Experienced nurses: What do student nurses do that drives you nuts?

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And what do we do that you like/appreciate? I'm kind of worried that just my being there (and sort of "in the way") will be enough to drive the nurses bonkers. Anything we can do to make it better for you?

Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.

i like students -- usually. but the students who already know it all are downright scary! after 33 years, i still learn something new every day. if you're a student and aren't learning, you're not doing your job.

i'll echo the chairs complaint. i'm getting older. i have back issues, knee issues and foot issues. i cannot stand for 12 hours, and i need to sit to chart. please don't offer my chair to the visitors, either. it's really hard to get it back from them and i look like a meany for asking.

i love students who know what they're allowed to do, know what skills they need to learn and look things up for themselves. i'm always willing to answer questions, but please make an effort to find the information for yourself rather than expecting me to spoonfeed it to you. that does nothing for your ability to find the information you need.

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i'll echo the chairs complaint.

well, a quick and stealthy retrieval of the chair when the student momentarily stands up, should solve that problem on the unit.

fall_out_of_chair_small.jpg

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Sherri, I just wanted to thank you for your post. I am a first year nursing student, just barely getting ready to go to clinicals, and your post really helped me know what I should and shouldn't do. Thank you so much!

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I love students :) They bring a fresh energy to the unit and my patients generally like the care.

What I would recommend (as many others have) is to spend as much time with your patient as possible. By doing this you are getting more out of your experience and less likely to gaggle with your peers. We all understand the gaggle. It is "safe". But when 2 or more are gathered it appears you are not interested and inevitably the volume increases, etc. You may be done with all you have to do, but pull up a chair and talk to your patient.... it is amazing how much they will teach you.

Hang out with your nurse, ask questions, and don't be offended if he/she can't answer all your questions in the moment. Please know that she/he has a zillion things going through their head and there is rarely enough time to get it all done. If you see this just save your questions for a bit and ask later if now is a good time to go over a few things you've seen. But DO ask questions! This is your time to learn.

Don't talk about the patient in front of the patient unless they are part of the conversation. As long as the patient is your first priority this will fall into place. By respectfully including the patient in your conversation you can talk about almost anything. Having said that, if something doesn't "look right" about their care, just wait to ask about it when you are both out of the room rather than scare your patient (ie, "why did you check vital signs before giving that med when the other nurse didn't".... not so cool).

See as much, do as much, and get as much out of your clinicals as you can. This is your opportunity to experience all you can. I never realized that once I became a nurse I wouldn't get to see a lot of the cool things I saw as a student. If I had it to do over I would worry a lot LESS about those care plans and a lot more about getting my hands into everything I could.

Good Luck to all the students!!!! Oh... and yes, stay out of the chairs and food never hurts :)

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* Be present. I mean be present in the moment. A couple weeks ago we had a group of students. 2 were in the nursery when they brought the new c-section baby in. Those two SN were leaning against the while, barely peering over their avon catalogs to acknowledge the baby. The nursery nurse called them over "Do you girls want to see what we do after the babies are brought to the nursery after a c-section?" (She had already told them what to expect. "No. We're good." The family can see through the large nursery window these two "nurses" rolling their eyes. Then one said to the other "Oh look. That baby is actually advanced for his age because his eyes are already opened. He must have been over 40 weeks." :eek:

[sherri

That is terrible, I can't believe that someone who is nursing school would act that way. I cannot wait until we do our OB rotation, who can resist a newborn baby?

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Specializes in CVICU, Obs/Gyn, Derm, NICU.

I love having students. But when you visit my workplace, please:

- Don't hog the chairs ....nurses station and lunchroom

- Don't hog the cake/cookies the person leaving (whom you don't know) has brought in for her/his coworkers to share

- Don't hog the newspaper in the lunchroom ...we love to read a little of it on our precious breaks

- Remember not to stand in front of staff receiving report ...they need to be able to see and hear the staff giving report

- Do not hog the computers at the nurses station ....and do not ask regular staff to log you in to the internet so you can surf the internet and print off copious sheets of research matter for your assignment

-Don't butt in before the nurse has had an opportunity to introduce you and seek consent for your presence at the bedside.

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Specializes in Cardiac Care.

I love the students we get. It's not been that long since I was in their shoes, and I remember the nerves, the anxiety, the fears... But I also remember those nurses (some of whom I work with now) who went out of their way to show me something, teach me something, or just ask me about myself. It's wonderful for me to be in a position where I can return the favor. The students are awesome. Their clinical instructor was my clinical instructor and I just adore her. She makes sure the students are exposed to as much as they can be without overwhelming them, and the students seem genuinely appreciative of the experience.

