Just curious as to what a student might do or not do to warrant being failed during a clinical rotation.
If a student comes to clinical prepared, on time and eager to learn what things are the instructors looking for to fail them on?
And why are colleges so hard on students who fail the clinical. Can a person retry doing the rotation? Why are they automatically kicked out? And what if a person is on their very last clinical and they are failed? Surely the college would allow them to repeat??
I would like to know what NOT to do so I pass all my clinicals. I asked my college and their answer was so vague.
i will be honest i failed med specialty 10 days before graduation. the reasons i failed was i was going to take an accucheck an hr after i took the second one. at the hospital here that i was doing my clincials at they did accuchecks at 6am and 7am i was going to take it at 100 instead of 12 but once the teacher had pointed it out i took it at 1200. i wrote a bp upside down once i realized it was wrong had changed it but put it under eve instead of days. the final thing was i transfered a patient with scd on not worrying to much about them since she had 101.5 fever. i was more concerned about the fever. i was with the 2 other students who passed i failed because the pt was mine. the instructor walked in saw it said she shouldnt be transfered like that and walked out. the director of the program had also told me that i was probably passed because my father was sick and dying i have been an aide for 13 yrs. even though i passed the courses they still want me to take them over so i can prove that i can pass the boards.
the director of the program had also told me that i was probably passed because my father was sick and dying i have been an aide for 13 yrs. even though i passed the courses they still want me to take them over so i can prove that i can pass the boards.
Hmmmmm...so did you pass or not pass???? I find it very hard to believe you were passed just because they felt bad over your situation...every nursing school I have ever heard about, you pass/fail clinical and if you are failing lecture you automatically fail clinical, or vice versa....If everyone got passed based something bad happening in their life we'd all pretty much get passed.....If I misunderstood your post I apologize in advance & am sorry , please clarify if I am not understanding what you posted correctly:chair:
The only student I have seen asked to leave clinical actually had a couple of things going on, for example, she failed to alert her instructor or the nurse responsible for a really elevated blood pressure, just went ahead and gave the meds that were due, (I'm not sure why the nurse who had the pt. wasn't aware of the bp, if hers was elevated also or what) and then the next day she had a pt of mine who was having mega-ectopics, I reviewed the meds with her, she knew them all, we discussed why the were all so necessary, she left the nurses station with them, I found out an hour later the meds were not yet given, when asked why she said the pt wasn't in her room and she didn't know where she went, turns out pt was in the day room, if you have something like this, just find your nurse or your instructor, cover your butt at all times and in effect you will always cover your patients butt as well! Good luck and keep us posted!!!!:wink2:
The only student I have seen asked to leave clinical actually had a couple of things going on, for example, she failed to alert her instructor or the nurse responsible for a really elevated blood pressure, just went ahead and gave the meds that were due, (I'm not sure why the nurse who had the pt. wasn't aware of the bp, if hers was elevated also or what) and then the next day she had a pt of mine who was having mega-ectopics, I reviewed the meds with her, she knew them all, we discussed why the were all so necessary, she left the nurses station with them, I found out an hour later the meds were not yet given, when asked why she said the pt wasn't in her room and she didn't know where she went, turns out pt was in the day room, if you have something like this, just find your nurse or your instructor, cover your butt at all times and in effect you will always cover your patients butt as well! Good luck and keep us posted!!!!:wink2:
Ya..that student SHOULD of notified both the floor nurse and the instructor as soon as she saw the high bp....but in all fairness..the floor nurse should of been checking on the patient too especially if it was at the time vs are getting done...even if she looked at the charting where the vs are written down...My instructors go around continuously monitoring whatever we are putting on the flow sheets and sign their initials next to ours..and it's just basic commen sense to report immediately a reading of anything that isn't wnl I go to my instructors with everything even if it's something a hair off ..I'd rather go to them for a nothing than a big something that I didn't tell them right away....after all we are under their license when we are there:idea:
I personally always do my own assessment and let the student do theirs, I do work with people who just go by the student assessment alone, I don't really agree with this. I have had a couple of students who didn't understand why I would do my own assessment in addition to theirs, I try to explain that I would be the one to have to contact the md, write orders etc. I have only seen one instructor who was hands on with her students, the rest seem to disappear when the students hit the floor, wish they wouldn't do that! It would be nice if they could stick around to help with the students they (and me) are responsible for.
I personally always do my own assessment and let the student do theirs, I do work with people who just go by the student assessment alone, I don't really agree with this. I have had a couple of students who didn't understand why I would do my own assessment in addition to theirs, I try to explain that I would be the one to have to contact the md, write orders etc. I have only seen one instructor who was hands on with her students, the rest seem to disappear when the students hit the floor, wish they wouldn't do that! It would be nice if they could stick around to help with the students they (and me) are responsible for.
