How can I make up clinical hours?

girlwith1eye · Dec 9, 2011

This is ridiculous. I missed hours because of huge personal issues that I was going through. Telling me that in other programs it means instant fail doesn't help. I really just can't believe there isn't anything in place to help nursing students in this situation, because I'm sure there have been countless students who have experienced the same problem.

I couldn't be more disheartened at this point.

Whispera, MSN, RN · Dec 9, 2011

Facilities won't allow you to come do most clinicals there without an instructor at least in the building. If the clinical was an observation experience, that's one thing. If it's a hands-on experience, no site would let you just come and be there. Besides, the school would have to approve it and there's all sorts of red tape.

Those who license nurses require so many hours of hands-on experience per specialty, for each student, in order to allow a license.

While it's a pain, and it's sad you had rough personal experiences during the semester, it seems you're going to have to re-enroll for the clinical course.

elkpark · Dec 9, 2011

This is ridiculous. I missed hours because of huge personal issues that I was going through. Telling me that in other programs it means instant fail doesn't help. I really just can't believe there isn't anything in place to help nursing students in this situation, because I'm sure there have been countless students who have experienced the same problem.
I couldn't be more disheartened at this point.

There are "countless students who have experienced the same problem," and most of them have failed, or withdrawn from, the courses. We've had people post here that they had to leave school because they missed too many clinical hours due to emergency surgery that they had. At some point (which varies from school to school), it no longer matters how legitimate the reason(s) may be for the missed clinical hours; if you miss too many hours, you're out.

The schools don't do this just to be mean; the state BONs mandate how many hours of supervised clinical experience in which clinical specialties are required for graduates to be eligible to write the NCLEX, and most nursing school schedules are so tight that there's not a lot of "wiggle room" -- you miss enough hours, and you're not eligible for licensure any more. Also, so many schools are competing for so few clinical sites these days that they can't just send someone to make up clinical days at another time; they are limited by the days/hours that the hospitals allow them to have students on site.

The last time I taught a clinical rotation, a few years ago, the students were allowed to miss 8 hours of clinical before they failed the class -- however, because this was a condensed summer term, the clinical days were 12 hours. So, if any of the students had missed one day of clinical s/he would have failed the course -- unless the person managed to come in for at least four hours of the day. (There were no absences from clinical in my group ...)

It's not that any of us are completely unsympathetic to your situation, but this is the way it is in nursing school. For everyone.

girlwith1eye · Dec 9, 2011

Well, I'm an LVN student. We don't do our clinical rotations at hospitals, we do them at nursing homes and sub acute facilities.

But whatever. I guess it's over for me now.

JustBeachyNurse, LPN · Dec 9, 2011

It doesn't matter whether your clinical rotations are at a hospital, nursing home, or rehab or sub-acute facility. All facilities would have the same issue, a clinical instructor from the nursing school must be on site for the rotations to supervise the student. The state BoN has clinical and theory hour requirements that must be met or a student is ineligible for to sit for the NCELX.

Did you try asking your instructors or checking your school's handbook? Some school policies permit the making up of clinical hours (whether for personal issues or medical crises) where if the instructor is available and the facility agrees the student can make up the hours by paying any fees and a hourly rate to the instructor (often $50-$65/hr).

Otherwise you could see if you could reenter your program next semester at the point where you had to drop rather than starting from the beginning.

In a previous class, a student had a major medical issue that resulted in significant time missed during clinical rotations. She was dropped, but since academically she was doing well and had done well in the clinical rotations she was permitted to reenter where she dropped rather than start from the beginning of the program again. Others who dropped/failed/were dropped had to start the program from the beginning.

x_factor · Dec 10, 2011

A lot of our clinicals are done at nursing homes as well. It doesn't matter. Yes, it sucks, but it's just the way it is in nursing school. The students semesters ahead of me that are now heavy into clinicals, I've watched as a few have had to drop out because something serious came up and forced them to miss clinicals. One lost a parent tragically and unexpectedly, another lost her entire home in a devastating fire, and another was diagnosed with cancer and needed to begin treatment.

Life happens, and not always the way we want or expect. I always worry that something will come up before I graduate that will force me to miss clinicals and have to restart the program. It would suck, badly, but I already know that's the rules going into the program, and it's a risk I'm willing to take.

Best of luck.

woahmelly · Dec 10, 2011

What are the minimum required clinical hours in your state for a student to be licensed? My program has about 200 extra hours built into the program over our state minumum. Are you still meeting the minimum requirements for the state? If so, definitely ask about alternative assignments (case studies, lab time, volunteering at a free clinic, etc).

Best of luck.

student987 · Dec 11, 2011

I am in a part time program our clinicals are 7 hours a piece. when we miss our first clinical we have to do a case study after that we need to either find another group to join or pay our insturctor to take us to clinical. however the school claims that they do their best to help. I missed my very first clinical this past semester (due to vomiting and not making any urine when I already have bladder issues so i needed to go to my clinic) so I had to do the case study never had to figure out how to make up more then that

student987 · Dec 11, 2011

What are the minimum required clinical hours in your state for a student to be licensed? My program has about 200 extra hours built into the program over our state minumum. Are you still meeting the minimum requirements for the state? If so, definitely ask about alternative assignments (case studies, lab time, volunteering at a free clinic, etc).
Best of luck.

200 extra hours???? that is crazy i cant remember how many hours my state needs for clinical but we are JUST at it and we do clincal 2 days a week how often are you there?????????

woahmelly · Dec 11, 2011

200 extra hours???? that is crazy i cant remember how many hours my state needs for clinical but we are JUST at it and we do clincal 2 days a week how often are you there?????????

Our clinical hours include community health - usually not done until BSN programs- (migrant clinic and health dept) and long term care hours which are on top of our in hospital clinical hours. Also, extra preceptor shifts over what the state requires. They all add up to about 200hrs over the requirements over the course of our program. I believe my state only requires 600hrs. We get roughly 790 hours plus 11 to 13 preceptor shifts (12hrs per shift) before we can sit the HESI and graduate.

Tae Boogie, LPN · Dec 11, 2011

I do agree with other people, if you miss more than a day worth of clinicals, it is hard to make up. At my school, if we missed clinicals, we have to go to a sim lab and do a packet that is about 8 hours worth of work (someone on here already mention it). We do have a make-up day at the end of the semester. So it would have been possible for us to make up at the most, maybe, 3 days.

You never mention what the end result was with the program. You said that the program director does not offer make-up, but you did not mention that you would be drop from the program. What are your other options at this point?

CT Pixie, BSN, RN · Dec 11, 2011

Allowed to make up clinicals? Really?!

We were alloted two missed clinicals. That was it..no ifs, ands or buts about it, no reason or excuse for it would fly. Missed 3..out you go, repeat that mod (comparable to an extended semester). Clincals started at 6:50am at 6:51-7:00am you were considere late and at 701am you were considered absent. You weren't even able to stay just to get the clinical experience! You weren't allowed to make up that absence in any way.