I am not sure if it is true or not, but I heard that RNs get a little extra pay when they work on a day where nursing students are present. If the charge RN assigned a student to an RN, then they get the extra pay.
I am talking about college nursing students not training a new employee.
It just came on top of my head because I have been assigned to lousy RNs during my clinical rotations and it feels like they should be more engaged with students
With that being said, our program requires us to tell the nurse exactly what we can/can't do during our shift. We do this in writing on a standardized form supplied by the school, and also with our mouths, haha. And our CI (plus school-affiliated medication assistant--an RN who's not a professor but a skills/meds person) must be present for all skills, non-"business-as-usual" patient situations, and IV stuff besides flushing--they are present for IV starts, IVP, IVPB and any/all PICC line stuff.
Seriously, if I even ASSESSED a PICC line without my instructor or med assist, she'd probably teleport herself the the patient's room. They are ALWAYS accessible via text message, which I feel compelled to explain to any nurse who sees me on my phone during clinical.
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
I don't know how the nurses here can say it any more plainly:
1)They don't hate teaching when they have time. In fact, many nurses LOVE teaching.
2)Unfortunately, when they've been given too many patients or patients who are too sick, having a student becomes yet another burden on an already burdened individual. This is STRESSFUL.
3)They are stressed out, overburdened, feeling bad that they may not be able to give attention to the student no one asked them if they could take on, and now the student's CI has dumped them off and disappeared.
4)Nurse is now REALLY stressed out. She may internalize this (ulcers) or she may display her frustration in front of the student, who may or may not understand it's not about HER but about the situation.
OR:
5)Student understands, feels bad, and makes the best of it. Both nurse and student feel bad for the other.
OR
6)Student talks about the "lousy nurse" within hearing distance, or gives attitude on nursing message boards and doesn't get why the nurse doesn't appreciate how the student has made her day SOO much easier! Student thinks nothing about the fact that her CI has abandoned her responsibility and foisted it on the nurse, who has NO RELATIONSHIP WHATSOEVER with the school.
and Finally:
7)You really need to believe us when we say that having a student adds to our responsibilities. It in no way is a "HELP" if we are actually teaching.
If in doubt about how most nurses feel about students, just read points #1 and *7 over and over.
The most problematic thing about this post is that I can only "LIKE" it once.
The second most problematic thing is that students will read it, dismiss it as "NETY" and go on complaining about how nurses fail to appreciate how helpful they are.
Were you too not a nursing student once? Who taught you? Yes you are busy we as students get that. I'm so tired of hearing about how terrible it is to have to have us nursing students on your shift! We are there to learn and we are eager to learn just like you were when you were a student! Every day nurses are complaining about being short handed. Quit acting like having an extra person there to teach is such a big deal. It does not take that much effort to explain what your doing whe your doing it!
I would like to preface this by saying I am the first nurse to volunteer to take students. I enjoy teaching HOWEVER, what you are naively failing to understand is that while your clinical group prances out the door at 1415....I will have to bust my a$$ to get caught up on charting and all the little minute tasks placed on me so that I can be out the door by 1930 and not get in trouble for overtime. It does take effort to explain things as we are generally doing several tasks at once. I guess I am not as efficient as you.
Specializes in Mental Health, Gerontology, Palliative.
Were you too not a nursing student once? Who taught you? Yes you are busy we as students get that. I'm so tired of hearing about how terrible it is to have to have us nursing students on your shift!
When I have care for 35 patients, including med pass, wound care, palliative care, its a pain in my but having to have students. Fortunately students in my facility are well supported with a clinical tutor.
We are there to learn and we are eager to learn just like you were when you were a student! Every day nurses are complaining about being short handed.
When I have care for 35 patients, and am two health care assistants down yes, its a wonderful help having students. If they are competent. If they require baby sitting for the smallest of tasks, they arent really all that much help
Quit acting like having an extra person there to teach is such a big deal. It does not take that much effort to explain what your doing whe your doing it!
Quite acting so damm entitled.
Sometimes its not a case of an effort to explain what I'm doing. Its a case of it not being appropriate. These are real people and their families, they arent text book examples and manikins
When my patient has just died and I'm in comforting the family and performing final cares for their loved one, its not appropriate for me to be giving a student a blow by blow account of what I'm doing. If I can explain to you what I'm doing I will. If I cant or dont think its appropriate to have another face involved in the situation then you will need to wait
Sometimes, the patient actually doesnt need the nurse to be in their blathering away.Its the art of just being.
So take the opportunities as they arise and accept the fact that sometimes as much as you want to see whats going on, it may simply not be appropriate at the time
I am not sure if it is true or not, but I heard that RNs get a little extra pay when they work on a day where nursing students are present. If the charge RN assigned a student to an RN, then they get the extra pay.
I am talking about college nursing students not training a new employee.
It just came on top of my head because I have been assigned to lousy RNs during my clinical rotations and it feels like they should be more engaged with students
I smell bully...I think many of posters forgot they were once students...How about when they wash off at least 2-3 of your patients...Besides, majority of students are humble (at least, they try/pretend to be) bc most of them have feat of being told on (many of instructors are the definition of the word "mean" or "bully"...And, on each units, you see bully nurses here and there...Just so you know I work with students, and love teaching them, AND, alway happy to have them because of their help...In return, I teach them...
