Soo yesterday I was told to follow my nurse around and help her out with anything she needs help with. I am doing clinical on a med surg floor...everything was going fine I helped her hang some piggy backs and mostly observed everything else she did. In post conference I shared my experience with the piggy backs and my instructor was like NOOOOOO you cant do that without me present
I told her I didnt know that and we were told to help out...
Today after clinical she told me that I might be getting kicked out of school because of it and shes sorry to do that to me. I left clinical in tears. I called my advisor and talked to her about it and she then told me I would not be getting kicked out of school I would just get a U for that day.
Anyway Im upset because we are in clinical to learn what the nurses do and to do what they do...how can we do that when we have to run and get our instructor on every little thing?? That makes no sense to me at all... and she keeps telling us we can do cna work without her being present, which I dont mind helping them out but I am in NURSING school and we are in the hospital for a reason. I just felt like this whole clinical experience was a waste of time because we are not "Allowed" to do anything. And the nurses are busy and want to get things done and move on to something else they dont wanna sit around and wait until my instructor is available to come and watch me do something when they can.
Maybe Im wrong but I feel like this school is ridiculous!
this is so stupid and i'm so sorry you had to go through that. your instructor should have made it clear from the beginning what you were allowed to do with the nurses.
what semester are you in? i'm in my last semester. we do all the meds, all the charting, for all 4 of our patients. we only need a nurse or our instructor in the room to give IV meds. we may be students but we aren't stupid- we can read the MAR, we can research what drugs do if we don't already know, we are weeks away from being nurses so it'd be pointless to have someone holding our hand at this point.
but i know how you feel about the CNA thing, it's been frustrating for me throughout my program too. i know how to change sheets, take vitals, i know how to give baths. i work in a hospital as a tech doing this every day and know that nurses don't do these things!! (except ICU nurses) hopefully it will get better for you and as the the time goes on you'll have clinical instructors that are actually interested in you learning. good luck :redbeathe
Definitely be cautious in the future. I was asked to do LOTS of things that I wasn't 'allowed' to do. Yes I was capable but everything in due time.
They can't have students going all willy nilly and doing procedures, and giving meds until they feel your ready. But it's one thing to be standing there handing equipment to your nurse while she hung a piggyback then you hanging and attaching it. Use your words carefully in relation to what you actually did.
Don't even TOUCH those meds. oral or otherwise unless your instructor has specifically said you, as in YOU PERSONALLY can do it.
You can help out...but don't touch the pumps. PERIOD.
We weren't even allowed to turn on or change the oxygen settings until Level 3 (last semester)....its' considered a med.
Watch for the tricky stuff. Your changing a patients disposable brief and the nurse says you need to put some lotion on the area...look at that label. If it's anything that has a hospital Rx label...you can't do it. That REALLY annoyed our nurses but it's a med...can't do it.
It's just for your protection. Go with it and be careful about what you do.
If in doubt don't do it.
In postconference...be cautious. I tend to keep my mouth shut unless specifically asked.
i work as a tech in a hospital, we put patients on oxygen all the time (it's pretty much standing order for all our patients that they can get up to 2L if needed) and put cream on them. that's silly that you weren't allowed to do that in school.
Like said before it is for patient safety though for us we have always been able to do procedurees/ give meds if either our instructor or our primary nurse was involved.
meltnpointofwax
189 Posts
this is so stupid and i'm so sorry you had to go through that. your instructor should have made it clear from the beginning what you were allowed to do with the nurses.
what semester are you in? i'm in my last semester. we do all the meds, all the charting, for all 4 of our patients. we only need a nurse or our instructor in the room to give IV meds. we may be students but we aren't stupid- we can read the MAR, we can research what drugs do if we don't already know, we are weeks away from being nurses so it'd be pointless to have someone holding our hand at this point.
but i know how you feel about the CNA thing, it's been frustrating for me throughout my program too. i know how to change sheets, take vitals, i know how to give baths. i work in a hospital as a tech doing this every day and know that nurses don't do these things!! (except ICU nurses) hopefully it will get better for you and as the the time goes on you'll have clinical instructors that are actually interested in you learning. good luck :redbeathe