Nursing Student in need of a Nurse Mentor asap....please

KellieNurse06 · Nov 25, 2006

I feel for ya! Believe me! I would just not do anything that makes you stick out from the other students.....just do what she wants & asks, do not under any circumstance be one of those "know it alls that know nothing"....we have had a couple of those in my lecture classes last year.....and the instructors really hate that.

It may just be a personality clash...and unfortunately there is nothing you can do about it.......but look at it this way.....it's not forever, just take it day by day, grin & bare it......and you'll be fine. Maybe on the other hand it could also be that the instructor see's something great in you and she/he is trying to make you use your full potential........Just try not to be intimidated.....some instructors are power trippers......... Good Luck....

RNfromMN, BSN, RN · Nov 25, 2006

I'm definitely not the best mentor (I'm only 1 semester ahead of you in school), but I can share my story of "clinical instructor discrimination:"

First of all, let me start off, that until I was so blessed to work with this particular instructor:rolleyes: , I felt that all my co-students spend WAY too much time complaining about the study load we had (yeah, it's a lot, but what did you expect?), and my PET PEEVE was students that complained that some instructor "had it out for them." It just sounded like such a cop-out. Then, 2nd semester, I was assigned a clinical teacher that:

-kept me (& me alone) after clinical every night for at least an hour

-pulled me (& me alone) aside about 5 times during the 8-week clinical to tell me that she was going to fail me :argue:

-questioned whether or not I should even be a nurse:cry:

-accused me of cheating with my clinical paperwork (and didn't even acknowledge she was wrong when I proved to her that I hadn't been cheating) :eek:

-made me cry countless times in class

-treated every question I had as if it were the stupidest thing she'd ever heard (I once asked what "DJD" stood for and she replied, "Didn't you take skills last semester?") :banghead:

-faulted me for not turning in assignments on time while giving other students extended deadlines for the exact same assignments

-accused me of "acting" stupid because I was "too lazy" to complete her assignments when I told her that I didn't understand what she wanted

-once ranted and raved about how I didn't know the systemic effects for some eye drops I was to administer, even though she herself had to consult four or five different drug books herself before she could even find what side effects she was so angry I didn't know:smackingf

I could go on and on and on. It was a nightmare. I left clinical crying almost every night. :crying2: What made it so much worse was that this instructor was SO RESPECTED by the staff, as well as all the other students. I felt it had to be me; that she was right - I shouldn't be going into nursing school, that I must be really stupid if she was accusing me of acting dumber than I really was, etc. I prepared myself for failing her clinical, which would have meant sitting out of the nursing program for an entire year until I was able to retake it again.

Towards the end of this clinical, I finally confided in a couple students about how horribly the teacher thought I was doing and they were SHOCKED. They had no idea I was struggling so much, because they saw nothing wrong with my clinical skills. Judging by the way this woman talked about my clinical performance, I thought for sure that everyone else could see how awful I was doing and how stupid I was, but it just wasn't true. Talked to a couple more students and found out that this instructor, as "wonderful" :saint: as she was, was known for picking out one student with each class and raking them over the coals. It wasn't until that day she accused me of cheating on my clinical assignments and I proved her wrong and she refused to even acknowledge that she'd made a mistake:nono: that I started to realize that she was the problem, not me.

Eventually, after jumping through about ten extra hurdles she set up for me:bugeyes: , this instructor did decide to pass me. More importantly, I've since had two other eight week clinicals with two different instructors and received As in both of them. I sat down with one of these clinical instructors for my evaluation and confided in her about my previous clinical experience and asked her if she saw any of these traits (stupidity, laziness, academic dishonesty, etc.) that my other instructor had felt the need to point out so many times and this instructor said absolutely not and suggested that perhaps there was just something about me that rubbed that other instructor the wrong way.

So, that's my story. Moral being that you can't let one person (even an incredibly respected instructor with decades of experience) question your dedication to nursing or your skills and knowledge. Good luck to you and STICK WITH IT! You'll be amazed at how fast time flies by and how quickly you won't be worrying about instructors, and clinicals, but how in the world you're ever going to pass that state board exam!:thankya:

AfloydRN, BSN, RN · Nov 26, 2006

I would be happy to share my knowledge w/ you. Let me know how I can help.

snowfreeze, BSN, RN · Nov 26, 2006

Glad to just chat with a student nurse if that would help. I had two seasoned nurses as friends when I was a student, one had her masters and worked home care the other had a BSN and worked pediatrics and neonate.

snortzmom · Nov 26, 2006

I am a nursing student too and am graduating in May God willing.. :balloons: I had the same problem 1st semester and half of 2nd. Prof's do pick favorites and it is unfortunate, but that is life. They can also make or break you. My best advice is to get a part time job/ "as neeeded (PRN)" position/externship at the hospital where you do your clinicals-if you don't already have one. I noticed that I was going to have to work 150% for everyone else's 80%. But once the clinical instructor noticed (she was told via school faculty-word gets around quick) that I turned the negative into a positive I am now probably one of the most respected people in the class and she hasn't messed with me since. It wasn't easy (I am currently taking 18 units AND working 24 hours a week) but it comes down to how bad you want it. I'm sorry she singled you out, it is a horrible feeling, but it is also a great opportunity for positive change.

CHATSDALE · Nov 26, 2006

been there, no fun at all

but you will survive, try and be as invisable as possible...get your work done and only contribute in class when specifically askedd the semester will be over and you will go on to another instructior hopefully with a little more class

sming · Dec 10, 2006

Hang in there, know your drugs inside and out, know the proceedures and what you are expected to do. Don't take it personal, like sombody else said it is not forever. We all have had an instructor from hell, but you know after about 10, 15 years if your still in nursing you may look back, and see that she or he may have been the best thing for you. I was just talking the other day about a Miss McIntosh, everybody had diarrhea with her, she was tough, but, I now appreciate it, I think she was aware of what she was doing, I had a real tough time with her, and really felt she was out to get me out. I stuck to my guns, studied and studied, I was ready for any question she could through at me. Now after all these years, I can say she was a very good instructor. I hated her, but thanks I give to her, funny eh!