The school is a private school and this is what happened.
It was my last day of clinical (and last 6 months) and I was supposed to shadow a nurse in the emergency fast track (basically a department dedicated for non emergency care). When I was put there, there were no patients around because the department just opened. So what we did was just talk and after a while she started working on her paper work. This lasted for a good 20 minutes until our first patient arrived.
Unfortunately at this point, I was very tired and I came inside with the patient. Everything was fine, I told the patient I was very tired because I stayed up the night before working on a paper and that today was my last clinical. After that was done, the nurse again started working on her paper work. Again, I just sat there for like almost 10min.
Finally she got up, ready to give a shot to the patient, and I immediately followed her but she told me to stay. After this, she came back and that was the end.
We sat for another half hour doing absolutely nothing. I even went to every patient room to look busy and went to the bathroom to clean it but still I had a great deal of free time. I sat on my chair again, and again started looking very tired. After the shift finally ended my nursing instructor came down to relieve me.
Unfortunately, the nurse told my clinical instructor what happened. My clinical instructor was furious, and a long story short she than told the dean. And then during my clinical evaluation they failed me.
I still don't understand why. I was tired, that was all. They forced the nurse to write a report about what happened, and by force I mean the dean calling that nurse several times for nearly 2 weeks until the nurse finally wrote the report.
Under why I failed it stated because of inconsistencies in performance, and paper work. However, all my paperwork was fine. I passed with everything with at least B's. The same applied to performance. I argued and argued but no avail.
Last week the V.P. of academic affairs gave me my final appeal decision which was that the nursing committee decision stands. Her final decision is "had the POTENTIAL to put patients as risk".
This doesn't make sense. If I wanted to, I could have just told the nurse I am feeling very fatigued and I need to leave. We as nursing students have every right to do that if it may endanger a patient. But obviously that was not the case because I chose to observe that day rather than having a patient assignment, as did others because it was the last day.
I am furious. I want to sue under breach of contract, (nothing states I cannot come to clinical being tired) and being arbitrary and capricious in their decision.
Any advice?
What do I need to prove to win?
Please help.
Additional details
All charges against me have been false. From paperwork to performance (have weekly clinical evaluation forms that state I was performing well. I passed all paperwork as wel.
I was in the ICU earlier that morning, without incident. Under the watch of many medical personal. No one complained.
The nurse report stated "his eyes were closing, nodding off, and jerking himself side to side to stay awake". It does not say I fell asleep. Allegations which the department said I did.
I have other nursing students who wrote for me stating that they observed others being extremely tired to clinical. And displayed similar behavior themselves. But no consequences, because obviously it was a onetime thing. (Just like my incident).
I was never warned, it was out of nowhere. Previous landmark decisions in court have stated that students are entitled to be told of their inferior performance, in order to improve. I was not told this. And again documentation states I was progressing well.
Nothing is objective. Nobody say me physically sleeping. It's one nurse assumption that I was very tired. The school is interpretating the incident as me putting a patient in danger. Impossible seeing that I had no patient assignment.
So many people are dragging you down and pouring salt on the wound. One of the first things I noticed about your post is that you used the word "he". Let me tell you, OP, men that I have known in nursing school have it tough. Almost 50% of the males in my nursing class were treated VERY unfairly by the women instructors...my husband included. I dare say if a girl did what you did, she would have received a warning - not a dismissal. (I read from someone else's reply that a girl behaved much more poorly than you and was given another chance. And from personal experience in nursing school, the girls who were caught CLEARLY breaking the rules in various semesters were given more chances. The men weren't.)
Does anyone else's wrongs make his more right? Regardless of gender or status (I believe he was comparing his actions to CNAs), a student nurse is held to the same standards as an licensed RN. Were he to sit in front of the BON, I'm pretty sure his actions could only be defended with the NPA. And I don't know about your state but mine sure 'don't' operate under your pretenses!
I basically failed because "I looked tired". And that is a MISTAKE I WILL TAKE PART 100%. But I pray to God someone on this board does not state by looking tired, you should also fail. But than again I'm sure someone is.
Uh, again, "looking tired" is completely different from displaying objective behaviors that characterize the symptom you are describing. Call it tired, asleep, worn out, wasted, droopy, drowsy, overworked, haggard, debilitated, wearied, or whatever sounds best to you. The bottomline is that you made a choice, the night before clinicals, to stay up late in order to work on your paper. You've already admitted that you were sitting for at least fifteen minutes, trying to keep your head up. That's nine hundred seconds for common sense to kick in and present the possibility that you're putting lives in danger and your school's reputation at risk, simply being there. That doesn't take critical thinking.
I need to know which nursing school to attend. Because i just recently failed out of western boces and they asked me to return in march 09, but i'm afraid to return. I heard there is another nursing school eastern boces should i apply there?. If so, i would like to know all there is to know about that school, because when i heard about the western boces the information that i heard was not good, but i took a chance and attended and end up failing out of that school. So if you know anything or can ask anyone please i would like to know before i make the wrong choice again.
Specializes in telemetry, med-surg, home health, psych.
I actually saw the opposite way back when I was in school....the few (3) men in my class were treated extra nice and the red carpet was rolled out for them.....we were all so glad to have them in the class I can say honestly that they got preferential treatment !!!!!
Does anyone else's wrongs make his more right? Regardless of gender or status (I believe he was comparing his actions to CNAs), a student nurse is held to the same standards as an licensed RN. Were he to sit in front of the BON, I'm pretty sure his actions could only be defended with the NPA. And I don't know about your state but mine sure 'don't' operate under your pretenses!
Thanks for the reply.What is these gender issues all about in nursing/? Same thing is happening in NIGERIA especially UCH ibadan.I think male nurses should be treated like their female colleague .Thanks Adeosun:loveya:
Reading what happen all I can think of why they would take extreme measures is the fact that it was you "Last" day of clinical and at the point they prob would want you to have a deameanor of a nurse and may be thinking if he's doing that then is he really prepared....and if you are willing to travel theres some school in FL like BCC/PBCC and one other state univeristy(maybe it was JU) that will take transfer credits from other NUR schools
KEEP YOUR HEAD UP
-Dream-
Pls can I know more about the schools where you can transfer your nursing credits. God bless
I am so sorry to hear about this! I am currently on probation from my 2nd semester clinical, and my instructor said she was thinking seriously about failing me. It sucks, that having one bad day can ruin your future. My instructor thought I asked way too many questions one day, and that is why I am on probation. I can see if you put someone in danger, but that should have been a warning. Like you said, it was so slow and maybe you were tired, but does that give them the right to flunk you? It would be different if you were making tons of mistakes throughout the semester in clinical .
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Does anyone else's wrongs make his more right? Regardless of gender or status (I believe he was comparing his actions to CNAs), a student nurse is held to the same standards as an licensed RN. Were he to sit in front of the BON, I'm pretty sure his actions could only be defended with the NPA. And I don't know about your state but mine sure 'don't' operate under your pretenses!