Then you are a great nurse!!!!I agree 100% on everything you mention...how scary would that be if nurses just took the students word for everything...and I am just a student myself.....I go to the nurse and my instructor for anything ..I don't care if it's the most minor thing either...I'd rather be over on letting them know stuff than not telling stuff that may be relevant ....
there were a few things i did that probably should have failed me...
-emptied a bedpan into bathroom sink.
i could literally see instructors' bp slamming through ceiling.
-had a pt w/wbc of 60k, and never acknowledged/prepped for implications when caring for him.
-got thrown out of locked unit in psyche rotation for enabling pts.
was moved to substance abuse/detox unit.
to this day, i still disagree with their proposed interventions.
in hindsight, i think that many students can become so anxious in clinicals, that they can't think straight.
i had instructors that just waited for one of us to bomb.
yet, if you repeat the same mistakes, i think it's a valid concern to instructors.
i was totally accountable for all errors made; except for that darned psyche rotation incident. (add: defiance isn't the desirable way to handle problems in ns)
I've known two people who failed clinical from my class:
One just seemed to have an attitude and it made her "unsafe" though she says that the instructor had it out for her.
The other was caught in a patient's CLOSET completing clinical papeerwork that should have been done before the day even started. She hadnt done anything care-wise for her patient, so she failed immediately.
Both students have an opportunity to retake the semester. After a second failure they would be out of our RN program.
That said, use your head, have a good attitude, be prepared, and you should be fine!
At my school it was pretty much just a toss up of who you'd get for a clinical instructor. There were two faculty member who just looked and prayed for any flub up by a student and each of them always managed to fail one student each clinical rotation. There were no written rules of what action or inaction by a student would warrant a failure; everything was left up to each instructor. Not so good 'cause there was one who let her students get away with everything; it was like being on vacation.
Another of my clinical instructors was the closest thing to a perfect clinical instructor. She was quick to praise us when we did something right and was on our rear-ends when we did something sub-par. She was able to quickly identify each students' weakness and then hone in on it in post-conference and work with each of us to develope a strategy to improve it. We would get brutal critiques and quizzed over everthing we did, but it was worth it. I feel that I owe every bit of my skill level and competence to her. She has been a clinical instructor with my for 13 years now and has never failed a student probably because she put the fear of god in all of us and we had no choice but to be great clinical students.
I'd ask around. Other students will tell you what their clinical experiences and instuctors were like. If you can choose (some semesters we could) get an instructor that will push you to be your best, but isn't looking just to fail somebody 'cause some of them are.
Most of the students who fail clinical in our program do so because of absences - they are allowed two for the semester. An absence is considered being tardy (as you are sent home), leaving early, or being out the whole day. I have had students fail because of unsafe practices - not checking name bands, look-alike med errors (that I caught when checking the drugs), not knowing their skills - these people were all given a second chance - some got their acts together, others failed.
Students do fail clinical..If you read the boards frequently, you will find threads saying, "Failed last semester clinical ADN or BSN program.." It does happen that students do fail..I should know because it almost happened to me..
There was only one person that I can think of who failed clinicals - and he deserved it.
I was in his rotation 3rd quarter of first year. He didn't bathe his patients, and not only didn't set up a tray for a blind patient, he didn't offer to feed him either! During post conference at 2:15, the nurse poked her head in and asked our instructor if we were supposed to empty foley bags. Um, yes. The student said he would do it at 2:00...well, it was a little past that.
They let him stay because he would be held up an entire year in school.
Second year, he wasn't so lucky. He drew and gave insulin without it being checked. That was the final straw.
deener618
16 Posts
i will be honest i failed med specialty 10 days before graduation. the reasons i failed was i was going to take an accucheck an hr after i took the second one. at the hospital here that i was doing my clincials at they did accuchecks at 6am and 7am i was going to take it at 100 instead of 12 but once the teacher had pointed it out i took it at 1200. i wrote a bp upside down once i realized it was wrong had changed it but put it under eve instead of days. the final thing was i transfered a patient with scd on not worrying to much about them since she had 101.5 fever. i was more concerned about the fever. i was with the 2 other students who passed i failed because the pt was mine. the instructor walked in saw it said she shouldnt be transfered like that and walked out. the director of the program had also told me that i was probably passed because my father was sick and dying i have been an aide for 13 yrs. even though i passed the courses they still want me to take them over so i can prove that i can pass the boards.