How far in to the semester does/did your clinicals start?

Nursing Students General Students

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I'm very curious as to when you actually start clinicals. Was it the beginning of the semester, middle or end or even before the semester started like in the summer? I don't know how it works at my CC....I do know that we have to purchase uniforms for it....we only have it one day a week from 8:30 to 2:20....is this unusually long.....I see I'm going to have to get my feet and legs prepared.....lol.

Fatima

Our clinicals I believe start the first week of the quarter. On fridays from 8-12.

Julee

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Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.
Just curious as to how they start you in clinicals. Can someone set the first day at the first clinical scene? Do they just set you loose or is there so many people under one person? Is your instructor there with you? HELP!!!!! LOL Im scared, can a few of you tell me if you were as worried as I am, maybe your feelings before your first clinical as opposed to after? Like were they as bad as you anticipated them to be? What are some of the things they have you do in your first semester clincials? Mine will be 1 x week from 7a-12:30pm, so sounds pretty close to a few of yours. UGH....lol, the "unknowns" kill you, dont they??:uhoh21:

THANKS

Hiya RN2BinPA - where in PA are ya? :)

Many schools start their first clinicals in an LTC facility (nursing home). The patients are generally not as acutely ill as they are in the hospital, and it orients you to working with the elderly. And with the aging population, unless you end up working in peds or L&D, you'll deal with many, many elderly people, so this is good experience. It starts out with very simple, basic care - vital signs, a.m. care, and bathing/feeding/dressing as necessary. You'll never be at a clinical site without an instructor because you're working under his/her license. In general, there will probably be one instructor for every 5-10 students. It depends on how your school coordinates clinicals with lecture/lab, but I'd say it's likely that you won't give meds for a while.

As time goes on you'll most likely move to a hospital setting and gradually assume more responsibility for planning your patient's care and carrying out procedures such as giving meds, blood glucose checks, dressing changes, etc. You'll practice many skills in the lab at school before doing them "for real."

Hope this helps! I'm here to tell you that a lot changes in a year - you'll do things you never thought you could!

Good luck to all. :)

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Specializes in ER.

Our first semester we started clinical 5 weeks in at a nursing home. The first semester, clinical was only 4 hours a week. Then second semester onward we jumped right in, the very first week of class, with (HELLO!) twelve hour clinical days, 7 a.m. - 7 p.m., once a week.

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At my school we spent the first six weeks of first semester in labs learning the basic skills. We then went into the clinicals for the rest of the semester.

Just after finals of each class we receive our clinicals for the next class. We start clinicals the same week we start classes.

For my OB clinicals I had my first clinical day the day before our first class session.

For our clinicals we meet our clinical instructor at an assigned location and then she tells us what to do.

The first day is always an orientation day where we learn where things are and what we will be doing. We usually get a tour of the hospital and are given our ID badges and are told where to park then take a tour of the actual area we will be working in and we are shown where to find the supplies we will need.

The second day of clinicals on our instructors assign us work based on what we have learned.

My first day of working in clinicals in first semester we were paired up and sent down the hallway getting vitals and then changing beds and giving bed baths.

The instructors know what we are supposed to have learned and don't push us beyond what we should know but as our knowledge increases they expect more and more from us.

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hiya rn2binpa - where in pa are ya? :)

many schools start their first clinicals in an ltc facility (nursing home). the patients are generally not as acutely ill as they are in the hospital, and it orients you to working with the elderly. and with the aging population, unless you end up working in peds or l&d, you'll deal with many, many elderly people, so this is good experience. it starts out with very simple, basic care - vital signs, a.m. care, and bathing/feeding/dressing as necessary. you'll never be at a clinical site without an instructor because you're working under his/her license. in general, there will probably be one instructor for every 5-10 students. it depends on how your school coordinates clinicals with lecture/lab, but i'd say it's likely that you won't give meds for a while.

as time goes on you'll most likely move to a hospital setting and gradually assume more responsibility for planning your patient's care and carrying out procedures such as giving meds, blood glucose checks, dressing changes, etc. you'll practice many skills in the lab at school before doing them "for real."

hope this helps! i'm here to tell you that a lot changes in a year - you'll do things you never thought you could!

good luck to all. :)

hi ya mlos! i am in nwestern pa north of pittsburgh but south of erie. are you in pa also? yes, i think it did help. i just hate the blindfold, ya know. i can't wait until it is removed an i actually see for myself what all these ?'s i have are like. thanks so much. take care.

