Need some help/recommendations following removal from nursing school

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Hello,

This is my first time on here so I will explain the scenario. I am a b- to a c student. I am very safe and proficient in my client care but today I was released from the program with the explanation "the faculty feel you are unsafe to practice at clinical". There is nothing on my record that even indicates I am "unsafe" with patients. There has been "concern" of my inability to connect dots at times but STUDENTS don't always connect the dots. I am a 3rd semester student currently passing all courses with a steadily improvement track record. Clinical evals in the past of yielded 90% or greater. I just do not understand it. How is "slowly" connecting the dots relevant to direct patient care? If schooling is building a foundation and the majority of our "learning" occurs in the hospital setting wouldn't all student nurses be "unsafe"?

Other evals just stated I am good and I need to continue working on the nursing process and incorporating what I learn into the clinical setting... One of them did state that at times I do not see the forest for the trees and I concentrate too much on the "small" stuff.

I have all the paperwork that illustrates this....

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Take in consideration that this was following our first clinical day that was hands on.

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Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
This came out of the blue? To be dismissed from the program, you should have been well aware of your situation when it became apparent that you were not meeting expectations. Steps for getting you up to speed should have been shared with you and you should have had periodic sessions with your instructors and advisors. Nothing should have been a mystery to you or sudden, right out of the blue. I would request an explanation and information as to your options. Can you return at a later date? Can you come back and repeat the last semester? Can you never come back? Do you know where you stand? Until you know what your options are, you will not have a clear picture to paint for any school you try to transfer to. Good luck.

This is great advice, dots are not connecting here somewhere. (here as in your situation, not trying to say you're wrong)

In my program, no one will be let go without knowing it's coming. Their are many steps taken before hand. Just like know one will go into Clinical evaluations and not pass without anything leading up to it and them being talked to and having mediation and stuff. Depending on what has happened determines the mediation. But this should have come out of the blue. I hope you get some answers. It's really crappy to go through all we go through to get into school and have something like this happen. Don't stop until you get answers!

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Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.
Other evals just stated I am good and I need to continue working on the nursing process and incorporating what I learn into the clinical setting... One of them did state that at times I do not see the forest for the trees and I concentrate too much on the "small" stuff.

I have all the paperwork that illustrates this....

Do they give you examples of this?

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For example:

My patient had diarrhea, b/c of kayexalate being given r/t K+ being elevated, which dropped blood pressure to 80/40 which my patient had uncontrollable HTN and regularly has 150-180 bp. At that specific time I chose to concentrate on the FVD b/c of this problem and they wanted the nursing diagnoses of altered mental status or something to do with mental.

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We are in a psych rotation; but on a med-surg/psych floor for clinicals...

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I can see where a psych rotation would require a psych emphasis instead of FVD. That should have been made clear at the beginning of the term. But still, I don't see how this one mistake could have deemed you unsafe for patient care and warranted dismissal from the program. Something does not jive here, at all.

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That is kind of my feeling too... The thing they told me is that I don't think like a "nurse" and I cant see the big picture which results in me being deemed unsafe in the clinical setting...

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But ABSOLUTELY no actions I have done has resulted in me being ruled unsafe. These 2 instructors have developed this thought that I am "unsafe" b/c I cannot see the forest for the trees. They said my brain is not wired to be a "nurse"..

Oh and on top of that, how can an instructor deem your unsafe without ever having a clinical with you?

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Well, no matter what the case, you should have had plenty of write ups requiring your signature. You should have had plenty of meetings with your instructors. You should have had many instances of written instructions to follow to bring you up to par. You don't describe any of this happening. I see no due process here. I would advise you to seek assistance from the student grievance committee of your school.

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That has already been done. I have not filed grievance as of yet b/c the department chair is trying to work this out before it is presented to the vice president of student services. We were taught to follow a chain of command before taking it to the "highest" authority...

This "whole" process just does not make any sense to me and frankly I just do not know what to do but to get a lawyer, which, has already been done..

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Academics.
That is kind of my feeling too... The thing they told me is that I don't think like a "nurse" and I cant see the big picture which results in me being deemed unsafe in the clinical setting...

I do have a tendency to believe you that this came out of the blue--and I'm usually suspect of only one side being given.

So, what do you do now?

I would say go talk to them...ask for specifics. Specific instances of when your decision-making put a patient in danger. Ask how this particular incident (focusing on FVD with a falling bp) deems you unsafe. Are not psych patients capable of having something else wrong with them besides their heads that needs to be tended to? Ask other faculty members that have been your instructors what is happening here.

This sounds very, very odd.

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