Nurse Educators, Introduce Yourselves!

[VickyRN]

Welcome to the Nurse Educator Forum. It is my desire that you find this a warm, inviting place and will come here often for friendly, collegial discussions.

Let me introduce myself: I have been an ADN nurse educator in a small community college in North Carolina for the past two years. My areas of specialty are medical-surgical, OBGYN and immediate newborn, and cardiac nursing. In addition to teaching, I conduct clinicals on general medical-surgical, PEDS, postpartum, and cardiac step-down units. Along with being a full time nursing instructor, I am working on my Masters in Nursing Education. I am enrolled in a fully online curricula and have been very satisfied with this so far.

I have learned much these past two years but, I have so much more to learn! I look forward to hearing from you.

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

Hello to all! I teach Med-Surg III in an ADN program at a community college in WV. I actually graduated from this program myself in 1990. I received my BSN from WVU and completed MSN from Otterbein College in Westerville, Ohio.

In August I will begin my third year of teaching and I absolutely love it! Lecturing took a little bit to get used to though....I also have clinicals on Th/Fr from 8-2p. Have Tuesdays "off" as a planning day. (don't have to go to office). We take in 65-80 students each year depending on the # of adjunct faculty we have signed on. My group for fall has 8 students which is manageable.

My question is this: what is your dress code and how well is it policed with adjuncts, etc?

Welcome, ksfrn66! Glad to have you here! I also am starting my third year of teaching... my how time flies :chuckle

We have no dress code on campus (this is campus-wide and we cannot make exclusion for nursing). Thus, some of our students come to class looking like Britney Thankfully, only a few of them do this. Off campus and in clinical sites is another story. Hair has to be off the collar, no loop earrings, only one small earring stud allowed. No gaudy makeup or strong odors (no perfume, smell of cigarettes). Only wedding band and watch, no other jewelry. No body piercings, including tongue rings. (Sometimes you have to line them up and inspect them before clinicals.) No visible tatoos. (One of our students had to wear a small ace bandage over her wrist the entire time she was in clinical to "hide" a small tatoo.) NO FAKE NAILS!!! (Petri-dish for microbes--yuch!) Any skin lesions (especially herpetic lesions such as fever blisters) need to be reported to instructor before clinical (student may be infectuous and should not be allowed on site). Lab jacket with school name tag must be worn in transit and school clinical uniform must be worn while in clinical. The uniform must be neat, clean, pressed. Only white nursing shoes, no colors allowed at all. Faculty and adjunct should also abide by the clinical dress code. However, enforcing this with adjunct faculty can be a problem.

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

Hi to everyone

I've been a nurse since 1975, mostly med surg & critical care. I've been in education of some sort since 1985 - staff ed, CNA, ASN, LPN. My MSN is Med-surg with double minors in teaching and supervision. I also have a post master's certificate Adult NP. It's great to see so many people who are interested in making nursing education their career specialty. I've loved it all and use all of my education every day.

I am interested to know how cultural competence is being integrated into curriculla across the nation. Is it a separate course, integrated, or ignored? I understand the upcoming NCLEX will be focusing more on this area. Any thoughts?

Good luck to all of you in your education and careers.

Vicky

Welcome, Vicky! Appreciate all of your input on the board. I posted a reply in the cultural competence thread. BTW, I love your sig line

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

Hello everyone, so nice to read all the awesome nurse comments. I have my Masters in Nursing, with a Clinical Nurse specialist focus in Med/Surg. I will be teaching at the BSN level this Fall in Adult Health: Gero. and Holistic Nursing. My work history includes a Licensed School Nurse while my kids were little....the schedule was perfect. I also had two years med/surg before that. I then did clinic work and management/CNS in residential chemical dependency/detox with adults and adolescents. I am excited about teaching and would appreciate any ideas and support from experienced instructors. Thanks ahead of time.Dianne

Welcome, Dianne! I started a thread on "Tips for New Nurse Educators." Hopefully some others will post their ideas also. Sounds like you have a varied and rich background which will benefit you greatly as an instructor. If you have any specific questions, feel free to post here anytime! :balloons:

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

Dear VickyRN,

Thank you for the words of encouragement. I have decided to pursue a career in the educational field. I think this would be rewarding for me at this time in my life. Please feel free to pass on any advice you may have.

