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.
