Our latest group of students passing through prompts this question. Here are a few of mine:
1. If the nurses have no where to sit and chart, and 5 of you are sitting gossiping-GET YOUR TAIL UP!
2. If you are capable of doing it, like passing trays and answering call light, then- DO IT! Don't reply it isn't your patient. You aren't my student either, but when you ask me a question I don't make that my response, do I? Help me out, and I'll be better able to help you.
3. At your level, in and out the patients room in 3 minutes is probably not a good assessment. Especially when you tell me that the patient has a reg heart rate, and his admitting diagnosis is new onset A-Fib.
4. Reading a Stephen King book in the nurses station is a bad idea, and you look like you don't care. As does playing solitare on the computer in OUR breakroom.
5. If you have had a patient for two days, and he is your only patient, you should be able to tell me the diagnosis. You should also know a fair amount about his medications. At least read your drug guide before coming to clinicals.
I could go on and on. This new group we have takes the lazy/stupid cake!
BTW - I love having students that are motivated and are truely there to learn.
I can certainly understand being upset with students reading or playing solitaire. That is absolutely unacceptable.
I must say though that when I was a student, we didn't know what we could do or were allowed to do. I know if someone is standing around it doesn't look like they are under a lot of pressure, but clinicals always stressed me out. I always felt the hospital we went to was confusing - I was doing good to find the unit I was suppose to be on each time, let alone find anything else to do. I was forever opening wrong doors to find the supply closets, dirty linens, etc. Plus, as students, we didn't know that floors routines, nor any of the staff. Also, as we got to our last year of school we were lectured AGAINST doing 'aide' work. Now, I know every nurse is responsible for their patients, and I do help do anything my patients require (yes, we are all responsible for making beds, cleaning the patient up, etc.), but in school, we were advised against it. We were told to spend our time learning what 'nurses do' and were not to give the patients baths, etc. Just another possible side to things - but absolutely NO reading non-nursing related books or playing solitaire.
I agree...when I started nursing school...we had preconference in the morning and they sent you off to your floor...without a clue as to what we were suppose to do,other than do not do skills you have not checked off on...I had no previous hospital experience, no family members that were nurses, never been in the hospital for illness, etc. So I definitely felt like I was in everyones way and I'm sure I looked like I was lazy...For most part... the nurses had no time to give us much input, because they were so busy. So yeah...there are alot of students who are lazy, but some honestly just do not know what they are allowed to do and not do.
I have worked in a V.A hospital all my life teaching all types of students, Medical,Nursing,Lab. etc. and for the most part would always take the students and enjoy teaching them.
Not all Nurses are good teachers for students and that is O.K. We all have our limits and have to function within those limits.
Remember You never know the impack Your actions may have on others both good and bad. We were all students at one time.
Just wondering...have you had any positive experiences with students that you could share?
Perhaps nurses with complaints about students could request that your facility compose a list of expectations that students AND staff are asked to sign prior to the rotation so that everyone has a clear understanding of what is expected.
I have read quite a bit of the replies and I just wanted to mention something...
I just graduated and (very clearly) remember my clinical experiences. Every single time I walked into the hospital, I just wanted the nurses to treat with enough respect to be able to come up to me and ask me to do something when they saw me walking slowly in the halls or helping one of my peers during "down time." To me, that meant that they had enough trust in me and my skills to get certain tasks done. I looked up so much to my nurses!! (Granted, I would hunt them down during "down time," as well, asking over and over, "what can I do to help out" or "got anything you would like me to assist you with?")
I think there is no excuse for reading in clinicals...but sometimes students are standing around because the nurses do not want them to do anything for their patients (which really translates to me as, "i don't want your help, because you'll probably just F- something up, and then I'll have to deal with the repercussions."
so, in short...take us under your wing! If we ask you if you need any help...let us help you! If you see us sitting around, approach us and ask us to perform or help perform a task! There was SO much confusion on the floors, that sometimes lines just got crossed in terms of the "who, what, where". Please be patient with us, and allow us the opportunity to look up to you and become our leaders. After all, clinical seemed, at least to me, a paramount time to learn by example.
i have just completed my last semester of clinicals (i graduate next month - yeah!). here are my thoughts...
1) students who are in fundamentals (first semester) are terrified of being on the floor & answering bells. it is so intimidating to most (i am an aide, so not so much for me). i'm not sure if the nurses realize that, and instead view the hesitation as trying to avoid working.
2) i have had an aide hand me a stack of linen and tell me that mr. jones' bed needs to be changed (she was hanging out in the nurses station). i was leaving the floor a meal break (yes, i know nurses in the real world don't get breaks, but we were required, and required to do our best to stay on schedule) and told her so. she told me, "then give these to whichever student is covering for you". that's just an example of the types of experiences we've had with aides. i had clinical at 5 hospitals, and it's not always like this, but i've actually had aides cheer "yes!" when they find out i have one of their patients. on the other hand, i go out of my way to thank aides and help when i can because that, too, is something we need to do as nurses (and because i understand what they do). for those students who feel they aren't here to do aide work - remember when you graduate that aides are invaluable to you, and will give more to the nurses who appreciate them and treat them as human beings.