Thanks,

Animalangel

Welcome!!! :balloons: Many bright thoughts and best wishes coming your way. Please let us know if we can encourage you in any way. If you have any specific questions, please feel free to post anytime. I have started a thread entitled "Tips for New Nurse Educators." Hopefully some of the more seasoned "veterans" will share with us their insignts and advice. :)

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

Hi there. I wanted to chime in on this thread, I was contacted today by one of the instructors at our local community college about teaching some clinicals this coming fall semester. I have always wanted to teach clinicals, but always thought that I would have to have my BSN first. I have an ADN and am currently working on my BSN-MSN. The MSN program is a CNS in Nursing Ed. The comm college has LPN and ADN programs. Im nervous and excited all at the same time. Any words of advice????

Welcome to the forum! Glad to have your input here. My best advice for clinicals: be prepared. Are you familiar with the unit in which you are having clinicals? If not, be sure to ask for a good orientation and "shadow" a nurse for a few shifts. Once clinicals start, go in a few hours early to check out the charts and patients (especially if the unit and patient population is unfamiliar to you). Know your students. Try to match the pt assignment/ acuity to the right student. If the student is weak, don't give him/ her the most complicated patient on the unit! Also, try to match male students with male patients. Dealing with staff nurses on the unit can be one of the most rewarding or most agonizing part of your clinical experience. Have seen some AWESOME units and one that was a snake pit (I could write a book). Thankfully, most clinical sites are student-friendly. If the atmosphere on a unit seems "toxic," trust your gut and go elsewhere :uhoh21:

[NPTeacher]

Wow! I sure must be teaching at the WRONG place! I am an Assistant Professor and teach both BSN and MSN students. I typically get to my office about 7:30 AM and frequently don't leave until 6 or 6:30 PM. It is not unusual to go to the office on Saturday or Sunday for a few hours. During the fall semester, I have a clinical rotation with BSN students. I get to the unit by 6:15 am to assure that assignments are made. Once we leave the unit at 3 pm, I'm back in my office for meetings with students, test to make or grade, other papers to grade, lectures to plan or update, committee work to do, etc. Even on those days, it's not unusual to be in my office until 5:30 or 6.

Also, in the university where I work, promotions are not automatic. If hired as an instructor, you must be at the university for at least 2 years before you are eligable to go up for promotion. In order to qualify, you must show excellence in teaching, service, and scholarship, with at least 2 published articles and presentations at the local level, be admitted to a PhD program and have completed at least 12 hours of that program. To go from assistant professor to associate professor, you must have completed your PhD, have at least 20 publication points (you get 4 points for each article that you solo authored, or are first author, and 2 points if you are not the first author), have presented at the regional level, and be actively involved in a program of research. Of course this is all in addition to having excellence in teaching, and service. To be promoted to a full professor, your research must be funded, and be ongoing, and themed. Your presentation must be at the national or international level. And your must continue to publish. -- So, none of the promotions are "routine." They are all WELL earned. It takes a long time to accomplish all of the tasks required for each level, then seems to take almost as long to put together your portfolio to apply for promotion. Of course, it is the only way to get $ as raises sure don't come any other way these days. I have been here 7 years, and the only raises that I have gotten in the last 6 of those years has come from promotions.

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

Wow! I sure must be teaching at the WRONG place! I am an Assistant Professor and teach both BSN and MSN students. I typically get to my office about 7:30 AM and frequently don't leave until 6 or 6:30 PM. It is not unusual to go to the office on Saturday or Sunday for a few hours. During the fall semester, I have a clinical rotation with BSN students. I get to the unit by 6:15 am to assure that assignments are made. Once we leave the unit at 3 pm, I'm back in my office for meetings with students, test to make or grade, other papers to grade, lectures to plan or update, committee work to do, etc. Even on those days, it's not unusual to be in my office until 5:30 or 6.

Also, in the university where I work, promotions are not automatic. If hired as an instructor, you must be at the university for at least 2 years before you are eligable to go up for promotion. In order to qualify, you must show excellence in teaching, service, and scholarship, with at least 2 published articles and presentations at the local level, be admitted to a PhD program and have completed at least 12 hours of that program. To go from assistant professor to associate professor, you must have completed your PhD, have at least 20 publication points (you get 4 points for each article that you solo authored, or are first author, and 2 points if you are not the first author), have presented at the regional level, and be actively involved in a program of research. Of course this is all in addition to having excellence in teaching, and service. To be promoted to a full professor, your research must be funded, and be ongoing, and themed. Your presentation must be at the national or international level. And your must continue to publish. -- So, none of the promotions are "routine." They are all WELL earned. It takes a long time to accomplish all of the tasks required for each level, then seems to take almost as long to put together your portfolio to apply for promotion. Of course, it is the only way to get $ as raises sure don't come any other way these days. I have been here 7 years, and the only raises that I have gotten in the last 6 of those years has come from promotions.

