Drunk and high students at clinical

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Hey so I'm having a bit of a moral dilemma. So basically, today was our last day of clinical for the semester and everyone but my friend and I were either drunk or high when they came into clinical today. The clinical instructor we have is kind of oblivious to everything and didn't notice. The issue I'm having is that this is at least the 2nd time they have done this and I've heard that people in other groups have also been having this issue. I'm upset because the clinical instructor did nothing about it and their behavior is both irresponsible and dangerous.

I want to email one of the chairs of our school to just give them a heads up, without any names, that this is going on, but I'm afraid of what might happen. I'm not doing so hot with my grades and I'm worried they might be affected by this. I'm just upset because these girls are going to get passed along with better grades then me, when they are coming to clinical intoxicated.

I don't know what to do. Help.

I wouldn't say anything because you would be just as negligent by knowing that these people were giving direct patient care and not saying anything. In hindsight I hope you know that.

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Next time and hopefully there won't be one but you need to protect the patients and tell immediately

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What did you do at the time to make your instructor aware? After the fact, why bother? You should be spending your attention and energies on passing your classes. Let the other students tend to their own business.

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Specializes in Emergency Department.

OP: YOU had a duty to report this stuff to your CI immediately as does your friend once you heard about this. You didn't do that. At this point, if you report this, you'll only come off looking like someone who has an axe to grind about the other people in your clinical group. Why? You have no proof so you'll appear to be making baseless accusations. Not a good place to be. The fact that you didn't report it at the time brings up other issues already covered above.

Keep your nose out of this one and if you see it happen ever again, report it right then.

Another possibility that you may not be aware of is that if this behavior is actually true, it may have been noticed by the nursing staff on that floor and they may have reported it already, including names of the guilty.

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Honestly, I was just so freaked to see people show up like that to clinical that I didn't know what to do. I'm new at this whole nursing thing so I just had no clue as to what to do. I hope the nurses on the unit noticed. This isn't sour grapes, but you have to admit, passing the kids who are drunk at clinical and failing the ones who aren't is a little messed up. I hope something is done. Those girls were a mess all day and we were on a Labor and Delivery and postpartum unit. They were holding other people's babies! I guess I know to go right to my instructor next time

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Honestly, I was just so freaked to see people show up like that to clinical that I didn't know what to do. I'm new at this whole nursing thing so I just had no clue as to what to do. I hope the nurses on the unit noticed. This isn't sour grapes, but you have to admit, passing the kids who are drunk at clinical and failing the ones who aren't is a little messed up. I hope something is done. Those girls were a mess all day and we were on a Labor and Delivery and postpartum unit. They were holding other people's babies! I guess I know to go right to my instructor next time

Yes, this does look like 'sour grapes'. Your instructors aren't passing the drunk 'kids' and failing the sober ones; they are passing the students who are successful in their classes and failing the ones who are not. It's also odd to me that you say you are "new at this whole nursing thing so I just had no clue as to what to do". As a college-aged student, enrolled in a professional career curriculum, and having had the basics of ethics and academic integrity explained to you at the get-go (orientation, I'm sure), you should have known exactly what to do, if it was really happening just as you say so here.

I am struggling to believe, personally, that the entire clinical class was either drunk or high (except for you and your friend, of course) and these visibly impaired students were NOT noticed by the clinical instructor to be impaired, NOT noticed by the nurses to be impaired, NOT noticed by the CNAs to be impaired, NOT noticed by...well, ANYONE in the hospital to be impaired, not from the time they entered the lobby until the time they left the facility. Only you and your friend noticed this rather remarkable set of circumstances, an entire group of students (On Maternity, no less??) who were so clearly intoxicated or drugged, but NO ONE ELSE saw this? No mothers of those babies the students were holding?

I'm also having a hard time imagining a unit full of new mothers, fathers, grandparents, visitors ALL completely oblivious to the drunk student staggering with their newborn.....or the drugged-out student answering their call bells.

And ALL of these drunk, druggie students are successfully passing their classes AND clinicals, but on THIS ONE DAY, first thing in the morning.....they are all wasted?

Very, very strange indeed.

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Yes, this does look like 'sour grapes'. Your instructors aren't passing the drunk 'kids' and failing the sober ones; they are passing the students who are successful in their classes and failing the ones who are not. It's also odd to me that you say you are "new at this whole nursing thing so I just had no clue as to what to do". As a college-aged student, enrolled in a professional career curriculum, and having had the basics of ethics and academic integrity explained to you at the get-go (orientation, I'm sure), you should have known exactly what to do, if it was really happening just as you say so here.

