how to make the most of a summer internship?

[futurecnm]

Hi all, I am at the end of my first year of a 2 yr AD program. I luckily got an internship (I say luckily because the competition was high and only 1 of 5 who applied got a job from what I heard). anyway I have 2 young kids and stay home so this will be a big change for 10 weeks this summer. It is a 32 hr/week position and I don't know my hours yet. For anyone who has been a supervising RN for an intern, do you have an recommendations for how I can make this a good experience for both myself and the RN who will be in charge of me? I have been told that the RN will have requested to do this, so hopefully it will be someone who wants a student with him/her. I don't want to make things more difficult, I want to be of help but also want to be able to ask questions. What can you suggest to not be a nuisance to the RN? I feel I am pretty independent and comfortable with jobs that are given to me. I love pt care and will be in med/surg. I know med/surg can be pretty crazy and busy but from what I've seen students can be helpful to the nurses on shift. I also know some nurses just don't like having students around. Anyone who has been an intern or supervised an intern I would love to hear your comments. Thanks!

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

Some people don't like anything, so don't worry about them. This job is for YOU to get the most out of the experience. That said, be attentive, leave the cell phone at home or off, ask questions, get rationales for why things are done that way, compare your assessments with other nurses, learn to transcribe doctors orders, listen listen listen to what is going on around you, volunteer to do tasks but don't let people take advantage of you. If you have time (and energy!) keep a journal that emphasizes something you learned that day. Even if all you learned was how to find the lab you learned something! This should be a great opportunity. Don't worry about the other guy.

[fbmom]

Listen and pay attention!! Ask questions if you don't understand something. Under no circumstances do anything that you are not qualified for. Work with the RN. My first 'extern' was amazing, we became good friends and she joined the staff after graduation.

[HHW2006]

I did an internship while I was in nursing school. It was a great experience. Make sure that all of the nurses on your floor know that you are a student and eager to see and do as much as you possibly can over the ten weeks you are with them. I found that by doing that the nurses went out of their way to involve me as much as possible in as many things as they could. The one mistake that I saw my classmates (also interns) make was to act like they knew it all - that is a huge mistake to make - you don't know it all and acting as if you do will only work against you. Don't be afraid to ask questions!!!!

Good luck - enjoy your internship.

[llg, PhD, RN]

Don't worry about the other guy.

While I agree with the advice given in most of the post quoted above, I do disagree with this last statement. Be considerate of the needs of your team members. Don't be too self-centered. It isn't all about you.

Students, interns, externs, orientees, etc. who think that the entire world revolves around them are usually the ones who are not accepted by the staff. That's to be expected as a unit needs a team of people who work together and support each other to function.

Your unit will have sick people who need help and a staff of real people who are trying to help them -- but who also have personal needs. Their needs are just as important as yours. Try to find a balance between meeting your own personal needs without stepping all over theirs. Learning how to strike that balance is one of the most important lessons you can learn from your internship experience. Each shift should include a few experiences in which you learn something or do something "for yourself." But each shift should also include some time during which you do something to help the other members of your team.

At the end of each shift, ask yourself if you have done some of both.