In the hospitals where I have done clinicals thus far, I feel like some of the nurses hate the nursing students and others are delighted to see the students. I was wondering what the general concensus is about helping nursing students out by having them tag along. Do you get annoyed or do you find that they are helpful? Sometimes, I feel like everyone hates the students because it is extra work for them.
Also, what is the point of getting a BSN instead of a ADN if you do not plan to move up from being a floor nurse?
Thanks for taking the time to read this and responding. It is very appreciated.
That's awful! I cannot stand when people have an attitude like that. In my way of thinking, if something needs to be done, and I'm there, I'll do it. Also, there are CNA's, but how can you delegate responsibly if you haven't done it yourself? I'm in an ADN program and we do full patient care, baths, toileting etc. One instructor I had last semester would make us go in and check the rooms for tidiness and then do a mini cleanup. She was one of those old school types but we learned a lot. The BSN students in my area don't have the best reputation precisely because they are cocky and have no common sense. I do want my bachelor's at some point but that's because I might want to do anesthesia after working in the OR for a few years. P.S. I think the fact that most ADN students are older plays into this. Many(not all) of the BSN students are fresh out of high school so it may be immaturity on their part.
I am so glad our BSN program isn't like that! Our instructors would have our a$$ if we tried to skirt something... we are responsible for ALL of our patient's care & the CNA's should not have to do anything for our patients while we are there. We are to keep the rooms clean/picked up. We also catch any other call lights that we are able to. Most of my classmates are very down to Earth. Part of my syllabus for one of my classes right now reads:
"Patient Care – the patient is your responsibility during the time you are present. You are responsible for TOTAL CARE including hygiene, meds, treatments, etc. Do not leave things for the “nurse” to do. YOU ARE THE [student] NURSE! Further, do not leave thing for the CNA or PCT to do. You will provide all cares needed by the patient(s) during your shift. It is your responsibility to keep your instructor informed of any assistance you need with meeting the needs of the patient. Keep your nurse and your instructor informed on the status of your patient(s) throughout the day."
The only thing mentioned here that I have noticed that is a fault for our group (this particular semester) is that we are spread out over two or three units, so it is true that our instructor is often not around. But we are also seniors and don't really usually need as much supervision as we did last year, and we have a pager number for her too. The nurses & PCT's we have worked with this time have been totally awesome anyway (I have had to try to explain to a couple of PCT's that I am really really supposed to be doing the stuff for my pt (changing linens etc.; or whatever)...don't want to get in trouble...trying to be diplomatic, not step on toes)!
To the person who posted about wanting to shadow your patient's nurse... are you allowed to? I am at the point now that if the nurse seems receptive, I usually ask if I can just shadow him/her. That in mind, I go out of my way not to be a burden & I try to anticipate needs and help out any way I can ("Do you want me to run & get that for you?" etc). I always say to the nurse & PCT: "Let me know if there's anything I can do to help you." I also try to disappear sometimes and give the nurse a break from me if I am following her around :) (I do have stuff to do for my patient too!). Anyhow, I get a lot more out of my day when I do it this way.
The hospital I do clinicals at is a teaching hospital. I am currently od a PEDS floor in the childrens part of the hospital. The nurses are for the most part tolerant of us. They are very knowledgeable, but do not always want to deal with our questions. I think it is sad because they have so much we could learn from them..
I love having students, keeps me on my toes. I like to assess the patients first, find all abnormal assessments, then have the students find X amount of problems with the patient. Then we discuss all test results and potential problems related to abnormal assessments. The students love it, I get great reviews from instructors, and I feel like I'm contributing to the future of our profession.
We have 3 local BSN programs in this area, and soon as i read this, it reminded me of one of them. I remember quite a few saying things like "Um, eyeew, like, i'm not touching a bedpan, that's like so gross." Course it didn't help when their instructor is telling them "When you're a nurse, you don't have to do these things, you'll have CNAs."
In California CNAs are reserved for nursing homes. Once good' ol Arnie changed the nursing ratios the hospitals could not afford to keep CNAs. Now, even though the have 'better nursing ratios' they have to do twice the work. So if your a student in California working in the hospital setting, do not be suprised to be changing beds and bed pans yourself.
