Never wanna take students again.

[remotefuse]

I totally get it now. As a student, I thought it would be great having students around, but after last week, I don't think I even wan to take students EVER!

Granted, I've been on the floor around 9 months, and shouldn't even take students, the students are assigned to individual pts and not the nurse.

I had a LPN in a LPN-RN program. Within 5 mins, she shares that she has been a nurse for 20 years and doesn't see the point of being here. She helped me do a dressing change on a pt with an stage 4 ulcer on the coccyx. While lifting her, I tell her not to pull on the bottom, but from the shoulders and knees, she scoffs and continues. I ask her to step away. Pt was on tube feeding and I had paused it before starting the dressing change, but I had also spiked a bag of antibiotics and wanted to be sure it was running before I continued and asked her to turn the pole towards me so I can be sure. She presses buttons on the feeding pump and IV pump and the tells me the feeding is off. Im in the middle of the dressing change and say, I need to see it (the iv pump and now feeding pump) and asks again for her to turn the pole and she insists that it is off. I stop in the middle of my dressing change and go to look at the pump. Take her aside and tell her not to come back in my pts room.

This isn't the first time have worked with students like this. I once had a guy nurse that just knew EVERYTHING there was to know about nursing. It was painful talking to him.

I just can't believe how obnoxious some of these students are. I totally get why so many nurses can't stand taking students. We do have awesome students every now and then, but it seems most of them take up space and talk all day.

Rant over.

[Horseshoe, BSN, RN]

Also, what is wrong with a student ("male") nurse that KNOWS everything? I feel like that would show competence.

Are you serious with this?! There is no such thing as a student nurse who "knows everything," hence the title "student." A student nurse who thinks he/she knows everything is DANGEROUS.

[Nonyvole, BSN, RN]

Also, what is wrong with a student ("male") nurse that KNOWS everything? I feel like that would show competence.

I've been in healthcare for years. I still learn new things all the time.

Or, nobody knows everything. The attitude of knowing it all just creates a dangerous practitioner, no matter what field.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

As a current student nurse approaching the end of my training reading this coming from a nurse 9 months post qualification this makes me angry!! Not all students behave in this fashion in fact most of us love working with our mentors and value the learning experience!! Rather than damn us all what she should have done is take her to one side and explain that her behaviour is both unprofessional and unacceptable. Then she should have contacted the school for guidance.

As a student nurse we have domains we have to achieve and a big one is being professional, many students have failed clinicals for this reason because part of being professional is not only about how you treat the patient but also you're fellow colleagues!!!

I think what annoys me is how quickly some change the colour of their uniform and they get power crazy!!! Not all students are the same some of us like myself work, and have families so before sweeping statements are made about having students remember it wasn't so long since you were one yourself!! Somebody gave you a chance we are NOT all the same !

Speaking of sweeping generalizations . . . "change the color of their uniform and get power crazy"? That's not at all what the OP described. She described a student who wouldn't listen to her. She knows not all students behave this way -- but one bad apple, and you may not want to see what the rest of the bushel is like.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

Wow !!! Nursing in the US must be different in the UK we are assigned mentors who we have to work Alongside during our clinicals, these nurses are responsible for signing us off at the end of each placement. However if they are not around we find a nurse or member of the team to muck in with. My nurse education in the US needs to change and the way I see it you are shaping future nurses and just remember how you are can make us or break us .

Nursing in the US probably IS different from the UK. But who are you to decide that "sure education in the US needs to change"?

We are fully cognizant when we are with a student we are shaping future nurses. I wonder if the future nurses in question recognize that when they disrespect a mentor as the student in the original post did, they are shaping that mentorship and that the nurse in question may decide that mentorship is not for her.

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

Wow !!! Nursing in the US must be different in the UK we are assigned mentors who we have to work Alongside during our clinicals, these nurses are responsible for signing us off at the end of each placement. However if they are not around we find a nurse or member of the team to muck in with. My nurse education in the US needs to change and the way I see it you are shaping future nurses and just remember how you are can make us or break us .

Nursing in the UK is also specialty focused with significantly more clinical practicum hours. US nursing is generalist trained. The clinical instructor is a MSN prepared nurse with qualifications in adult/nursing education and paid to be responsible for the clinical education of the nursing students. Hospital nursing staff may have students follow and assist but they are not responsible for clinical sign off or nursing education with the exception of senior clinical practicum in certain programs. Most schools assign specifically qualified experienced staff nurses in conjunction with the facility clinical liaison/staff nursing education department.

Staff nurses are not responsible for nursing skill sign offs. Nursing school clinical instructors are responsible to supervise and sign off nursing students in their cohort.

