What to expect first year clinicals?

mistiffy · Apr 8, 2008

I'm about 3 weeks away from being done with my first semester of NS and the one piece of advice I can give you is keep up with the reading! As far as clinical goes, we spent this semester in the nursing home. The main focus was the older adult and really just getting to learn the "normals" of everything so that next sem in med/surg we will know what's abnormal. Also we have spent a lot of time learning how to do careplans in clincal this sem. In the nursing home I have performed head to toe assessments (which you will learn 1st sem), passed medications, and given injections, and really learned how to use therapeutic communication with my clients. I know every program is different, but this is how my first sem has went! Good luck and CONGRATULATIONS on getting in a program!

FriendlyGhostRN · Apr 8, 2008

Hi everyone, just wanted to know if anyone cares to share what exactly you did in your first year ( semester) in clinicals? All details are appreciated! I start Aug 19 with clinicals and am trying to be mentally prepared for what will be coming my way!
TIA!

GREAT question!!! Thanks for asking that...I start nursing school on May 12th...sooo almost in a month !! :uhoh21: haha, so I'd love to hear what it's like in the first semester...like examples of what everyone did during clinicals and such! :) Have a nice day everyone!

hopefornursing · Apr 8, 2008

I'm about 3 weeks away from being done with my first semester of NS and the one piece of advice I can give you is keep up with the reading! As far as clinical goes, we spent this semester in the nursing home. The main focus was the older adult and really just getting to learn the "normals" of everything so that next sem in med/surg we will know what's abnormal. Also we have spent a lot of time learning how to do careplans in clincal this sem. In the nursing home I have performed head to toe assessments (which you will learn 1st sem), passed medications, and given injections, and really learned how to use therapeutic communication with my clients. I know every program is different, but this is how my first sem has went! Good luck and CONGRATULATIONS on getting in a program!

Thanks for the info! Can't wait to get a start and finally get going! And congrats to you in getting thru the first semester!!!

vashtee, RN · Apr 8, 2008

First semester was head to toe assessments, vital signs, injections, oral meds, wound care, foley caths (if we could get them). Second semester was the same, plus piggy back meds, G-tube meds, NG tubes. I'm in third semester now, and we are adding IV pushes and starting IVs.

WanaBaNurse · Apr 8, 2008

First semester for us went like this......

Head to toe assessments

Vital Signs

Hygiene and Mobility

NG, PEG, and PEJ tubes

Wound Care

Eye drops, ear drops, and topical medications

Foley catheters

tachybradyRN · Apr 8, 2008

First semester for us, the focus was on assessment and communication (using therapeutic communication techniques which we learned in the first 1-2 months). By the end of the first semester, each of us had performed head to toe assessments and assessed vital signs on our patients, given daily bed baths/assisted baths, feedings, and many of us had the chance to give medications (Sub-Q, PO, OD), as well as follow our patients if they were having procedures done (surgical or diagnostic i.e. radiology dept) The reading was a little tough but SO IMPORTANT to keep up with, as semester one really focuses on the FUNDAMENTALS of nursing care which you will need for the rest of your career.

The second semester of first year has been a heavy emphasis on assessment in more detail; for example, if your patient has emphysema, assessing vitals and doing a thorough head to toe as well as a particularly thorough respiratory assessment and implementing care i.e. teaching use of incentive spirometer, coughing and deep breathing, chest physiotherapy, etc. We also gave baths/feedings, administered oxygen therapy if ordered, and under supervision of our professor, performed sterile dressing changes, d/c'd foley catheters, gave medications and documented patient reactions. I feel like I've been a bigger part of the "health care team" this semester.

Gauge · Apr 8, 2008

I am about to complete the first year of my BSN program (2 more to go....lol). Anyways, the first semester we were in the nursing home about 5-6 times. We were allowed to do all meds except IVs and pain meds. Also we did the therapeutic communication, feeding, VS, linen changing, etc. Basically a CNA except we got to pass a few pills...hah!

Now in my second semester we are in the hospital every week. We can do alot more now and there is alot more going on in the hospital as well. We do meds every week sometimes pain meds (not sure if we are supposed to, but we give them if our instructor gets them out for us after we ask for them), VS q4h, document I+O, head to toe assessment, caths, NG tubes, sterile dressing changes, suctioning, oxygen administration, enemas, all this in addition to last semesters stuff. We are probably able to do a bit more, but I can't think of it atm. What we are able to do and actually do aren't the same though as on the tele floor that we work on doesn't get alot of these things needed. Our instructor is great, she doesn't bother us if we don't bother her. She gets our meds out of the pyxis for us and we tell her about them and we have gotten to the point where she lets us give them without her around...same for injections. I did a sterile wound change last week by myself as well. She is around if we ask or need her and anything like NG tubes or caths or something like that. She also shows us how to do new stuff every week like accuchecks, doplar (for pulses), etc.

EDIT: I guess my nursing school is different but I rarely crack a book open (unless for nursing diagnosis or getting more in depth knowledge). We have power point slides to print out for all of our classes and between that and what is said in class thats whats on the test. Now mind you, it isn't easy by any means...I'm not an A student in nursing school (but noone is in my class hehe).

canidoit · Apr 9, 2008

With three weeks left of my first block of nursing, clinicals went like this:

11 weeks:

med/surg, endo, resp, wound center, the OR, hospice.

We started with assessments, then went on to add NG tubes, foley cathetars, IV starts and DC's, medication administration.

The medical floor is where we did all our patient cares, and the rest of the floors were mainly to observe and see if its an area you are interested in working someday.

4rom2bRN · Apr 9, 2008

If you are not sure about what is required of you during your first clinical, maybe you can ask your instructor for a check list.

Or maybe your instructor has given you an evaluation checklist already and you can use that as your checklist. Know how to take vitals, auscultate for lungs sounds, give patient bath, proper documentation, using NANDA diagnosis when charting. Books to bring for clinical... nanda diagnosis, drug book, and the RN portable. Best books ever!

Good Luck and God Bless!

Kiringat · Apr 9, 2008

We spent 6 weeks in a LTC facility, then 6 on a med/surg floor in a hospital. In LTC it was pretty much CNA work, but we could pass meds and do insulin and other SC injections. They were also big on us getting therapeutic communication down.

When we got to the hospital, the focus was on charting, which was a total nightmare. But we could do alot more as we progressed in labs, including NG tubes, foleys and fun stuff like dressing changes, even though we were mostly still on bedpan duty. Couldn't so much as touch an IV or narcotics. I guess by the end of first semester we were some sort of super CNA type things.

MB37 · Apr 9, 2008

It's different everywhere, apparently. We do all of ours in the hospital, and our Fundamentals semester we didn't pass meds. We instead learned complete H to T assessment, and tons of skills - Foleys, NGs, enemas, wound care, etc. "Second" semester (I'm accelerated, so mine was different) we did our med pour test early, and it included IV, SQ, IM, and PO meds. We could give anything but blood and IV push (prohibited by state law for students to give). We're also checked off on things like chest tube care, central line dressing changes, etc., and we're done with lab - any other new procedures we just learn from our nurse. MS 1 we took care of 2-3 pts on the floor, essentially on our own, using our nurse as a resource when necessary and to supervise our med passing.