Nurses that are rude

Nursing Students General Students

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At your clinical sites, do you find that a lot of the nurses are rude to you. How do they react when you come for clinical? Our students have complained a lot about nurses not helping and not showing them things. A lot of times they don't want you to do anything. I have had some of my best experiences with LPNs instead of RNs. As an RN student, we are suppose to follow a RN. I thought clinicals were suppose to get us ready for working as a nurse. Do you have any suggestions on how we need to approach the nurse in order to get a good clinical rotation.

jcthom, is it just one or two RN's that are causing these 'bad' clinical experiences for others, or the entire RN staff??

In my experience, there is usually ONE nurse that has a hard time with NS's at clinical. This may be because #1. They like to work alone, PERIOD!.... which I think is a poor excuse for rudeness....or #2. They are unsure of their own abilities and don't want anyone to observe their mistakes.

If the whole dept. is like this, can your class go to your instructor and dept of nursing and request a change to a different floor or even a different hospital??? Are the instructors and nursing dept at your school even aware that a problem exists, or is this just 'word of mouth' from other students???

Fortunately, I have never had a terribly bad experience w/RN's at clinical. Some of my fellow students did, but like I said, they were limited to one, maybe two RN's that were difficult.

If you haven't been to clinical yet, keep and open mind. Sometimes rumors are just that....RUMORS. And occasionally it's the NS that has the problem...not the RN. Also, what is the nurse/patient ratio at the facility? Unfortunately now, some RN's have too much on their plate as it is without having a NS to 'show the ropes'.

As far as how to approach the RN??? Be yourself..tell them what you want to see that day and ask if the RN will keep an 'eye out' for other educational opportunities throughout the day. Show a sincere interest and sincere desire to help. Don't act put out if you have to give a few baths or make a few beds.....the RN's absolutely will not respond well to someone that doesn't want to get down and dirty w/everyone else.

Keep us posted and GOOD LUCK IN CLINICAL!!!! ;)

Not a student any more, but when I WAS, if we had a floor/unit that was unhospitable/unwelcoming of students, we didn't go there any more. Same for a nurse who made it plain either by actions or words that she didn't like students. No one got paired with her. As far as the whole RN being ruder thing, well, I never noticed a difference. Didn't really pay attention to the nurse's degree.

I CAN say that for the FIRST time last week, however, I had a VERY RUDE STUDENT paired with me. I have NEVER encountered such a thing. She was just HORRID. Rude, mouthy, disrespectful. I put her in her place quickly, and I'm sure she'll now view ME as being 'mean,' but it goes both ways folks. After letting her know that her rudeness wouldn't be tolerated, I dropped her and let her instructor handle it. I always enjoy students and have gotten many thank-you's from instructors and students alike in regards to how I treat the students. This was the first time I'd ever encountered a student with such a nasty attitude.

If an RN is ugly to you and you don't think it's anything you've done, ask to be paired w/someone else. Most of us, however, enjoy teaching students and reaping the benefits of your enthusiasm. If it's just a problem with one particular nurse, and you're not the only student who's had a problem with her, you should collectively go to your instructor with concerns about this nurse so you are no longer paired with her. Same thing if it's the unit in general. If a unit is inhospitable, they shouldn't get the 'privelege' of having the 5-6 hours of extra help they get from students! Cut your losses and go to a unit that appreciates student help if you can. Go to your instructors, your Dean, whomever can change the assignment.

Good luck, guys!

All good points.

I have had several nurses be rude to me, but you have to keep in mind that they are already overworked, and underpaid. Showing us around (especially in the beginning when we dont know much) is just one more thing for them to do. They dont get paid extra to help us. Sometimes, they resent it.

I am also one of those people that likes to work by myself. I absolutely HATE working in group projects during school, because I refuse to let another member in my group slack off, thus lowering my grade, so I end up having to do all most all of the work again anyways (yes, im anal when it comes to something being done right, the FIRST time). However, when working with patients, i love the group approach, as long as I know I can count on my group member to all give 100%, and do it right! Maybe the nurses on the floor think that they will have to go back and redo everything that you did, and it will just take even more time to complete what they have already been assigned to do.

Be patient with them, we sure can help, but some nurses do not WANT our help, and we can not change their attitude. Keep your chin up, and take notes for yourself on the type of nurse you DONT want to be :) Even a bad experience can be a learning experience.

Good luck! Hope you find someone who appreciates what you have to offer :)

BrandyBSN

jcthom-

I, also, have had the unfortunate experience of being paired with a nurse who is "less than thrilled" to have a student - but, I have also had the pleasure of working with nurses that were thrilled to see us coming, as they knew we would be able to concentrate more on a couple of their patients, thus reducing their work load.

I had one experience that truly had me wondering. The nurse assigned to one of my patients was incredible rude and contradictory...not just to me, but to my patient. He was in a room directly across from the nurses' station and overheard her trying to "get me in trouble" (his words) with my instructor! Apparently, she didn't like the fact that I was not able to administer and IV med without my instructor present. When she came into his room, he told her, in so many terms, that if she didn't like what she was doing, find another !#*@ing job (his words!). She tried to tell him he did not have visitors (which I was present for their visit), and said that my opinion was not relevant, as I was just a student!!! To all this, I simply went about my tasks and avoided her like the plague until my shift was over. I did inform my instructor, and no other students were paired with her again. I must say that this was an exception, definitely not the norm!!!

Here's a suggestion for you that works for me: when your nurse seems to be less than thrilled to see you, go out of your way to be friendly and helpful, but not clingy. She/he may have had the worst day of her/his life, and the thought of teaching a student that day may be more than overwhelming. Offer to do all the tasks you can do without an instructor, and anything else that will be helpful. Kindness is reciprocal - give it and mostly you will get it back. We are there to learn, which also means we have to learn to put up with differing personalities (not everyone is Mary Sunshine!).

Look at this as a learning tool. When you are the preceptor, remember what it was like to be a student - good, bad, and everyting in between. I hope I remember this as well!

I'm not in clinicals yet, but I'm a unit secretary on a med/surg floor. There are several rude nurses.

Most of them I can blow it off because I know they're stressed. You can tell.

But there are those 1 or 2 that are just rude no matter what. They are NEVER happy. I know they're overworked and underpaid, but is it really my fault ALL THE TIME! SIGH.

--zan :)

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