I am struggling to believe, personally, that the entire clinical class was either drunk or high (except for you and your friend, of course) and these visibly impaired students were NOT noticed by the clinical instructor to be impaired, NOT noticed by the nurses to be impaired, NOT noticed by the CNAs to be impaired, NOT noticed by...well, ANYONE in the hospital to be impaired, not from the time they entered the lobby until the time they left the facility. Only you and your friend noticed this rather remarkable set of circumstances, an entire group of students (On Maternity, no less??) who were so clearly intoxicated or drugged, but NO ONE ELSE saw this? No mothers of those babies the students were holding?

I'm also having a hard time imagining a unit full of new mothers, fathers, grandparents, visitors ALL completely oblivious to the drunk student staggering with their newborn.....or the drugged-out student answering their call bells.

And ALL of these drunk, druggie students are successfully passing their classes AND clinicals, but on THIS ONE DAY, first thing in the morning.....they are all wasted?

Very, very strange indeed.

Totally agree, I just didn't want to say it.

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Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
Yes, this does look like 'sour grapes'. Your instructors aren't passing the drunk 'kids' and failing the sober ones; they are passing the students who are successful in their classes and failing the ones who are not. It's also odd to me that you say you are "new at this whole nursing thing so I just had no clue as to what to do". As a college-aged student, enrolled in a professional career curriculum, and having had the basics of ethics and academic integrity explained to you at the get-go (orientation, I'm sure), you should have known exactly what to do, if it was really happening just as you say so here.

I am struggling to believe, personally, that the entire clinical class was either drunk or high (except for you and your friend, of course) and these visibly impaired students were NOT noticed by the clinical instructor to be impaired, NOT noticed by the nurses to be impaired, NOT noticed by the CNAs to be impaired, NOT noticed by...well, ANYONE in the hospital to be impaired, not from the time they entered the lobby until the time they left the facility. Only you and your friend noticed this rather remarkable set of circumstances, an entire group of students (On Maternity, no less??) who were so clearly intoxicated or drugged, but NO ONE ELSE saw this? No mothers of those babies the students were holding?

I'm also having a hard time imagining a unit full of new mothers, fathers, grandparents, visitors ALL completely oblivious to the drunk student staggering with their newborn.....or the drugged-out student answering their call bells.

And ALL of these drunk, druggie students are successfully passing their classes AND clinicals, but on THIS ONE DAY, first thing in the morning.....they are all wasted?

Very, very strange indeed.

This. This times ten.

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Specializes in Prior military RN/current ICU RN..

If your grades suck stop posting on here and go study. Next time you have a concern on the unit you tell the clinical instructor immediately.

Go study.

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Cali and OC: LOL, yeah, I'm not terribly shy about saying what I think...! :ninja:

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Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.
Yes, this does look like 'sour grapes'. Your instructors aren't passing the drunk 'kids' and failing the sober ones; they are passing the students who are successful in their classes and failing the ones who are not. It's also odd to me that you say you are "new at this whole nursing thing so I just had no clue as to what to do". As a college-aged student, enrolled in a professional career curriculum, and having had the basics of ethics and academic integrity explained to you at the get-go (orientation, I'm sure), you should have known exactly what to do, if it was really happening just as you say so here.

I am struggling to believe, personally, that the entire clinical class was either drunk or high (except for you and your friend, of course) and these visibly impaired students were NOT noticed by the clinical instructor to be impaired, NOT noticed by the nurses to be impaired, NOT noticed by the CNAs to be impaired, NOT noticed by...well, ANYONE in the hospital to be impaired, not from the time they entered the lobby until the time they left the facility. Only you and your friend noticed this rather remarkable set of circumstances, an entire group of students (On Maternity, no less??) who were so clearly intoxicated or drugged, but NO ONE ELSE saw this? No mothers of those babies the students were holding?

I'm also having a hard time imagining a unit full of new mothers, fathers, grandparents, visitors ALL completely oblivious to the drunk student staggering with their newborn.....or the drugged-out student answering their call bells.

And ALL of these drunk, druggie students are successfully passing their classes AND clinicals, but on THIS ONE DAY, first thing in the morning.....they are all wasted?

Very, very strange indeed.

This pretty much sums it up...I don't think anything else needs to be added :sneaky: BUT I will say to the OP that one of the aspects of nursing is advocacy; what you did was basically, to many posters, allow unsafe behavior to commence without intervening or speaking up.

I also find it strange that 80 percent of your group was intoxicated and the two sober students allowed it to happen. :facepalm:

No bueno. :no:

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Maybe they went out drinking the night before. That would explain the girl puking. And also why nobody noticed them being intoxicated at clinicals (because they weren't).

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