Student nurse/caring for disabled individual

[MONnurseUD]

Greetings,

I am currently in my sophomore year of school and have seen many opertunities to immerse myself in healthcare settings. One of the job offers going around my program is the offer to assist in the care for a disabled individual who needs gastric feedings, medications and other procedures I am not familiar with at this time. The family states that they can teach these techniques. Our program is designed to learn these skills in our junior year classes. One thing I feel uncomfortable about is the administration of medication/especially through a G tube, something I haven't learned yet. Is this something to be concerned about, plus dispensing medications without a nursing license is frowned upon, correct?

I'm sure seasoned nurses have stories like this one when they started school, and how they got to work their way up to the clinical setting.

[caliotter3]

While the general public can be hired into such positions without the benefit of possessing a nursing license or even a CNA or CHHA certificate, as a nursing student, if it were me, I would avoid the same. It sounds like a good opportunity but better to play it safe. And the fact that the family seeks help at the nursing school tells me they are willing to pay less than they would a member of the general public. Just because you are a student does not mean that you are available to be taken advantage of.

[Avill, BSN, RN]

The only thing that comes to the top of my head, is that you may get confused on the "right way" to do a skill. You learn the correct way in school, and well, when you work on the floor or in the real world it's a little different.

So just be careful, personally I think it would be good experience even if they don't pay you as much as a nurse. Why don't you ask one of you professors what they think?

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

You can be a PCA as a nursing student. Administering medications via G-tube is not a hard thing to do. Presumably the family are not medical personnel and they do it. I've taught some parents who can barely tie their own shoes to do it. In my state anyone can be a PCA as families of disabled individuals who are approved for PCA hours recruit, hire and train their own PCAs. In many cases, it's someone in the family (a sibling or grandparent) who serves as the PCA. In my state these people are also paid by the state, the family doesn't decide on their own wages. It's not a very high paying job though so the hours can be difficult to fill. My best friend has hours for her 4 year old who has CP and I have, in the past, encouraged her to recruit at nursing schools.

A point of clarification- dispensing medication is something that Pharmacists do. Nurses administer medications. You don't need a nursing license to do it, though. Group homes, residential schools, even some LTC facilities will have UAPs administering medications with some training. When I worked in a boarding school, dorm staff (who were usually 1st year teachers) administered all meds after 3:30 pm.

[April5293]

I agree with caliotter3, I would not take any chances that may have an impact on you further down the road. Better safe than sorry.