What does the floor really think of nursing students?

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Hi everyone.

I am a third semester nursing student and just recently started working as a PCA/PCT in the same hospital system as my clinical site.

I have noticed during my PCA orientation that the hospital that I work at isn't "nursing student friendly" or "new nurse friendly". There have been a couple of instances like.. there have been comments by PCAs and nurses about new grad nurses not knowing something, or I have noticed nursing students having a hard time being paired with a preceptor because no one wanted a nursing student.

The following is rant.. I don't mention that I am in school however, during my last shift on orientation my PCA preceptor asked me if I was in school and I told her I was. She began to congratulate me on being a PCA before becoming a nurse because some nurses have no idea what they are doing. I responded that I just want to be a good nurse and appreciate the opportunity. Before the shift ended the entire floor knew I was in nursing school and when giving report to the oncoming pca she basically was telling me to not work on that floor because new nurses usually sink than swim on that floor and that there were too many cardiac drips for a new nurse to handle. Maybe it was just advice but it just felt like she was trying to intimidate me because the floor was no different than the other med-surg floors I had been training on (I am a PCA in float pool). There's more to it but rant over.

Just to say, I have been a CNA for two years before getting this job. I am not scared of hard work and always try my best. I am a pretty good student I try to study as much as I can to be a bad *** nurse one day lol. I feel confident in doing my job as a PCA but feel like I would be judged if I mentioned that I was in nursing school. People/professors have told me that when you work as a pca while in nursing school the nurses are nicer and let you do more things but it doesn't seem like that's the case in that hospital. To be honest, now when I get asked I say that I am not in school : (

I just feel like there's a bad connotation about nursing students/new grads at that hospitals. I am just curious is this normal feeling on the floors and I have been oblivious to it? Maybe my particular hospital has had bad experiences with nursing students?

Sorry if this was long or didn't make sense... just curious.

Specializes in Critical Care.
On 12/1/2019 at 11:57 AM, Here.I.Stand said:

I would expect the CI to be watching his/her students closely enough to notice themselves ?

I keep reading that clinical placements are competitive, and that schools need to be on their best behavior etc.... how are facilities ok with absentee CIs??

This student was on their very final clinical placement, for which this school of nursing does not require a clinical instructor's physical presence. They come up periodically during the week to see how the student has been doing, but it's an experience where the student is assigned to a nurse, follows their schedules/assignments, and perform nursing skills under the one nurse's direction. It's seen as a stepping stone to new grad orientation.

Many students complain that they need their phones to look up information, but all the computers have Micromedex, UptoDate, and Google very easily available.... not sure what your phone can offer that's better than all of that. Also, I constantly see them scrolling through Instagram, which is not going to give them any trustworthy information about pathophysiology, medications, how to manage lines, compatibility of drips, etc. and have literally never seen a student using Epocrates or any other medical education app. So the "Oh, I need it to look things up" excuse is a crock IMO. I got through school without my phone with no issues, graduated in 2018 so it wasn't that long ago!

Like I said... I absolutely love a receptive student. I had one a few months ago who helped me tremendously with my very unstable patient whose belly surgery had gone bad and she had more questions for me than I knew how to keep up with. My day went more slowly than I'm used to but it was okay because I could see her learning. Be that student :)

1 Votes

My worry is more that my goal in getting a job as a PCT is it to be as an entry way to when I graduate nursing school. That I would be able to work hard and be able to get offered a new grad nurse job... and it is disappointing to know what they think of nursing students/new grads (at least on the floors I have been floated on).

and yes I know I can't be picky and I will be thankful for any opportunities ... I would just like to feel welcomed and supported when I am a new nurse. However recently I was floated to PCU/ICU floor and really liked the environment, nurses, and patients so I will keep an open mind and pushing it forward. Thank you everyone.

0 Votes
On 12/1/2019 at 10:57 AM, Here.I.Stand said:

... how are facilities ok with absentee CIs??

someone is sleeping with the CI. Or something like that. LOL

0 Votes
Specializes in Telemetry.
7 hours ago, superduper said:

My worry is more that my goal in getting a job as a PCT is it to be as an entry way to when I graduate nursing school.

PCT’s play a HUGE role on the floor. Work hard, do your job well, and you will get noticed and it will help you come graduation, should you want to get hired there. Plus you’ll be establishing rapport with the other staff and that will serve you too.

1 Votes
Specializes in NICU.
On 11/27/2019 at 5:18 PM, superduper said:

I am not scared of hard work and always try my best.

This might be your problem,it is annoying to some if you appear over confident.Work hard,be humble,keep your personal business to yourself.The grapevine does exist.

