I have a girl in one of my classes that is starting the nursing program this Fall.
She has Cerebal Palsy.
She has a speech impediment, one of her hands/partial arm does not appear to be very functional (her hand stays flat)..and her walk is what you might expect with someone with CP, and she cannot stand up normally.
My question is...I am all about people not letting a disability hold them back, but I am wondering how this poor young lady can possibly finish the nursing program...how can she even get a CPR certification if your hands don't work?
I don't want anyone thinking that I'm bashing...I'm not...I am just trying to get a better understanding of how this would work for her. I think it's great that she is able to do what she is with school.
In my nursing classes were a young woman with CP and another who was profoundly hearing impaired. They both turned out to be spectacular nurses. One of my favorite (and most respected) docs is totally blind.
I have a friend who has only one arm, and is an awesome nurse, and there is one girl who should be starting the program in the fall who is a "little person" (for lack of a better term.) I do wonder how she will do in the field, but she wants to do peds, and I look up to both of them!
I'll be honest...I'm a little shocked at some of the replies. I thought this was a forum where we could ask honest questions as long as they were respectfully asked and well intentioned?
I never suggested that she should not be allowed to be a nurse, if I thought that, then I wouldn't have posted at all. I was just curious about the logistics of how one could get a CPR certification (which I thought was a requirement), with this particular type of disability.
I know the ADA has to allow for reasonable accomodations, but I also know that there are limitations to these, and didn't know in the nursing professions...how far these went.
I have no idea of how this young lady is doing in the nursing program, because I never ask my fellow students how their grades are b/c I think that is a private matter and a very rude question. It's the same reason I didn't ask her directly about her disability...because she is really sweet and I didn't want to hurt someone's feelings based on my own curiosity...that would be totally inconsiderate of me...thus why I posted the question here.
I'm sorry if I offended anyone with the question, but I was just trying to educate myself on how people with disabilities work in this profession.
I have a girl in one of my classes that is starting the nursing program this Fall.
She has Cerebal Palsy.
She has a speech impediment, one of her hands/partial arm does not appear to be very functional (her hand stays flat)..and her walk is what you might expect with someone with CP, and she cannot stand up normally.
My question is...I am all about people not letting a disability hold them back, but I am wondering how this poor young lady can possibly finish the nursing program...how can she even get a CPR certification if your hands don't work?
I don't want anyone thinking that I'm bashing...I'm not...I am just trying to get a better understanding of how this would work for her. I think it's great that she is able to do what she is with school.
I think that these are reasonable questions for a student to post.
Not all nurses need CPR. That would only be required for a job that requires hands on patient care.
There would be quite a few options open to your fellow student once she actually had a license - phone triage, case management, chart review, quality assurance, infection control, and I'm sure many, many more. These would be the type of positions available to her if she was unable to physically provide patient care.
The real question would seem to be is she able to successfully pass the clinical requirements of her program. This I don't know. I'm not sure what level of accomodation a program is allowed to grant a challenged student.
I also think that by asking questions like this, it shows that you have a curious mind and are trying to think outside of the box. Keep it up.
I have no idea of how this young lady is doing in the nursing program, because I never ask my fellow students how their grades are b/c I think that is a private matter and a very rude question.
dang, i befriended many of the students in my class.
maybe it's because it started out with 70 and ended with 22.
through the years, we were ea others' greatest support systems.
even if we didn't know ea others' grades, we knew where ea was struggling.
stillpressingon
225 Posts
What's it matter?