How many patients do student nurses have?

Tenebrae, BSN, RN · Apr 24, 2018

I've had 1st year student nurses at work this week. They took care for one patient with assistance from either myself, clinical tutor.

When I was a transition student (just prior to graduation) I was expected to be able to take a full patient load (4-5 patients) by the end of the placement.

Katlin1315 · Apr 24, 2018

Thanks everyone for the helpful comments!! I really don't want to give up on nursing because of my current experiences. I just didn't know if me not liking my current job equates to me not needing to pursue nursing. I like the patient interactions, vital taking, and charting. Just some of the other stuff gets to me. I'm not sure if this is the hospital I'd like to be at when I graduate(maybe on another floor would be better) but I'm grateful they have given me the opportunity to learn something new.

FolksBtrippin, BSN, RN · Apr 24, 2018

Techs have a very different job from nurses. And not everyone has to start as an overwhelmed tech. The nicu job will be less back breaking, if that is what is getting to you. Your patients will weigh a few pounds.

ItsThatJenGirl, CNA · Apr 24, 2018

I never had patients really, I had a nurse that I would shadow for the day, so I'd do what I could on her patients - feeding, bathing, vitals, med administration, etc.

Nick92 · Apr 24, 2018

As a nursing student I wouldn't worry about patient load. You will start with one patient, throughout the program the most you will get is 2 or 3 depending on the instructor. I know a few techs that went to nursing school and I believe they have an upper hand, especially in first semester. They have a good feel for how the floor works and already know the basics of patient care, charting, etc.

ruby_jane, BSN, RN · Apr 24, 2018

I like the patient interactions, vital taking, and charting. Just some of the other stuff gets to me. I'm not sure if this is the hospital I'd like to be at when I graduate(maybe on another floor would be better) but I'm grateful they have given me the opportunity to learn something new.

OK, so you're working in an area that is known to be uber-busy with patients anyway. You're also not doing nursing duties. Not that vitals, charting, and patient interaction aren't nursing duties, but your role is different. What's the "stuff" that you don't like? Will you still have that stuff in NICU? You might be happier in the NICU; I'd say give that a shot before you give up on the thought of nursing.

Medic_Murse, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Apr 24, 2018

Take advice from a former Tech. It is a thankless job can burn people out quick. Techs are expected to be jack of all trades and to be able to do 500 things at once, while assisting multiple people. There were days that we were so understaffed that I would be the only tech for the entire ER, in addition to having to run up to floors to start IV's, or run to radiology to assist with bigger or immobile patients (because they were short staffed). Don't get all big eyed and overwhelmed, you'll be fine. They aren't going to throw 4-5 patients at you at once, they'll ease you into it and the more comfortable you get, the more you'll take on, until you're ready to be cut loose. Though, for now, you are a Tech...a jack of a trades and a master of none and you will be darting around between those 12-20 patients. Just take this time to learn from the opportunity and trust me...you will learn a lot!

Lipoma, BSN, RN · Apr 24, 2018

I had 1 patient my first quarter. I have 1-2 patients (depending on the floor) during the 2nd and third quarter. For the final quarter, I am not sure how many patients we will have.

Ddestiny, BSN, RN · Apr 24, 2018

I think everyone else answered your question sufficiently. What came to mind for me in reading the OP was this: if you've moved to the hospital to get more hospital experience to help with nursing school, you might want to stay in Med/Surg....or at least some kind of floor with adult patients. I honestly don't know anything about NICU nursing or even that they utilized CNAs, but wanted to point out that the vast majority of your nursing school is going to be based around adult patients. The same goes for the questions on the NCLEX. Even if you never again touch an adult patient, you have to have this fairly large background in adults to successfully become a nurse. Having experience as a CNA in handling adult patients and their families might help to make you more comfortable when you're actually taking care of this population as a student nurse.

I'm sure experiences are different everywhere but I had difficulty getting even 1 pediatric patient during that rotation and most of my OB rotation was about watching, not necessarily doing much on my own. This may be different if you go into a program where you have a senior Capstone, AND if you're able to get into a NICU/Peds department for it.

In my hospital the CNAs tend to float more than the nurses do so maybe you could be a CNA in the NICU that also happens to float to places besides Peds, in order to get adult experience. Every hospital is so different. I don't know that I've seen too many Peds/NICU CNAs float to my floors when I've worked Post Surg or Critical Care so I question if we even utilize CNAs in this capacity. All just things to consider as you look towards the future. Good luck with your decisions.

MiladyMalarkey, ASN, BSN · Apr 24, 2018

I'm only in second semester/block of nursing school. But, like a previous poster said, so far my experience has been that none of these patients have really been "mine", they are the nurses I work with & I pretty much just help with what I am/can do and what she allowed me to do (she let me do everything I was "allowed" to do which was nice). I'm working a med-surg floor right now, my nurse had 4 patients assigned, she had to do something time consuming with one of the patients and she asked me to "keep an eye" on the other 3 while she did what she needed to do. I did. It was no big deal, I could only do so much. When they wanted things like meds, I had to wait for the nurse anyway so she could pull them and I could administer them. Had it been something I didn't know or a true emergent situation, I would've communicated with her or talked to one of the other nurses on the floor.

In first block we were at a rehab facility where the nurse had anywhere from 8-15 patients, but they also usually had a CNA working with them. We helped answer call lights and did what we were allowed to do which wasn't a whole lot at that juncture. I as a student, did not feel overwhelmed at any point, in fact I wish there was more I could've done.

Things may change once I get to my final semester, more responsibility, but I don't foresee them overloading a student with several patients. I think the practice we get on the floor is limited as a student, don't get me wrong we get to do lots and get basic experience with basic skills, but, don't believe we have near the load or responsibility you are worrying about, at least not in my limited experience. Good luck.

akulahawkRN, ADN, RN, EMT-P · Apr 24, 2018

When I was in school, (and they still do it this way) they started us off with 1 patient in 1st Semester. Occasionally they might allow a very good student to take on a second patient toward the end of the Semester. During Second Semester they start you off with one patient in the first week at hospital so they know you can do all the First Semester stuff without difficulty and don't need supervision for that stuff. Once that's done, you get two patients. Toward the end, you may have a week where you get three. It's a hard Semester because you've only got 4 weeks for each rotation as you do "Maternity", Peds, and Med/Surg. Third Semester you'll start with two and quickly ramp up to three. This is where you also get to learn a lot of your med/surg stuff and you'll also do a 4 week psych rotation, with two-three patients. Fourth Semester is basically just Med/Surg with various "spinouts" to other departments such as ICU or ED for a couple days each. You start with three and quickly ramp to four (full load). This lasts 10 weeks and then you're on to a preceptorship with a full load.

During each Semester and rotation, you do patient care plans. If a patient goes home or is transferred to another floor, your backup is to quickly pick another patient and do an abbreviated care plan right then. This happens frequently so you get good at adapting this situation. By Third semester, the care plans you're given will be very in-depth on all three patients you have. Then in fourth, they actually back off on the care plan depth because by then you know... so they just have you do an abbreviated one. Preceptorship doesn't involve care plans because you're following your preceptor's assignment, you don't have a choice and you don't know what you'll get until you get there. By then, if you don't know how to do a good care plan (and follow it) you would have failed out.

These days, I usually have a max of 4 patients, but can flex to 5 if all are psych. I'm an ED RN and all my care plans are in my head... just as they should be! I still loathe doing paper care plans, but they're great for teaching you what you need to do, think about, and to look for. In that regard, I love 'em, but that's the "teacher" in me, but that doesn't mean that I like actually doing them.

djh123 · Apr 25, 2018

I usually had one in clinicals, maybe helping a little with someone else, until my preceptorship, when the nurse I was under and I would sometimes split the load, with me asking her questions or for help when needed, and I'd help her with some of hers as well.