0 Votes

It depends. As a new nurse (20 years ago) I loved having students - but back then I was expected to take 8 high-acuity stepdown patients with one PCT. Needless to say, this was an impossible assignment (in a certain for-profit hospital I won't name). The only time I ever had a good day was when we had student nurses on the floor - with their instructor who supervised their med passes.

Years later I worked in an inpatient facility a 1:6 nurse:patient ratio... trust me I didn't have a moment to spare. My manager was always on me to "leave on time" although she knew (if she had any sense) that it was impossible with the workload (which included, ofc, admissions and discharges so I often had to chart on >6 patients (in great detail, as was expected there; not a hospital).

So I hate to say it but I hated having to take a student nurse (no one wanted them for the same reason and whomever the charge nurse liked least got stuck with the student. At least that's how I - and others I talked to - felt). This had nothing to do with the students themselves, but simply the fact that they made our day so much harder (not knowingly, of course, most were very nice and eager to learn). They didn't have instructors with them or even in the building.

It's really sad, I really like to teach and certainly don't want to perpetuate what was done to me as a new grad (yes, they ate their young back in the late 90's). It is entirely because I simply did not have enough time and a student put me even further behind.

I wish it could have been different.

2 Votes
4 hours ago, DeLana_RN said:

I wish it could have been different.

It could be different. If nursing schools would stop dumping students on the already over-burdened staff nurses expecting them to be de-facto (not to mention gratis) clinical instructors and instead place smaller groups of students with an instructor who was both present and engaged then we wouldn't be having this discussion over and over.

7 Votes
Specializes in Public Health, TB.
4 hours ago, Wuzzie said:

It could be different. If nursing schools would stop dumping students on the already over-burdened staff nurses expecting them to be de-facto (not to mention gratis) clinical instructors and instead place smaller groups of students with an instructor who was both present and engaged then we wouldn't be having this discussion over and over.

It also helps if the facility is willing to train students and CIs on how to use the EMR. The local hospital switched from the system that I had worked with for 15 years to another shortly after I left. When I returned with students 3 months later, they flat out refused to give us any training, the user guide provided was for lab workers, and none of our assigned access coded worked. You can imagine that the floor staff was furious to have a student who wasn't familiar with the charting system.

1 Votes

I always thought I would hate having students, but now that I’ve had a few, I either love it or just don’t mind. The couple I’ve loved have been an extra set of hands and I just explain stuff as I’m doing it. The ones who I just didn’t mind, didn’t really seem too interested in doing anything, but I really couldn’t care less about that. It’s their education and if they disappear, well, whatever.

0 Votes

We typically like our student nurse associates, and hope they apply to be RNs when they're done with nursing school. I find the SNAs are usually more eager than the CNAs and are more likely to notice clinically appropriate changes and pass it on to me earlier. Not that some of the CNA don't, but they're a bit more of a mixed bag.

That said, having a SN shadow me for a shift can be hard. It's definitely more work to show what I'm doing or explain what I'm doing than just to do it. I actually enjoy teaching, so when I've got a good assignment, I'm happy to have a SN. However, when I'm swamped, I'm probably going to groan inwardly when charge tells me I have a student.

Having a student divides my attention. No matter how eager and/or unobtrusive a student is, it's still a distraction. On the days when we're short staffed, I'm probably barely keeping my head above water doing the minimum, and a student adds yet another thing to my to-do list.

Now, if you've got a clinical instructor who stays with you and does things with you, that's great. If you're doing one of my med passes with the CI so I can go on to another patient, awesome. If you and your CI want to do a dressing change, you have my utmost thanks.

But if you're just dropped on me with no warning on a busy day, it's probably going to be stressful for me, and unfulfilling for you.

1 Votes
On 12/4/2019 at 9:31 PM, Leader25 said:

This might be your problem,it is annoying to some if you appear over confident.Work hard,be humble,keep your personal business to yourself.The grapevine does exist.

I find this response to be surprising. I never minded a hardworking student. Additionally, I didn't understand @superduper to say that they are overconfident. They said they are hard working and they try their best. Granted, too many nit-picky questions can be annoying during a busy shift, but as a preceptor I always welcomed questions.

"Keep your personal business to yourself"? I don't understand where this comment came from.

0 Votes
On 12/5/2019 at 6:31 AM, Wuzzie said:

It could be different. If nursing schools would stop dumping students on the already over-burdened staff nurses expecting them to be de-facto (not to mention gratis) clinical instructors and instead place smaller groups of students with an instructor who was both present and engaged then we wouldn't be having this discussion over and over.

I have a theory that other unnamed entities are just as happy with the arrangement as the nursing schools are. If it were really about schools just not doing their duty, said entities would be all over it; those contracts are held over educational insitutions' heads like an ax perpetually about to fall.

Control over everything is the name of the game. And why worry about the burden to a staff member; that is historically proven to be a non-concern.

0 Votes
+ Add a Comment