What are clinicals all about????

[BucklandRN]

What do you do during your clinicals? and do you start clinicals in your first year of nursing school?

[Christina_NICU]

I start on the 30th so I am not sure exactly what clinicals are like, but I am getting my BSN and we start clinicals on the 6 week of the semester. I'm not sure about the other 4 semesters, we might start sooner since this is the first semester and we need an orientation for it.

BucklandRN said:

What do you do during your clinicals? and do you start clinicals in your first year of nursing school?

[chris_at_lucas_RN, RN]

Clinicals is going to a nursing unit and doing things for patients that you have learned in class, and some things you probably didn't learn but can figure out (like straightening a bed or getting them a drink or helping them to the bathroom).

You also get some info about your patient (you start with one and then build up from there) the day before, and you go home and work up a treatment plan, complete with nursing diagnosis (special and different from the medical one--makes more sense and is more patient centered, rather than disease-process centered). You look up the drugs your patient is prescribed, because it is important to know about drugs. You might look up lab values, so you can look and see how those of your patient compare with the "normal" values.

It's really very cool, if you like taking care of patients. If you didn't, you wouldn't be a nursing student, right?

Not to worry about this just yet. They'll give you plenty of time. Just enjoy absorbing everything you can now.

Ah, the joys of the first few weeks....

[BucklandRN]

So you begin clinicals fairly shortly after your first semester of nursing school, or do you take your clinicals in the last year? I'm sure you have to accumulate a little knowledge before they hit you with clinicals...

[All_Smiles_RN]

I started class this week. We start clinicals in 2 months.

...Jennifer...

[earthnurse]

I'm in school for my LPN so I don't know about RN but we started clinicals in our 2nd 1/4. (sfter 3 months of class work.) We are at long-term care facilities first and then we go to the hospitals. We have to do daily assessments, and care plans.

[BucklandRN]

okay, so fairly soon afterwards then... okay so coming up with a care plan, do you collaborate with doctors, or do you do like case studies and tell what you would do and give the patient in a particular situation and like present it to the professor. its pretty much like on the job training right? what if you make a mistake? do you have a parter in all of this?:uhoh21: Does that count against you? do you actually treat patients under supervised conditions? is there anything that we do ourselves without direct supervision besides:rolleyes: paperwork?

[L&D]

hey all just wondering what clinicals are like?

what things do you need?

how was it?

did you have a job while you were doing LPN program If so what is the best job to have(non medical)?

[SK_LPN]

My school clinicals were interesting. I think the hardest part was nerves. I did not like having someone stand over me with eagle eyes! We had a list of skills we had to pass in diff. sections. We did catheterization, removal of drain tubes, IV cath. removal, setting and flushing feeding tubes, etc. I did get to watch an autopsy while in school and that was really interesting! I worked in the hospital on the skilled nursing floor for a few months, now I work at a drug dependency rehab. with many different types of people. Good luck!!!!

SK

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

hey all just wondering what clinicals are like?

My LVN clinicals were not realistic. They did not represent what I would deal with as an actual LVN. During my clinical rotations I would perform full care on 1 or 2 patients. However, the reality is that few nurses perform full care these days. I am a new LVN who administers medications and treatments to 31 patients during my 8 hour shifts at a small nursing home.

what things do you need?

You'll need a stethoscope, medical scissors, notepad, ink pen, and perhaps a book or reference of common medications.

how was it?

It was not representative of reality.

did you have a job while you were doing LPN program If so what is the best job to have(non medical)?

I did not work while completing the LVN program; instead, I collected unemployment checks.

[Fiona59]

My clinicals started off slow doing total care to ensure that we knew and could perform the basics. Then we went back did meds, wound care, etc.

By the end of our clinical time in med/surg (active treatment in general) we were supposed to be able to manage 5 patients on our own shift. That was the LPN load at the time. My meds admin clinical required me to do the LPN job on a Palliative unit (25 to medicate and 3 person care assisgnment).

So, yes I did what was expected of me in my area.

[mhershey]

Hello everyone,

I started LPN school May 1st. Im am going to my first clinical tommorrow, and I am terrified. I am not a CNA, so basically this is all new to me. I just know that when I give someone a shot I will be shaking so hard, and putting in a cathater, Im just about to drive myself crazy worring. Did anyone else have this problem when starting clinicals?

Thanks to anyone who could be me some information, or some words of encouragement!!

Thanks SO much

Michelle