pet peeves when nursing students arrive

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I was reading the pet peeves thread and decided to start this one and see if I could get any advice for what TO DO and NOT TO DO in clinicals.

So...

What pet peeves do you have about nursing students?

What are things you wish ns would do?

sandan rnstudent

Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
ruby, i sure do wish i could double kudo you sometimes! ivanna

thank you -- i'm so flattered!

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Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
i can see this person is not the nurse you want to be in clinicals with. too bad you have such a bad attitude and feel that we students are taking up more of your time and think we are problem children. i hope to never be in your patient room :/ so much for "supporting other fellow nursing students" !! :mad:dislike:mad:

you don't get it, purplcav. students do take up more of my time, especially if i'm actively trying to teach them something. many students are problem children. . . no need to list the ways in this particular thread, but if you buy me a beer, i'll tell you stories that would curl your hair. and i don't understand the dig about "supporting other fellow nursing students." i'm not a nursing student, so i wouldn't be supporting "other fellow nursing students anyway." i have no fellow nursing students.

but it's ok, sweetie. if you don't want to be with me you'll make a lot of other students very happy. i'm told that everyone wants me as a preceptor. i'd like to think it was for my teaching skills, but i suspect it's for the entertainment value.

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Ruby Vee, I need you in my life ;) !

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Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
ruby "enjoys having students around" so she can sigh, become aggravated while her bad attitude rubs off on us new students? we take up her time rather than being a mentor and being patient with us? that is what it seems to me. no thank you!:yawn:

i would not encourage you to come to my hospital. we preceptors spend our time trying to teach good, safe nursing practice to new grads, many of whom assume that they already know everything and many of whom don't think we have anything to contribute because we've been out of school so long. i can assure you that i'm well read and current, but maybe you'd rather be with betsey sue over there. she's been out of nursing school a year, off of precepting for six months and is only now starting to figure out things like "cacl and bicarb aren't compatible" or "ms given iv might make you hypotensive or make you upchuck and isn't really ready for anything like that to happen. she's real cute and she's real nice, but betsey sue isn't the brightest bulb in the pack. so come to work, enjoy your time with her and leave -- hopefully undersstanding that you really didn't learn anything. it's your choice.

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Specializes in TCU, LTC/Rehab.
you don't get it, purplcav. students do take up more of my time, especially if i'm actively trying to teach them something. many students are problem children. . . no need to list the ways in this particular thread, but if you buy me a beer, i'll tell you stories that would curl your hair. and i don't understand the dig about "supporting other fellow nursing students." i'm not a nursing student, so i wouldn't be supporting "other fellow nursing students anyway." i have no fellow nursing students.

but it's ok, sweetie. if you don't want to be with me you'll make a lot of other students very happy. i'm told that everyone wants me as a preceptor. i'd like to think it was for my teaching skills, but i suspect it's for the entertainment value.

ruby,

i'll buy you a beer or two if you teach me some of your skills!!

:cheers:

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OMG!!! I have just gone from nervous to petrified!:chair: I've never been one to not ask questions, but what if I ask too many? Then I'm in your way. I want to see and/or do everything I can, but I don't want to be the pesky little sister. What's not enough? What's too much? Hopefully, I will know when I get there, but I'm nervous as heck right now.:cry:

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Specializes in Gerontology.

i'll tell you stories that would curl your hair.

i hear ya ruby. i had a student in his last semester - he thought it would be acceptable to give a bed bound, palliative pt a bed bath using paper towels!! lets just says i went up one side of him, down the other and he never pulled that crap again. it took me his whole rotation with me - 4 very long months, but i cured him of his "short cut" nursing!

in fact, at one point we had some 1st semester nursing students on the floor who saw me quizzing him, riding him, etc . they said to him "your preceptor is mean". he replied "no, she just wants me to learn".

so all you nsg students out there - we seasoned, old nurses may appear to be "mean" at times, but really, we are just trying to teach you - and sometimes that only way to reach you is to be "mean".

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Specializes in Professional Development Specialist.

The clinical experience is what you make of it. Students we had one day learned a TON thanks to a good instructor with high expectations They were motivated and made themselves available. Students the next day (same school and same semester) learned NOTHING. Their clinical instructor showed up late and left early. They zoned out when you talked and were too busy "reading charts" when you had something interesting they could learn/see/do. Yes, we are not ER or ICU but you can learn a lot of valuable lessons if you try, and in this market a SNF is probably the best you can hope for if you ever want to work as a nurse.

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Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
ruby,

i'll buy you a beer or two if you teach me some of your skills!!

:cheers:

how about a blue moon?

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OMG!!! I have just gone from nervous to petrified!:chair: I've never been one to not ask questions, but what if I ask too many? Then I'm in your way. I want to see and/or do everything I can, but I don't want to be the pesky little sister. What's not enough? What's too much? Hopefully, I will know when I get there, but I'm nervous as heck right now.:cry:

Nurses LOVE when students want to learn !! :) You won't seem at all pesky if you honestly want to learn- and we know the difference :D Enough= how many you need. Too much = only if you're ignoring me the first few times. :) Just show up willing to learn all you can- you'll be OK!!

C'mon now- come out from under the chair :D

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Specializes in None yet.

Well I would just like to thank all the nurses for the input. As a student I never realiaed that it was more work but it all makes sense now its like for those of us who have younger siblings or realtives we sometimes dread taking them out cause we know they will slow us down.

PS Purplecav Ruby Vee just simply stated the other side of the equation we talk about how horrible a nurse was but I never thought that they also get horrible students (not saying that 2 wrongs make a right at all)

Also 2011nursetobe I undertstand its a great tool to have but its not soemthing to be dependant on and to "whip out" esp not in front of the patient its really impersonal (unless you have the pt looking with you at the site, that is if it is really important to look up at that given moment)

Once again thank you for all the grat input :)

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Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
omg!!! i have just gone from nervous to petrified!:chair: i've never been one to not ask questions, but what if i ask too many? then i'm in your way. i want to see and/or do everything i can, but i don't want to be the pesky little sister. what's not enough? what's too much? hopefully, i will know when i get there, but i'm nervous as heck right now.:cry:

common sense and direct commuication. don't expect the preceptor to spoon feed you the answers. it takes too much time and you don't learn anything anyway.

look things up on your own -- even if you still have to ask question, your preparation should show.

don't interrupt cpr to ask the doctor whether the tylenol he's ordered for a temp > 38.5 can also be given for a headache. trust me, it can. just give it.

take care that your questions are appropriate and asked at the appropriate sign. don't embarrass the patient or the preceptor.

prioritize. we know you won't be good at it yet, but please try.

if we're all in mrs. thumbilina's room peering into her 8 inch deep sacral decub, it is not the time to decide to ask the question about what mr. cranky down the hall can have for lunch.

feel free to ask me questions, but if you see me start flipping my hair back over and over that's the sign that i'm overstimulated. make sure it's a smart, appropriate and well researched queston that isn't going to make me heave.

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