Hospital Staff and Student Relationship

[Carrie_MTC]

My experience as a student doing my clinicals in the hospital has for the most part been great. I've found that most staff members enjoy having students. However, this quarter I have encountered a nurse who is very difficult to work with. She makes it very clear she does not enjoy having us there. Last week was very frustrating I had 2 of her patients one was on bipap and had 14 10am meds and the other had 3 IV sites infusing and 17po meds at 10am. I was running very behind and somehow accidently recent the line for my cardizem drip. When I went to reset it, I didn't think I set it right because it came up differently than ordered. I went and found the nurse (who was at the nurses station on facebook) and asked if she could come take a look at it and make sure it was set right. She told me, "I'm sure it's fine, you looked at the order right?". She never came and checked the pump, I had to find another nurse to double check it. I spent so much time on the meds that I was late starting a foley cath, and a new IV. It was just so frustrating to me that I'm doing all her work busting my ass and she is on facebook. Then when you ask for help she ignores you. Has anyone been in a similiar situation. I feel like talking with my instructor but I don't want to look like a whiner. I dread going into clinical now because I'm afraid I'm going to be assigned to her.

[Shanimal]

It was just so frustrating to me that I'm doing all her work busting my ass and she is on facebook. Then when you ask for help she ignores you. Has anyone been in a similiar situation. I feel like talking with my instructor but I don't want to look like a whiner. I dread going into clinical now because I'm afraid I'm going to be assigned to her.

Yes, please tell your instructor. You are never a whiner for being a patient advocate, and what this nurse did (actually, didn't do) was clearly unprofessional and dangerous.

[kcochrane]

Both in LPN school and RN school I would get the occasional nurse or aide that did not want me around. It is better to just keep you instructor in the loop. In most cases the instructor can just avoid assigning someone that nurse again.

[StayLost, BSN, RN]

I used to approach my instructor directly or during post conference would tell the group the difficulties I had with my nurse and how I dealt with it-- and how it reinforced the importance of professionalism for the pt's sake. I often did my clinicals in magnet educational hospital, so they dealt with very little BS form nurses who didn't like students. My instructor would have a little word with the nurse and they would shape up real' quick.

I honestly don't know why nurses act like that! Maybe it has to do with the competitiveness of nursing school spilling into professional practice. It boggles me because I would love to have a student nurse to break the monotony of a 12-hour shift.