Nursing school after bone marrow transplant

NicuGal, MSN, RN · Jul 15, 2015

You have to do clinicals on all services to be able to pass.And you do clinicals in a certain order, they can't just put you somewhere without your clinical group. And communicable diseases are in all areas. We see moms with all kinds of things. And with your immune system so slow, you would be so more suseptible to so many bugs that normally wouldn't make you very sick.

The clinical sites treat you as an employee. We had two girls on my unit that had bone marrow transplants and moved into office jobs because they didn't want to risk exposure to anything.

The best the school can do for you is ask the clinical sites, but they can deny you unfortunately. The Disability Act doesn't cover this.

I'm glad you are doing better, and this is a hard thing. Are you done with all the prerequisite classes? If you are going into an ADN program, can you work on classes towards a BSN until you are able to do clinicals? I wish there was an easy answer.

KatieMI, BSN, MSN, RN · Jul 15, 2015

If I were you, I would speak with your school about individual learning plan. The first question would be clinical placements, like NicuGal said just above. Your situation is not covered by ADA. The second thing is the very real risk of infections for you, and nobody wanna be legally responsible for that.

I had to have "special accommodations" for one of my clinicals, and met another student whose activities had to be limited. We both made it eventually, and with flying colors, but the whole thing sucked like nothing else.

If your school is cooperative, you can complete all your theory, core and electives, and maybe even some graduate classes if there is a program in place or your professors have good connections. It will take right about two years and your health will hopefully improve in the meantime. If your school won't agree for individual plan, then pull out your papers and close the door before paying them one more cent. Try to explore direct entry BSN-MSN programs - they usually have wast arrange of theory courses and generally much more flexible with students who need a bit of special attention.

NurseGirl525, ASN, RN · Jul 16, 2015

The dean of your school is correct. It is not the school that makes these rules, it's the clinical sites. I'm going to say you are probably going to get denied. You have to have a certain amount of clinical hours to be able to sit for the NCLEX. And Katie, she has to complete these hours. I understand your special accommodations, but I bet you still had to have your clinical hours in certain areas.

I want to tell you congratulations on overcoming cancer. That is awesome. Bone marrow transplants are no fun. You though have to do what is best for your body. You will come into contact with all kinds of communicable diseases. Why risk it? You just beat cancer which was extremely difficult for you, I'm sure. You don't want to beat cancer only to get some kind of awful disease that kills you. That very well could happen with your immune system the way it is.

I don't know how old you are. Lots of people in nursing school are older these days. I'm 39 and will graduate when I am 40. I have thoughts of going the whole way to NP but at this time I am not sure. But my age doesn't hold me back. Just be patient until you are 100%. That is the best and safest way to do this. Good luck with everything.

Ashtinp · Jul 16, 2015

I'm 23. Yes I'm done with all prerequisite classes. I just don't want to sit around and feel like I'm wasting my time the next 2 years, but unfortunately it looks like that's what I will likely have to do, despite shelling out plenty of money and time toward going now. I understand what you all are saying, but having had cancer makes me want to dive in and just go, and I'm really tired of working entry-level jobs when I have the mental capacity to do so much more.

mrsboots87 · Jul 16, 2015

You are only 23. I get you being impatient, but you need to be thinking of your health. You say you have children. Think of them. If you contract something nasty from clinicals and become debilitated or even die, you won't be providing anything for them. What if you become so I'll you can't complete a semester and have to drop out? You be out money and time and have to repeat later anyway. 2 years will go by in the blink of an eye. And being impatient is not worth your health. You just beat cancer. You are a rockstar for not only making it through cancer treatments but also a bone marrow transplant. In those 2 years you can slowly take the remaining pre reqs for a BSN program. Facilities are already pushing for BSN now anyway.

Hospitals can't take th chance of you being there. And you can contract something just sitting in the cafeteria around the families who just visited their sick family member. And you can't just be placed in certain floors only. The BON for your state will require a certain amount of clinical time in each area of nursing. Also you can't be in a completely different area then your clinical instructor and group. You also will be placed in areas of the hospital corresponding with what you're learning in class at the time. Lastly, you can come into contact with nasty bugs anywhere in the hospital. There is a lot of risk to your health just being out in public, let alone in a hospital.