Your schedule looks a lot like mine (except for the publishing part :imbar ). I have never seen a nurse educator position that was a "pie job." There is an element of flexibility, that is true. But most positions require blood, sweat, and tears! You are required to be the best of both worlds--the best teacher, and also the best nurse (requires keeping up clinical skills and keeping practice current). And, ironically, the higher up the nurse educator ladder one climbs, the less the pay there is for the amount of work and education. Doesn't make sense and not too attractive to young candidates. Is it any wonder we are facing such a severe shortage of nurse educators?

[joules300, BSN]

Hello everyone, I am so glad I found this forum on allnurses.com. This fall I will begin my new career venture as a LPN instructor for the local vocational school. I am excited, nervous, and even a little scared!! I will be leaving (staying on per diem) the acute care facility where I have worked for sixteen years. I will be bringing with me my experiences of nursing school. I started out as a nursing assistant/emt, went to school for my ADN and recieved my BSN in 2002. I also have a variety of clinical experience from med-surg, pedi, renal, cardiac, emergency, and rehab. I know I have a lot to offer and even more to learn and I am glad that this forum will be available for moral and professional support. And I will be sure to check out the new thread Tips for New Educatiors!! Thanks, Sue

[missmercy]

HI! Graduated in Dec w/ my MSN in nursing Ed and administration. Am currently THE staff development departmetn for our nursing department ii which is for some reason separated from our education department. Am considering getting some sort of certification in addition to my MSN -- any suggestions?

[Terri W]

Thank you for the replys. This is my first teaching position, should I choose to except it. It is a ADN program. I will do clinical instructing with 1st and 2nd year students. Even though I have had alot of experience with hospital nursing I must confess, I am a bit nervous. Always wondering when the question will come that I do not know the answer to. Being the honest smuck that I am, I will tell them that I will have a complete answer in detail the next time we meet. I do not know if this is the right response or not. It is just me. My goal is to encourage and inspire the nurses that pass through. We need so badly to have good nurses that truly enjoy and are proud of their profession and the contribution they make to society. I hope and pray that I will be able to fulfill this goal.

I have taught in ADN programs for the last 13 years. The opportunity has been great and I have benefited from the faculty shortage (since I don't have my MSN yet). I am currently completing an MSN program online so I can continue to teach full-time. I believe students will give you much more respect when you let them know you don't "know everything". Even now it's not uncommon for me tell them "I'm not sure. You see what you can find about it and I will too. Let's compare notes tomorrow." Your attitude is exactly what we need more of in nursing education. It can be a very high stress job, but I bet you'll thrive!

[missmercy]

New rules at our facility all of a sudden -- there is a merger in process and the two hospitals have extremely differant views on staff development, education etc....... should get interesting!! The other hospital has a school of nursing and does little beyond that for continued staff education/development -- this facility has students for clinical rotations -- but is more interested in the continuing ed of their staff -- to improve skill/knowledge base and enchance retention -- Hopefully they will both retain their ideals and we will become a well-rounded educating facility where growth and change are encouraged and fostered!

[VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN]

Hello everyone, I am so glad I found this forum on allnurses.com. This fall I will begin my new career venture as a LPN instructor for the local vocational school. I am excited, nervous, and even a little scared!! I will be leaving (staying on per diem) the acute care facility where I have worked for sixteen years. I will be bringing with me my experiences of nursing school. I started out as a nursing assistant/emt, went to school for my ADN and recieved my BSN in 2002. I also have a variety of clinical experience from med-surg, pedi, renal, cardiac, emergency, and rehab. I know I have a lot to offer and even more to learn and I am glad that this forum will be available for moral and professional support. And I will be sure to check out the new thread Tips for New Educatiors!! Thanks, Sue

:) Welcome to the Forum, Sue! So glad you are here. Sounds like you have a GREAT background for teaching LPN's. If we can be of any assistance to you, please let us know. :balloons: