Student nurses with disabilities

Penelope_Pitstop, BSN, RN · Mar 10, 2016

I have a history of TBI with subsequent post concussion syndrome that has led to short term memory issues and some difficulty with word finding.

I don't know what your disability/cognitive difficulty/memory impairment entails, but my TBI occurred while I was in high school. I never received any sort of accommodation and I've been successful in a handful of different settings as a nurse.

My only advice is...WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN RIGHT AWAY!

checkmate25 · Mar 10, 2016

As someone who has struggled with learning disabilities since they were six years old practically, there's always room to overcome it! Cheating will get you nowhere, so that should be out of the question....But I find that videos, making flashcards and using apps such as Quizlet really helped improve my memory when it came to exams. Obviously you can't pull out flashcards when a patient is not breathing, but the point of flashcards is to help you remember material, that way when you're in a real situation, it's drilled in your memory....practice makes perfect!! And if you haven't checked already, most schools have a learning center that helps with learning disabilities and they accommodate you based on your needs! You can do it :)

KatieMI, BSN, MSN, RN · Mar 10, 2016

The thing is, "cognitive deficit" can mean apples, cabbages, and everything in between. Poor hearing can be accounted (and often is) as such, but these two conditions have nothing to do with each other. Same goes for anxiety. I regularly work with people who avoid "science" because they were told 50 years ago that they were not good at it. I teach them things like gate theory of pain or what dialysis does with human body, and they understand these complex concepts perfectly well if teaching is done right.

OP needs high-quality assessment and consult, probably with mental health professional, in order to be diagnosed and, if at all possible, treated properly. Quite a few problems can be corrected, one way or another. If her school is cooperative, she might be given individual study schedule and recommended some stable, very low risk environment like large group home where she would not be the only one RN at any moment. When I give reports to nurses working in such facilities, one question (we have to report "meds omittings" for some strange reason) which is coming up repeatedly is why a resident was taken off, say, metoprolol for a week when he was "always" taking it. The fact that the resident went to ER because of sepsis with SIRS does not appear to be self-explanatory... but I learned not to care because so many of these nurses know things I do not. We can call them any time if we have to know right away what this patient used to or what his "normal" behavior is before pushing Haldol on QT already borderline.They are extremely careful, attentive and observant, and they all know their residents inside out and then some more. They cannot manage drips... so what, if they notice changes and call for help BEFORE the drips are needed?

One thing the OP probably needs to avoid for all costs and for long time is environment where she will be the only one RN in the field and on the cold wind. That includes home care, prisons, schools, camps and research, too. I am surprised that it was suggested at all.

nutella, MSN, RN · Mar 10, 2016

Oh Yes Lovely. All of you "Critical Thinkers" had better stay on your game and never make a mistake. Everyone is not Cognitively "on their game." Stop and listen to yourselves for a few. Then continue to pat yourself on the back and while you're at it, go get your medal or trophy for being your perfect little selves. I have been a nurse for a longgg time. We eat YOUR type for dinner. Yes. I agree that if your have moderate to severe cognitive and memory issues that you should think twice about going into any type of hospital or facility nursing. There is home care. They always need home care nurses. You have ONE patient. Please, get over yourselves and stop discouraging someone from the profession just because they can not fit into the mold you have made for yourselves. Not every nurse is designed for acute care. There are many areas that he/she may be a fantastic asset to.

Explorer - I think you have a not accurate picture about home care nursing.

Nowadays patients at home who receive home care are pretty sick. They get discharged with a variety of problems, drains, and so on and forth. While you have only one patient at a time you are by yourself and you have to have very good assessment, teaching , and critical thinking skills.

I have stepped into houses with very challenging situations, which are more and more the norm.

Plus, home care is not a good fit for a new graduate because you have to have a variety of skills including very good assessment skills. Most nurses attain those skills in some form of facility - hospital, long term or acute long term before they are comfortable enough to go into home care.

Home care is not the low down place for people who have cognitive impairment.

OP - have you explored other options in health care or related fields?

ComeTogether, LPN · Mar 10, 2016

Who's to say that one nurse with cognitive deficits isn't just as good as the next nurse without? As long as these deficits were there prior to nursing school it's moot, really.