Experienced staff may be charged with clinical review of a student's skills during a senior specialty practicum. But basic nursing practicum oversight of lower undergraduate nursing student is the responsibility of the school clinical instructor. The school staff is paid to educate and supervise the nursing student in the facility. A clinical instructor should NOT be assigning students to new grads or new hires. Nor should students be assigned to shadow staff without the staff agreeing.

When I was in school the clinical instructor consulted with the charge nurse not only which patients were appropriate to assign to students but which staff were appropriate to work with students. We worked in conjunction with the staff nurses but under the direction/supervision of our clinical instructor. No more than 10:1 student:instructor ratio. All medication was done 1:1 with the instructor. Initial procedures were 1:1 with instructor.

[jena5111, ASN, RN]

As a nursing student, I was very disheartened in reading this. I think this is a two-sided fence. I graduate in May, and during my clinical time I have got to share experiences and learn from great/fabulous nurses, but also ones that were very questionable. I have always tried my best to be respectful and helpful to the nurses on the floor. I think that people often forget students are still learning and that they are bound to make a mistake. Rather than lose your cool and embarrass a student, why not make it a learning opportunity and mold them into what you are expecting?

For those that forget what it was like to be a student, I reference the phrase, "Nurses eat their young." I remember multiple times hearing fellow colleagues talking about the awful things their nurses said to them or made them feel simply because they misunderstood or weren't sure. Yes, this job is stressful and you are trying to provide the most competent care possible, but you have to remember as a preceptor/model for a student, that you are representing the industry, not just yourself. Those students will remember you, maybe not your name, but they will remember their experience with you and whether it was a positive or negative one. Don't be the nurse that students remember as "the nurse they don't want to be like."

I can see both sides and the reasons for frustration, yet I think it is unfair to immediately say that you don't want students anymore when you were one not so long ago. I also don't think that it is fair to say the last comment that you did, as it is can come across as very offensive to students that can read these posts. I hope you have better luck and experiences in the future with students.

It is laughable that a student nurse thinks s/he knows what a "questionable" nurse looks like. Or what a "great/fabulous" nurse looks like.

I don't believe nurses who receive ZERO compensation for having students should worry about "molding" anyone or being nurses who the students "don't want to be like." They seriously don't (and shouldn't) care about students "remembering" them. Ugh.

I received excellent feedback from my assigned nurses in clinical (December 2015 grad here) IN THE MOMENT when I was a student. But I guarantee they wouldn't remember me if I stepped onto their floor tomorrow. Why? Because they are busy and have bigger fish to fry. And I NEVER assumed that I was a big, invaluable help to them.

Next week I begin my first RN job on a cardiac floor that hosts a TON of nursing students. If I ever get a student, I will be respectful and supportive but...patients come first, not the student "experience."

[Tenebrae, BSN, RN]

Are you serious with this?! There is no such thing as a student nurse who "knows everything," hence the title "student." A student nurse who thinks he/she knows everything is DANGEROUS.

Heck, a nurse who thinks they know everything is dangerous

[Horseshoe, BSN, RN]

Heck, a nurse who thinks they know everything is dangerous

True as well!

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

This isn't the first time have worked with students like this. I once had a guy nurse that just knew EVERYTHING there was to know about nursing. It was painful talking to him.

We don't know what we don't know. The wise student recognizes his/her lack of knowledge, whereas the fool thinks he knows it all.

[applesxoranges, BSN, RN]

If you pull at the knees and shoulders... wouldn't you be over extending your "work zone" and be opening yourself up for an injury? It sounds like this particular patient should be on some sort of lift system for positioning. I don't work with lifts that often but it sounds dangerous. Maybe I have short arms? Maybe more than 2 people should be doing the lifting?

[nursesue2013, ADN, BSN, MSN]

I never really thought of this issue from the nurses point of view, so I can see why some nurses do not want to work with students if this the behavior being displayed. I graduated in 2013 and am a second career nurse (yes, I am 40+). I could always tell when a nurse did not want to work with students. However, I was always respectfully and certainly did not act like I knew it all. I did however, have classmates that took that attitude and it p***ed me off. One classmate was asked to leave three weeks before graduation because of her tardiness and unprofessional behavior during the last semester of clinics and precepting. She had to retake the final semester again. Believe me if this nurse ever walked into my room to provide care, I would politely request another nurse. The patients we were working with certainly did not have to agree to have a student provide their care. I always felt grateful for the patients that allowed us to work with them and always thanked them at the end of my shift, as well as the patient's nurse. I have since had great experiences working with the nursing students that come through my facility.

[ashleySN]

Don't let that bad student jade you. She was clearly an arrogant, unteachable student. Of my entire class (50 students) I can tell you maybe 1 or 2 are even remotely cocky and would never behave even close to how you describe. As a student nurse, I apologize on behalf of your terrible students, and I encourage you to tell your manager, their clinical instructor, their program director, whoever will listen--because I know in my program at least, that behavior would get you kicked out, or at least seriously reprimanded.