Clinicals - - what to expect?

Nursing Students General Students

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  1. Student clinicals vs Real world application

    • 1
      Clinicals are much harder
    • 4
      Clinicals are much easier
    • 0
      Clinicals are pretty much the same
    • 8
      There's no comparing the two.

13 members have participated

Hi, everyone! My name is Liz and I'm new here :) I've been stalking the site for several months to try and get information every time I have a question and usually that works, but I figured it would be even better if I just joined and got involved.

I was hoping that maybe a 2nd year student, or even a 1st year student, could help me. I'm trying to get a bit ahead of the game and know what to expect. I'm incredibly nervous about clinicals. I mean, I have one class all morning and a little into the afternoon, but then it's straight to clinicals. I would love to know what to expect out of clinicals. Do we get thrown into the lions den and have to teach ourselves or do we usually get some parts of clinicals taught in class and then use those skills after? I don't know why I'm so worried that we're going to be released into the unknown with no help, especially when I know that won't happen. But my mind tends to run off without me sometimes and all of a sudden I'll be fretting about something just like this.

So if any of you fellow RN's or nursing students, etc, want to help a girl out and help me know what to expect on my first day that would be great! I would greatly appreciate it. :) Thank you!!

In my program, everyone is required to take a basic nursing skills course (basically a CNA course) before being accepted into the program. So in first semester's clinicals we were expected to be able to do all of those basic skills from day one (baths, vitals, toileting, transfers, etc.) In our first semester we learned physical assessments, non-parenteral and parental meds (including all types of injections), catheterizations, NG insertion/removal and NG/PEG meds/feedings, and (basic) wound care. They put all of our checkoffs in the first 6 weeks or so of the semester and as we were checked off on a skill in lab, we were from then on allowed to do it in clinicals. Every program is different, but you'll never be thrown into a patient's room alone to do something you don't know how to do - nor should you be. Now not knowing how to do something and being nervous about doing something are different things. Most people in my clinical group felt very much out of their comfort zone quite a bit during the semester, but that's how you learn and grow!

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