mdmetz

Simba, No, I didn't know him personally. And you're right, I would've hoped that such behaviors could have been caught prior to actual patient care. And thanks for the feedback, I really appreciate it.

No, I was not the student. He was a 1st year student. The person who overheard the conversation was a student from my group. One of our clinical assignments is to oversee a small group (4) of 1st year students as if we were a charge nurse. We then interact with their clinical instructor, who oversees everything. This all came to light when the patient complained to the unit manager.

I am Nursing student with just over a semester until graduation, and I want your opinion on a situation that happened in clinicals. A first-year student was discharging a patient who happened to be a gun shot wound victim. While he was removing the patient's IV, he was overheard telling the patient to "stop acting like a baby" when the patient complained of pain. He then told the patient that "if he was a big enough man to take a bullet, then he should be able to handle a little tape being pulled off his skin." In the discharge papers the student prepared for the patient, he wrote down that perhaps in the future, the patient should avoid his current friend set, and stay outta trouble to avoid being shot at again. This student knew nothing of the circumstances of the shooting; just offered his "helpful" advice. The patient was, of course, outraged and reported the student to the unit manager. The clinical instructor who is a MSN, NP, was livid. She failed him on the spot and he has been expelled from the nursing program. Although I thoroughly agree that his actions were wrong, I am wondering if the actions taken by the school were appropriate or not. Whaddya think?

Hi Dustin.... I think your parents are right. Get your ADN first. As an R.N. you'll be able to first get your feet wet, and see what you like best. You may decide that a BSN is enough for you and that you have no interest in becoming a CRNA or anything else. Remember that working directly with patients and seeing the impact you have on them is very rewarding! Also, and this is something I learned first hand as I go through my own program, is that you must put all of your energy and time into your studies; a bigger university campus will have many distractions that will interfere with that. Better to stay at home and let your folks help you as much as they can. I have also seen many bridge programs that go from ADN to MSN and skip the BSN altogether. Talk to an advisor at the college and see what is available in your area. The bottom line is 1) Get your R.N. and start working. 2) See what's out there and learn what you like and what you hate. 3) Once you're in the field, then decide what your next step is; don't map out your entire journey without taking a few steps first. Hope this helps.