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Specializes in Medicine.

I like this thread.

Our school was very strict while we were doing our clinical rotations. We were forbidden to:

-Stand around in the nursing station, halls or anywhere for that matter (especially in groups)

-hog chairs (only allowed to use them when available)

-Talk in the halls

-Talk about nurses or patients in any inappropriate or unprofessional way (although it may seem common sense we were often reminded of it)

We were allowed to:

-Visit patients in twos (three at maximum depending on unit)

-Follow our school policy/practicum handbook informing us of what we can and cannot do. We had a printed sheet at the beginning of every shift telling nurses what skills we can and cannot perform.

-Look up information and then ask questions (And not a single nurse ever voiced any concerns with numerous questions)

My favourite one of all was: Our instructors always told us "There is never NOTHING to do: make beds, tidy up the medication room, tidy the linen area, take out trash in patient rooms, tidy up staff room, talk to patients, ask nurses if they require assistance, etc etc. Just don't stand around and look like you would rather be elsewhere"

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
* Be present. I mean be present in the moment. A couple weeks ago we had a group of students. 2 were in the nursery when they brought the new c-section baby in. Those two SN were leaning against the while, barely peering over their avon catalogs to acknowledge the baby. The nursery nurse called them over "Do you girls want to see what we do after the babies are brought to the nursery after a c-section?" (She had already told them what to expect. "No. We're good." The family can see through the large nursery window these two "nurses" rolling their eyes. Then one said to the other "Oh look. That baby is actually advanced for his age because his eyes are already opened. He must have been over 40 weeks." :eek: ~Sherri

That's awful! I feel sorry for the conscientious students in that group, because they will suffer from the deserved poor reputation their school will get, and which of our instructors didn't hammer into our heads the proper way to act as guests on someone's unit?!? Day-am.

Passing through the ICU on tour in large groups, makes me feel like a monkey on display.

Please have the consideration to bring me a bag of peanuts, I'm usually hungry.

:lol2: Do you prefer the students toss you the peanuts, or would you rather approach them and nibble the peanuts out of their hands?:p

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It's been said before, but I'll say it again. DON'T sit in the chairs unless you're absolutely sure there are enough (there aren't).

Bring treats. Not just on the last day.

If you really don't have any work to do, ask what you can do to help. We have plenty of ideas.

Use the computers only for looking up info about your patient. Try to find computers as far away from the station as possible.

Do NOT complain about how tired you are. Seriously, do NOT do this.

For the most part, you are a great help to us and we appreciate it. Thank you.

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Specializes in OB, L&D, NICU, Med-Surg, Ortho.
Sherri, I just wanted to thank you for your post. I am a first year nursing student, just barely getting ready to go to clinicals, and your post really helped me know what I should and shouldn't do. Thank you so much!

Aw!

Thanks :thankya:

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Specializes in OB, L&D, NICU, Med-Surg, Ortho.

Hang out with your nurse, ask questions, and don't be offended if he/she can't answer all your questions in the moment. Please know that she/he has a zillion things going through their head and there is rarely enough time to get it all done. If you see this just save your questions for a bit and ask later if now is a good time to go over a few things you've seen. But DO ask questions! This is your time to learn.

:)

This is so true.. but I want to add...

Yeah. We all went to nursing school. At one time we knew every tendon, every ligament. We knew every sign and symptom for each remote disease. Not anymore.

I know what I need to know to work on my unit. I work OB. I would have difficulty telling you how to manage a patient on a ventilator. I never do that. At one time I knew all the CO2 values and peep and whatnot. I haven't used that information since nursing school.

Please do not judge us as stupid if we can not answer all your nursing questions off the top of our heads. We look things up all the time! We use each other as resources. We use other DEPARTMENTS as resources! Just because we can't immediately calculate the appropriate BUN/Creatinine level of a patient with severe renal failure off the top of our heads doesn't mean we aren't good nurses. :)

Someday you will have a child who will hit 3rd grade and learn some obscure name for a part in a flower or some obscure person in history. When you have no idea what they are talking about, they will feel (for the moment) they are smarter than you. Rest assured, they have a lot to learn. Student nurses can sometimes be like this.

I do want to answer your questions, but I am NOT here to do your homework. ;) All nurses can learn from each other. Student Nurses, LPNS, and RNs. Out in the field you will find that what you learned in school is good, but the experiences you have are the tools that will shape your knowledge base.

Good luck!

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