instructor. I , as well as all my other clinical group, absolutely dreaded going to clinical each and everyday. I pushed through it and kept my mouth shut. About a month before the quarter ended, we actually scheduled a group meeting with the Dean of Nursing. She had actually heard about some of the stuff that was going on, and the next week she came and observed while we were at clinical. The next week, she was no longer an instuctor. I'm not advicing going and ratting her out, but I would def scope out how your other clincal group members feel about her as well. There is def strength in numbers! Hope it turns around for you!
It is nice for all these people to tell you to "do the right thing". They have not seen their nursing school career go down the tubes for just that behavior. If you want to subject yourself to that possibility, you can't say you haven't been warned. It is up to you to decide what you will or will not risk. I wish someone had spoken to me at the right time. I was told this, when it was too late: "You can be right, and you can be dead right." Good luck with whichever way you choose to handle this.
I refuse to tell you what to do because I am not in your situation and I have never had to risk my spot in the competetive world of nursing school. I am sorry for what you are going through. I would like to hope that if i were in the situation I would be a professional and a leader...or at least an annonymous leader. If this did happen to me I would not have had support from my classmates because they were lazy and would have LOVED to get out of doing any work in clinical..
I would however be surprised if the nursing program did not already know about this. If the students in my group got caught not doing anything we would be in a lot of trouble, because the RNs on our units pretty much expected us to be giving their meds and doing their care, and would have complained to the school. They would know that we were slacking compared to other clinical groups with different instructors, because they were probably spoiled by the other CIs who kept the students busy - which I would appreciate because I would learn more. I don't know if this is similar to your school, but if it is, they may know. And if they have not done anything about it, they may be buddy-buddy with your CI. Which is more of a cause for concern as far as retaliation. I would go to administration that is above the nursing program, and associated with academics in general. Tell them about your concerns, and that you want to remain annonymous. The main campus is probably concerned about their rep, and they probably want their students to have a positive experience.
Good luck, and again I am sorry for what you are going through.
You and other students need to have a meeting with the Dean of your program.
I say Dean because it's the Dean that hires them.
Your state REQUIRES you to have a certain number of clinical hours that is part of your education. If you do not receive those hours, that is a violation of not on the "school" policy, but a violation of what the STATE requires for licensure.
The clinical instructor is getting PAID to teach...what she wants to do is collect a paycheck and do nothing for it.
She needs to be actively supervising you and she needs to do it before one of you inadvertently does something by accident that harms a patient.
I am lucky in that my CI is great, she seeks out experiences for her students in other areas as well as the day's assignments. I sounds like you have a choice to make. You need to critically think through this thing. On the one hand you don't want to make trouble for yourself by being the CI police. On the other you want the education and experience that you have a right to. I have been on both sides of a witch hunt before. There are no winners in a fight, only degrees of losing. If you decide to go to war on this, bring all of the ammo that you can carry. This would include your classmates and other nurses on the floor. I would start with a one on one with the department head. Discuss your concerns about not wanting to make waves but the need to do what is right. If you decide to go with the flow, I would NOT have this CI for another semester. You could just say that you would like to gain experience with other CI's to widen your clinical exposure or something like that. Based on your post, this must be deeply bothering you. I think I know what I would do, I would speak to the dept. head about it, but that's just me.
caliotter3
38,333 Posts
From what you stated in your original post, I would not talk to this instructor first. She will retaliate, I guarantee you. You have two choices as I see it: let it go and move on, or go above the instructor to the department head. Without support, your chances of favorable resolution are low. You could be placing your position in the nursing program in jeopardy by going this route. I am only warning you because I have witnessed similar occurrences and have been on the receiving end of retaliation myself.