THELIVINGWORST, ASN, RN · Mar 10, 2016

I'd rather have a nurse with memory impairments taking care of me who is on medication to help the condition, rather then one who is at the bar every week drinking or one who's a pill popper!!!! I want someone wants to be a nurse because they enjoy it. I don't one someone who became a nurse because it pays well!! Those are the nurses who don't care about their patients. Maybe this nurse will require longer time with a nurse preceptor to ensure she's okay! Some people are not good with their memory in certain areas for example maybe she can't remember everything she read from a 50 page medical book but if she performed the tasks explained in the medical book then she will retain the knowledge forever.
Sailor Nurse: For having so many degree's and being so smart on paper, you sure lack common sense! You do not know the entire situation! Furthermore you do not even know her diagnosis or if she even has one! You do not personally know her strengths or weaknesses! If she made it into nursing school and is maintaining her self through school then I don't see any problem with her being a nurse. The drunks and drug addicts are the problem!!!! The nurses who have no compassion for others is the problem.

Not really sure what drug addicts or casual drinking has to do with ability to do the job OR compassion. But no, I think cognitive defects and memory problems would impede the nurses ability to be held accountable for patient outcomes. Accountability is a major part of our job and how can the powers that be hold a nurse with known memory problems and/or cognitive defects accountable?

I do know one nurse who worked very hard after a catastrophic brain injury and had problems reading large blocks of text and took much longer to read and retain information than most. That nurse went on to become valedictorian of our class, however her intention was never to do patient care, but to open a business to help other people with disabilities.

roser13, ASN, RN · Mar 10, 2016

Who's to say that one nurse with cognitive deficits isn't just as good as the next nurse without? As long as these deficits were there prior to nursing school it's moot, really.

No, really. It's not. Taking exams in nursing school doesn't hold a candle to the challenge of real-time, thinking on your feet emergencies. In the middle of a cardiac arrest, the patient will not be making "accommodations" for his nurse to have an extra hour to begin CPR.

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · Mar 10, 2016

Who's to say that one nurse with cognitive deficits isn't just as good as the next nurse without? As long as these deficits were there prior to nursing school it's moot, really.

It completely depends on what "cognitive deficits" the nurse in question has. It's impossible to say it's a moot point without having that pretty important information.

Extra Pickles · Mar 10, 2016

I think until she tells us what her cognitive functioning level is or what the exact problem is everyone is only guessing at what they think she can and can't do which is really a waste of time. I did think of something as I was reading through this though, people like to tell people who have issues or disabilities incompatible with the areas of nursing they work in to go work in another area of nursing, lol, it's really the same everywhere! who here is going to say that they work as a nurse where they don't have to be on the ball and can get through every day without having to be cognitively competent?? to tell someone that a person who is cognitively impaired should work in an easy specialty is really insulting to those who work in that specialty and know they can't be cognitively impaired and stay employed!

OCNRN63, RN · Mar 10, 2016

Oh Yes Lovely. All of you "Critical Thinkers" had better stay on your game and never make a mistake. Everyone is not Cognitively "on their game." Stop and listen to yourselves for a few. Then continue to pat yourself on the back and while you're at it, go get your medal or trophy for being your perfect little selves. I have been a nurse for a longgg time. We eat YOUR type for dinner. Yes. I agree that if your have moderate to severe cognitive and memory issues that you should think twice about going into any type of hospital or facility nursing. There is home care. They always need home care nurses. You have ONE patient. Please, get over yourselves and stop discouraging someone from the profession just because they can not fit into the mold you have made for yourselves. Not every nurse is designed for acute care. There are many areas that he/she may be a fantastic asset to.

It cracks me up when people refer to home care as if it were nothing more than baby sitting. I worked home care for several years; it was hard work, and the patients were sick. The stress of having to see seven or eight people with complex medical issues in a day was unbelievable. You had to be very detail oriented, very organized, to work in home care.

QuiltDog · Mar 10, 2016

I agree with the previous posts regarding home care. I did home hospice for a while and I feel you need good experience prior to entering this field. You encounter so many medical issues, not just related to the terminal dx. You are on your own, with no one to grab for help.

Trauma Columnist · Mar 11, 2016

Moved to Nurses with Disabiities