Specializes in Mental Health, Gerontology, Palliative.
Students, I just want you to understand this:
Nurses don't resent the students, they resent the sense of entitlement SOME students are displaying. We are NOT there for YOU.
And don't play that nurses are saints and supposed to be giving and altruistic crap. No, we're humans, and we are caring and compassionate, only just to our patients, and even then we get paid for that. We don't have a duty to be that way towards anyone else unless we want to.
And another point is this: nurses aren't saying that they're not going to teach you, they're just saying they will try to if they're not too busy. They don't have to, but they will try if time permits.
And yes, having a student can suck for the nurse when their patient load is crappy. And we are allowed to say this? Yes, because it's the truth. Don't say it's not that bad or it's not that hard, why can't you teach still? Are you a nurse yet? No, so you don't know. We are saying the situation sucks, not you as a student suck, so for crying out loud stop taking it so damn personally and crying NETY.
Many of the nurses here would love to teach if conditions were better. In fact if you read anything from this forum, you will learn a ton from the nurses here, why? They have the time to post and teach at their leisure. Do we have that at work with our patient loads? Not always. Which is why WE WILL TEACH YOU WHEN WE HAVE TIME, SO STOP ACTING LIKE YOURE ENTITLED TO IT.
Well, that escalated quickly. Enjoy!
I love you. In a purely professional I think you are awesome kind of way:yes:
Specializes in Early Intervention, Nsg. Education.
OP:
If you'd like a little taste of how it is on the other side, I suggest a little exercise. The next time you're cooking a big meal for your family or involved in a complex home improvement project- invite a four year old to 'help' you.
^^^^^. The BEST analogy I've read in at least a year. Meanmaryjean wins the internets!
Bedside nursing is not the way it was when I was a student mumble mumble years ago. I'm not providing direct care anymore for health reasons, but I do get a chance to speak with students several times a year as a guest lecturer. For students of the 2 local LPN and 3 local RN programs with which I'm peripherally involved (meaning "please take this with a grain of salt"), the CI:SN ratios mirror the rising Nurse:patient ratios occurring on the floors. It's a recipe for disaster, and RN, SN, and patient end up frustrated, angry, or worse.
When I worked in Early Intervention/Birth to Three, I had nursing students tag along with me. We had med students observe many multi-disciplinary developmental assessments, as well. The students got a chance to observe normal and abnormal development, talk to family members and caregivers, and from time to time, have an opportunity to get their hands on some itty bitties to elicit reflexes. They had a chance to see how families cope with medically fragile babies once they leave the hospital, and how difficult it can be for a parent to care for a former micro-preemie and perhaps a toddler or two at the same time. For even more learning opportunities, browse the school nursing, private duty, and home health forums.
It really frosts my cookies when I hear about students who end up spending their pedi rotations sitting in the conference room (or holding up a wall) when there are some really good places to do pedi rotations in the community. This isn't the students' fault. I'd like to know why some clinical sites are inundated with students, while so many other experiences are overlooked by the schools. When I was making skilled HH visits, I was really pressed for time, so that may not have worked as well. However, in EI, I spent 60, 90, sometimes even 120 minutes in one home, and I could give the child and family 100% of my attention. It was an incredible opportunity for students to learn about child development, complications of prematurity, congenital malformations and diseases, and the aftermath of domestic violence, poverty, neglect, etc. Much better than holding up a wall, waiting for the minutes on the clock to tick by.
I smell bully...I think many of posters forgot they were once students...How about when they wash off at least 2-3 of your patients...Besides, majority of students are humble (at least, they try/pretend to be) bc most of them have feat of being told on (many of instructors are the definition of the word "mean" or "bully"...And, on each units, you see bully nurses here and there...Just so you know I work with students, and love teaching them, AND, alway happy to have them because of their help...In return, I teach them...
The last 2 students assigned to me refused to do bathing and toileting. They informed me that they were there to do "nursing stuff"-their words, not mine! I let the CI know. Her response was a shrug and walking off. Wow! These were 1st semester SRNs, and were assigned to me, not any particular resident...I have been a CI, so I love to teach, but attitudes by many students are of pure entitlement and very know-it-all as of late. This last semester, my facility ended it's agreement with the schools because of this. We had too many resident/family c/o d/t attitudes. Even the medical director said a couple of SRNs had told him how he should do his job or what orders he should write. Yikes!
For God's sake, stop talking in "we (RNs) vs students" kind of attitude...Many of these students, will be your colleagues in less than a year...Would you be able to address them like this again?...He'll, NO...I Loooove my job.. But, I hate the the fact that many nurses have been portraying the image of BULLY...BICHARY...to the public or students, which by the way, is one of the main reason we are underpaid/undervalued....Sooo many nasty things in this profession.
Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.
The horse is dead, for sure. The entitlement of the students here is astounding. My how nursing school and the ones going through it, have changed. The CI's must love having us do their jobs for them. So wrong. Glad I am in a specialty that there are no clinical rotations for students. I don't have to deal with the attitudes and the laziness of their clinical instructors. Saw a lot of this in the hospital, for sure.
Good luck, and I mean it, to all the students who are there to learn and have the right attitudes. I wish you all the best. The rest are in for a real eye-opening when they become RNs themselves.
FlyingScot, RN
2,016 Posts
Are they not on the floor with you?!!!