What really gets me is students who are totally unprepared. I don't like being treated like a computer...like all I'm there for is the student to download information from me. I'm all for answering questions, so long as the student has made the effort to try to find the answer, first.
There's no excuse for being unprepared for clinical.
I am a new grad Rn and have been working for like 4 weeks. I love the nursing students cause I remember how it was when I was student and had mean nurses lol but sometimes I get very frustrated because the students confuse me when I am already confused enough. But other than that I like having them around cause they ask questions and do things that I still have questions about and need to see done! Except this one instructor...she was really ignorant to mean and said I shouldn't be a nurse cause I couldn't answer her question, but she was also talking about another student to another student so I didn't see her as a good teacher anyway!
I was offered a wonderful job on L&D before I ever graduated. I can't imagine surviving the first 2 years without the support and patience of every single nurse on the unit. I love students, I love orienting- bring them on!! Remember, folks- these are the people who are hopefully going to care for US in a few years. We better treat them right, now!!
I love most nursing students. Most of them are excited to be in my area and I feel bad for them if nothing exciting is going on. There are a few who hang back and seem detached, but I figure it's their money--let them waste it if they want to.
What I don't care for are some of the paid student nurses on the job. They feel entitled to do their homework rather than check up on patients, revitalize, or any other assigned duties. They do what they are asked-for about two minutes- then rush back to their studies. They're on the clock and need to act like it. We have four student nurses working in our department now, and I will recommend two of them after graduation, but two of them I honestly cannot give good reviews to. It's obvious they can't prioritize and don't seem interested in learning now. They show all the signs of making lazy nurses. And no speciality or facility can afford these.
Specializes in Gerontological, cardiac, med-surg, peds.
I have had student groups on 8 different units in 5 different facilities during my short career as a nurse educator. One hospital was horrendous and I refuse to go back. The mistreatment the students received there was almost legendary (it varied from rudeness, coldness, being shouted at, lied about, and even a battery incident). Everywhere else, however, has been a great learning environment and the nurses truly have gone way above and beyond the call of duty to create a wonderful learning experience for our students.
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mitchsmom
1,907 Posts
I am so glad our BSN program isn't like that! Our instructors would have our a$$ if we tried to skirt something... we are responsible for ALL of our patient's care & the CNA's should not have to do anything for our patients while we are there. We are to keep the rooms clean/picked up. We also catch any other call lights that we are able to. Most of my classmates are very down to Earth. Part of my syllabus for one of my classes right now reads:
"Patient Care – the patient is your responsibility during the time you are present. You are responsible for TOTAL CARE including hygiene, meds, treatments, etc. Do not leave things for the “nurse” to do. YOU ARE THE [student] NURSE! Further, do not leave thing for the CNA or PCT to do. You will provide all cares needed by the patient(s) during your shift. It is your responsibility to keep your instructor informed of any assistance you need with meeting the needs of the patient. Keep your nurse and your instructor informed on the status of your patient(s) throughout the day."
The only thing mentioned here that I have noticed that is a fault for our group (this particular semester) is that we are spread out over two or three units, so it is true that our instructor is often not around. But we are also seniors and don't really usually need as much supervision as we did last year, and we have a pager number for her too. The nurses & PCT's we have worked with this time have been totally awesome anyway (I have had to try to explain to a couple of PCT's that I am really really supposed to be doing the stuff for my pt (changing linens etc.; or whatever)...don't want to get in trouble...trying to be diplomatic, not step on toes)!
To the person who posted about wanting to shadow your patient's nurse... are you allowed to? I am at the point now that if the nurse seems receptive, I usually ask if I can just shadow him/her. That in mind, I go out of my way not to be a burden & I try to anticipate needs and help out any way I can ("Do you want me to run & get that for you?" etc). I always say to the nurse & PCT: "Let me know if there's anything I can do to help you." I also try to disappear sometimes and give the nurse a break from me if I am following her around :) (I do have stuff to do for my patient too!). Anyhow, I get a lot more out of my day when I do it this way.