Considering Practical Nursing Clinical Instructor Position

[chaiteaRN]

I am looking into teaching Practical Nursing clinicals (full time) at a local community college. Anyone have input on the Pros and Cons of this type of position?

[CynicallyVexed]

the con.. these students will be working under your licenses and you will come across idiot students that don't need to be nurses and you will have to learn to be patient with them.

Pro... if you like to teach it's an easy job and can be very rewarding. PN's need good instructors, after all it is a crash course into nursing and the brave people that go this route in order to get into nursing need all the help they can get.

[chaiteaRN]

Thanks- I appreciate the input....

[nebrgirl]

Teach because you want to teach. Yes you need know your stuff, but if you don't desire to communicate it ---then it won't help the students, and you won't be happy.

[meluhn]

I taught in a pn program for about three months. I had a very bad experience but I think under the right circumstances it could be a nice job. I worked at one of those for profit technical schools that are kind of shady to begin with. They would admit anyone with a pulse and put up with any kind of behavior and would not kick any student out, even for being cauht cheating red handed.

One of my students started yelling at me in front of everyone at a clinical site. Nothing was done to this student. The administration would never back us up. Most of the students were ok but some of them had no business being nurses. I could go on and on but suffice to say there were some very innappropriate students that would have never gotten by in any nursing school I have ever been to.

There were positives though. The part that I loved was getting to wear nice clothes everyday and working normal hours 8-3pm, actually getting a whole lunch hour. Some of the units were a drag to teach but some were really fun. Some of the students had attitudes and some were great.

The main difference I found was that I was not appreciated. I went from a very friendly positive upbeat unit in the hospital where we were all friends to a place were I felt like I was the enemy. At least in the hospital I know my patients love me. As a nursing instructor, you are not always going to be at the top of everyone's list, especially around test time.

Also there were some race issues. I felt like I was judged harshly by the class who was mostly minorities, for being white. The eye rolling, snide comments and whispering kind of got to me sometimes.

[chaiteaRN]

I apppreciate your comments very much...good to know what challenges might present themselves...

[SummerGarden, BSN, MSN, RN]

the con.. these students will be working under your licenses and you will come across idiot students that don't need to be nurses and you will have to learn to be patient with them.

this is a myth and not true. no one works under another person license, especially not students! students have a scope of practice defined by their state's bon. thus, if a student makes a mistake and was properly supervised and guided, that student is accountable to the nursing school and possibly the bon. similar to a rn who must supervise licensed and unlicensed personnel, clinical rn instructors are only accountable for not properly guiding or supervising the student and can be disciplined if found guilty. how many of us went through nursing school seeing that happen?? i have seen some students do some really stupid things in clinicals and get kicked out of nursing school for their mistakes. i have yet to see a nursing clinical instructor disciplined for a student's actions.

[chaiteaRN]

Thanks- I really apppreciate the clarification on that......

[Ginger's Mom, MSN, RN]

Usually the pay is less than you make as a Staff Nurse. There are school politics ( different from Hospital Politics).

Pros: I found the students appreciative, hard working, and motivated. Some did struggle with the PN course which is very intense.