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.
Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
Although I agree that the student did not behave professionally, lets not bash the general nursing student population. In my program , clinical instructors gather feedback from the clinical staff about the students. Negative and positive reports are noted and any need for improvement will be implemented. I also work in the hospital setting and we get bad/good set of students , often with the bad set of students there was also a bad clinical instructor. If a student behaves inappropriately then they should be reported to the clinical instructor to correct the students behavior.
I was under the impression it worked this way too, and generally instructors are very clear in the days leading up to the first clinical day exactly what is and is not acceptable behavior. Seen in that light, a student who behaved the way the OP described this one right out of the gate has more problems than meet the eye, at the least, would be someone who needs closer observation.
I agree with the person who said nobody should get a pass for unprofessional behavior based on their age or years of healthcare experience, and find it disheartening to hear (from the instructor in this thread) that nursing education is now a "customer service" model.
OP, I hope a discussion was had with the student and/or clinical instructor. Despite the attitude, this may be a teachable experience.
I'll share this: when I was a nursing student, I was told by my clinical instructor during one clinical that a nurse I was working with felt I was arrogant and was worried. I had no idea I was perceived that way, but looking back with time behind me, I totally can see it! I was a 2nd degree nurse that had been used to independent work in a different field (not an excuse, just stating a fact).
At the time, I took a moment to let the blow hit my ego. I didn't understand why/how, but I knew I had to be professional somehow, so I went home that day and thought about how I could change that for the next clinical - this was hard for me and I struggled to get past the hurt a bit, I'll admit. At my end of term review, my clinical instructor was impressed, as was the nurse I had worked with that I was able to take the criticism and utilize it. I remember this experience all the time when I need to improve.
This student may or may not be able to change. As a school nurse, I have percepted a few students, including some current RNs getting their BSN. Most of them are great! But I have also encountered one or two that have been nurses much longer than I have, and I have felt like they don't respect my knowledge, which can be frustrating (they may have been nurses for a long time, but never a school nurse, which is a different beast). I take a deep breath and try and remember it can be just as frustrating to learn on their end and a discussion must be had to clear the air. Sometimes that helps. I also remember the positive student experiences :).
It is most likely that the policy involves whether or not the student's check clears. End of policy.
It's unfortunate that there are schools with "policies" like that, but that's not been my experience. There are also plenty of good schools that take student clinical performance seriously. I've seen plenty of students have grades dropped or get placed on probation for attitudes and behavior in clinical.
Specializes in Allergy/ENT, Occ Health, LTC/Skilled.
I am an LPN-RN student and I totally empathize with you. We are completely separated from traditional RN students and the class always gets slashed 50-75% after the first semester. Many LPNs think they won't need to study for the nursing theory/try at clinicals because we are already nurses. Not true, we are nurses, but we have SOOOO much to learn when it comes to critical care, and just because you have been a nuse for 20 years, doesn't mean you retain everything you did in LPN school. This is the exact kind of clinical student I will not be, how embarrassing.
Everybody keeps repeating that this student was dangerous. What?
I read and re-read the OP. Pulling by the legs, shoulders instead of bottom for Stage 4 sacrals? I've never heard of that. Then she didn't turn the pump around for her preceptor to see it. (Nowhere in the OP did it say she got them mixed up or turned one off and one on....nothing.) Okaaaay. Doesn't seem super dangerous to me.
what I see when I run this scenario through my head is a preceptor who doesn't like her orientee. "I told her to 'stand back'" because she made the life-threatening error of pulling on the bottom? Really?
No, it wasn't life threatening. But pulling on the sore itself can disrupt the healing process. Plus if it's a patient that you're not familiar with, you don't know what is there. If there are staples, that is a easy way to cause dehiscence. So pulling from the shoulders and knees instead of the bottom takes away some of that pressure.
Yeah, she was totally wrong and out of line, and if I was in your shoes I would've went straight to her clinical instructor about it. However, on the other hand I am a student nurse and for the most part we all enjoy working with the experienced nurses, helping out however we can and they also enjoy having us. Try not to put all student nurses in one basket, which it sounds to me like you're doing because remember ....YOU too was once a student! Good luck in your future!
Sooo true. And I do remember when I had nurses that did not want anything to do with having a student. Up until this point, I was indifferent about students. I've been on the floor 9 months, so Im still learning a lot, and don't think I am the best nurse to have students right now. But since they are not actually assigned to me, I don't really mind. I've had 4 students up till now, and the 2 of them were unpleasant to be around, and the other 2 were more helpful, they just asked a TON of questions. lol, but I used to do the same thing.
Yep, we were students once, and we remember it. However, students haven't yet been nurses. It's an eye opening experience the first time you, as a nurse, have a student assigned to one of your patients.
And we didn't even make it past page 2.
So, OP, was anything done about the situation?
Not past me asking her to leave. She just wandered about the floor for the rest of her clinical. I did tell my charge who has a good relationship with that particular clinical instructor so maybe.
I stopped taking students about 4 years ago; I'm an elementary school nurse. I was assuming the reason for the complete and total disinterest or the complete and total arrogance displayed by the students was because of the school clinic environment which is unlike hospital departments or out-patient clinics and because of the kids - some of which don't even know their full name. Regardless, I seldom ran into anyone who seemed interested, asked questions, came prepared, and welcomed the opportunity to perform pediatric assessments. I often had students that brought absolutely nothing to clinical, no notepad, no scissors, no stethoscope, no nothing. All of them however, didn't forget their cell phone. Maybe it's not just my school environment.
I completely disagree with some of the comments on here, some are commenting about how rude/disrespectful student nurses are , well the same can be said for actual registered nurses. If the op has an issue with student then it should be handled appropriately especially if it jeopardizes the patient safety. Both the student and the op did not act appropriately in the situation , if you not able to handle students then it should be discussed with your supervisor. Your a new nurse so adding the responsibilities of a student nurse in clinical may be too much for you.
How would you have handled this situation differently? I would like to know what I did that was inappropriate.
Instead of ranting on the internet , how about voicing your concerns to the appropriate party since this not the first time you have had problems with a student. I do not think it was appropriate for them to place you with a lpn student with 20 years of experience with a new grad nurse.
Tenebrae, BSN, RN
2,021 Posts
Or why nurses arent bowled over the moon to have them:Emoticon-Devil: