Informal Critical Care Clinical Rotation Survey

[TheSquire, DNP, APRN, NP]

I'm in my 5th of 8 quarters in a master's entry RN program, and the clinical rotation for the quarter is Critical Care, where we spend the entire quarter in the ICU. This isn't our last-quarter internships, Critical Care is on the same level as Med-Surg, Psych, OB, Peds, and Community Health. I've been talking with some of my classmates at the various clinical sites my school uses, and the consensus is that the hospitals and their staff didn't quite know what to do with us as we were expecting to participate as much as possible in patient care, which is apparently unusual for nursing students in the ICU. However, I was wondering if we really are odd for having a full rotation in the ICU, or if it's more that we are prepared to do more than most students in the ICU - hence this survey.

So, please reply with the type of program you're in (ADN, BSN, ABSN, Master's Entry, etc), whether you have a full clinical rotation in the ICU in your program, and what you're allowed to do in the ICU (if applicable). Any further comments are also welcome.

Program type: Master's Entry

ICU Clinical? Full Clinical

Allowed to do: Whatever our nurse and the institution's policies let us do

[caliotter3]

This was of interest to me since I did a rotation in the ICU, but it was not a regular rotation. It was my final "precepted" rotation and not easy to get. The ER was not easy to get for the final rotation either. We did what our preceptors allowed us to do. Of course they watched us like hawks. The school had a page of restricted activities, but as the nurses I worked with commented, I would never learn how to do anything if I never took the opportunity to do it. I agreed with them on that point. Have noticed lately that the programs I have seen around me have regular rotations through critical care. Just didn't have them where I was in the distant past. This was a BSN program.

[ukstudent]

Did an ASN, had a regular ICU rotatation. Only thing we were no allowed to do was titration of drips.

[Work in Progress]

I am in a ABSN program and we had one day of ICU observation during our Med/Surg II rotation. That was it. You can get ICU for your senior practicum, but they are in high demand and rare to come by.

[TheSquire, DNP, APRN, NP]

Two preception/internship stints in the ICU, one full clinical - anyone else?

[netglow, ASN, RN]

ADN, and I had 4 clinical days in one hospital ICU, and 5 weeks preceptorship in another. Got to do whatever, dependent on the comfort of the RN. Got to assist docs bedside procedures. Also was responsible to present interdisciplinary report of my pts () in a conference room, none the less.

[CuriousMe]

I had two clinical days in the ICU (we're generally in Med-surg, but spend several days a term in specialty areas).

I was allowed...well expected, to do everything I could for the patient. There were things that were new to me (art lines, vents, etc) but anything that I had done already was expected of me.