Ashtinp · Jul 16, 2015

Why is it that you guys say my situation is not covered under the ADA? I receive disability. If I am willing to sign a waiver of liability or something of the sort, why should I not be provided the same opportunity as everyone else?

mrsboots87 · Jul 16, 2015

Getting paid disability doesn't mean you automatically qualify for ADA benefits. And it doesn't mean a hospital has to ignore their health requirements to let you be there. ADA is used for people with ADHD who need testing and/or classroom acomidations and so on. And even if using ADA, and they were able to place you in the least germy areas of the hospital (which don't exist) you would not meet the requirements made by the BON to sit for NCLEX.

Lets to say that my mom didn't believe in vaccinations (which is not the case) and I wasn't vaccinated as a child. No school anywhere would be able to admit me because of my risk of contracting an illness. Why should someone with no immune system from a bone marrow transplant be aloud to risk their life? Why should an accommodation be made? Just because you WANT to start now, doesn't mean you CAN.

mrsboots87 · Jul 16, 2015

Also, there is no waiver available that allows anyone to not complete the health requirements. This isn't even about your bone marrow transplant. People with autoimmune diseases that take medications to suppress their immune system can go to nursing school if they meet the health requirements. It's a risk to them but they are aloud to take that risk. The problem for you is that you just don't meet the health requirements. No amount of ADA accommodations will negate that requirement. The health requirements for nursing school include being up to date in your vaccinations. You will not be until you complete all the series.

And what kind of ADA accommodations are you looking for?

Ashtinp · Jul 16, 2015

"Lets to say that my mom didn't believe in vaccinations (which is not the case) and I wasn't vaccinated as a child. No school anywhere would be able to admit me because of my risk of contracting an illness."

That would be a choice. It's not my choice that I am not up-to-date. I WAS up-to-date until I got my transplant. You can't compare someone choosing not to be vaccinated to my unwanted result of my unwanted disease. What accommodations am I looking for? Simply to be offered the opportunity to complete my clinicals, like everybody else. It IS about my bone marrow transplant because that's the only reason I don't have vaccinations. There's also no vaccination for TB but nurses come into contact with patients with TB just the same, putting themselves at risk. Nurses put themselves at risk everyday.

And thank you for the ADA benefit education. I have no knowledge whatsoever concerning ADA benefits and/or laws, that's why I was asking. Thanks for your help, though some tact would have been appreciated.

Also, FYI, no it's not really a huge risk to me being out in public. My transplant doctor told me it wasn't necessary to limit my activities any longer starting back in May, including being in crowds, doctor's offices, etc. I trust my doctor's advice, who also told me that I was fine to go to nursing school, including clinicals.

Ashtinp · Jul 16, 2015

Everyone, I do appreciate your advice so thank you very much for your input. You all made really good points and gave me information that I hadn't considered, like every department having some kind of communicable disease. You're all right, I'm simply disappointed, and making sure there isn't some loophole around it. If there isn't, I will obviously have to accept it and figure out what to do for the next 2 years.

JustBeachyNurse, LPN · Jul 16, 2015

ADA doesn't cover temporary issues. It's about accommodation but within reason. Someone who is visually impaired cannot expect a company to make accommodation because they really want to drive a tractor trailer. However there would be accommodations in most public areas got the visually impaired person to bring their guide dog. However the guide dog would not be able to accompany the person into the sterile OR or the sterile processing area of a pharmaceutical company as that is not a reasonable accommodation.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act covers educational issues post high school. If you needed to test in a separate room during cold & flu season that would be a reasonable modification. If you needed to skype a lecture because norovirus or enterovirus was running through the school, again reasonable.

Altering your academic & clinical schedule to reduce exposure not really reasonable request.

Waivers are for choices like choosing to not get HepB vaccine. You have a medical exemption. You don't have a choice.

I understand your excitement and frustration at your current scenario. Reasonable accommodation would be to hold your seat and defer clinical placement until medically cleared. Where most schools will only hold a seat for a semester you would be entitled to request an extension.

I don't see any clinical facility willing to accept you in your current state of health. The risk is simply too great, especially with increased international illness and pandemic respiratory viruses such as enterovirus.

Do you have any general education classes towards a BSN you need such as statistics, sociology nutrition?