0 Votes
hiya rn2binpa - where in pa are ya? :)

many schools start their first clinicals in an ltc facility (nursing home). the patients are generally not as acutely ill as they are in the hospital, and it orients you to working with the elderly. and with the aging population, unless you end up working in peds or l&d, you'll deal with many, many elderly people, so this is good experience. it starts out with very simple, basic care - vital signs, a.m. care, and bathing/feeding/dressing as necessary. you'll never be at a clinical site without an instructor because you're working under his/her license. in general, there will probably be one instructor for every 5-10 students. it depends on how your school coordinates clinicals with lecture/lab, but i'd say it's likely that you won't give meds for a while.

as time goes on you'll most likely move to a hospital setting and gradually assume more responsibility for planning your patient's care and carrying out procedures such as giving meds, blood glucose checks, dressing changes, etc. you'll practice many skills in the lab at school before doing them "for real."

hope this helps! i'm here to tell you that a lot changes in a year - you'll do things you never thought you could!

good luck to all. :)

hi ya mlos! i am in nwestern pa north of pittsburgh but south of erie. are you in pa also? yes, i think it did help. i just hate the blindfold, ya know. i can't wait until it is removed an i actually see for myself what all these ?'s i have are like. thanks so much. take care.

0 Votes
Specializes in LDRP.

btw, my clinical day is a 12 hr day! but, its only for 6 weeks.

:)amy

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Specializes in LDRP.

btw, my clinical day is a 12 hr day! but, its only for 6 weeks.

:)amy

0 Votes
Specializes in Telemetry/Med Surg.

1st semester we started clinicals in the hospital after 6 weeks of training in nursing arts lab. Also had to go to LTC and day care facilities. 1 day a week from 8-3:00. I started out in orthopaedics, helping to get mostly hip replacement pts OOB. 2nd semester we were doing clinicals in the hospital on every other thursday & Friday--there I was on med surg. Third semester starts in August and it will be clinicals every week, 2x week from 7:30-3. A lot of reports and care plans to do.

0 Votes
Specializes in Telemetry/Med Surg.

1st semester we started clinicals in the hospital after 6 weeks of training in nursing arts lab. Also had to go to LTC and day care facilities. 1 day a week from 8-3:00. I started out in orthopaedics, helping to get mostly hip replacement pts OOB. 2nd semester we were doing clinicals in the hospital on every other thursday & Friday--there I was on med surg. Third semester starts in August and it will be clinicals every week, 2x week from 7:30-3. A lot of reports and care plans to do.

0 Votes
Specializes in Telemetry & Obs.

we had assessment and pharmacology first semester, then fundies second semester...

we started clinicals half way thru second semester, two days a week 0645-1330.

the first week we made beds, gave baths, got checked off on vital signs...with only three weeks to go we've given sq injections (we're on orthopedics, and a lot of those patients get fragmin), done sterile dressing changes, catheters, bgm, etc.

each week they increase the paper work...oy vey :uhoh21:

0 Votes
Specializes in Telemetry & Obs.

we had assessment and pharmacology first semester, then fundies second semester...

we started clinicals half way thru second semester, two days a week 0645-1330.

the first week we made beds, gave baths, got checked off on vital signs...with only three weeks to go we've given sq injections (we're on orthopedics, and a lot of those patients get fragmin), done sterile dressing changes, catheters, bgm, etc.

each week they increase the paper work...oy vey :uhoh21:

0 Votes
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