3) i actually had a nickname at this last clinical, because twice i said to a nurse "can i take your incoming admit?" and both times, there were orders for soapsuds enemas til clear! so she called me soapsuds at the end, but it was clear that she appreciated initiative. however, there was at least one other student in this same clinical who would avoid work, never answered bells, sat around. he was spoken to by our clinical instructor (as it should be). young and arrogant. but i digress....
4) i know there is a huge level of frustration about staffing right now, so i'd like all nurses who deal with students to consider something. there were 2 hospitals at which i took clinical which are both very close to my home but which i refused to apply to, because of my experience with the nursing staff during clinicals. if you are "too busy" to help students or to even be polite to them, you're not helping your staffing issues.
5) like someone else mentioned, there were nurses who would seek us out if they had something interesting going on. i so admired and appreciated those nurses, and you can guess which ones i went to first to see if there were any tasks i could take off of their plate.
6) this last clinical was on a med/surg floor with a lot of fast turnovers, so we were not given our assignments until pre-conference. it would have been nice to have been given the opportunity to study their h&p ahead of time, but it wasn't realistic.
7) sadly, i have found the recent grads to be some of the rudest of the nursing staff. there is no excuse for that, and it proves nothing but your level of arrogance.
there isn't much coherency in my above points, but i could sum it up by saying that in my clinical experience, i learned a lot about the kind of nurse i want to be - and the kind of nurse i don't. whether you are aware of it or not, you are influencing the students on your unit. how you are influencing them is up to you.
Specializes in Med-Surg, Neuroscience, Home Health Care.
As a new graduate, I can tell you that all you have to do is say something to the nursing instructor in charge of the students. My nursing school put up with NO NONSENSE from us. Also, you just need to nicely but firmly tell the gossippers to move it so you can do your own work. If you feel that telling the instructor in charge will not do any good, believe me, you can call and complain to the dean of nursing of that school and that will take care of it PRONTO! Schools are desperate to gain and retain clinical locations for their students...there simply are not enough medical facilities available to schools anymore.
As far as going and answering random call lights all over the floor, it's not a good idea to have nursing students doing that. They don't have report on what's happening in those rooms.
The real problem with the call light scenario is that hospitals simply don't hire enough paid staff to handle the patient load. You cannot expect nursing students to be able to do everything that they haven't been trained for, unsupervised, and students need their instructors' permission to be in certain rooms. They get daily assignments that they are supposed to adhere to, because everything they do falls under the nursing license of the instructor. I'm sure you remember how difficult it is to hunt down the instructors from when YOU were a STUDENT YOURSELF.
One last thing, students aren't getting paid for any of their work. It's unreasonable to expect nursing students to run and do everything all day, 7 or 8 hours a day. Not gonna happen. Trust me, you remember.
For those who went to school some time ago, nursing students DID run and do everything all day... not just 7-8 hrs per day, but 5-6 days per week! They were essentially full-time staff, not just visiting the floor for a few weeks, and without as many liability concerns. Student nurses used to pratically run the floors on their own. For folks who graduated from programs like that, no wonder they think today's students and new grads are hopelessly behind the curve. But they have to face the reality that that is how nurses are being trained these days and may not be able to apply their own student experience to where students are at today.
Qualification: I'm basing this on what I've read and heard about nursing education as my own educational experience was of the modern relatively-low-clinical-practice type. So please correct any misconceptions I may have!
I am an older student, going back to school to work toward a new career. Consequently, I have a great deal more life experience than many of my fellow students. To me, it's common sense to take advantage of the limited clinical hours we have at our disposal. It also seems logical that the more you help others, the more they will be inclined to help you. (Not to mention the fact that it's just the right thing to do.)
Unfortunately, many of the younger students have never had anyone tell them that it's unprofessional to use a cell phone at work, stand around doing nothing, or chit-chat with everyone unless on break. They often simply wait to be told what to do because that's all they know. Encourage them to take initiative - give them a few words of simple "common sense" advice - it's quite possible that no one ever has before. What an incredible opportunity to encourage someone's success!
I will be starting clinicals soon, and I can't wait. I'm looking forward to the opportunity to learn beyond the textbook and get that critical experience. Once I'm out in the "real world," I don't want to be the one wishing I had learned more when I had the chance. And while I'm always the first to offer to do anything at all I can to help - including the less than pleasant duties (which are just as important to learn) - I hope the staff understands that I have very little time to learn a great deal. If you need my assistance - please ask, and know that I'm glad to help. Just please don't take advantage of my being there to make your job easier at the expense of my education. I can only afford to do this once - as is the case with most of us.
And remember - you have the opportunity to help me become a better nurse - and quite possibly a coworker you can count on.
i am currently a nursing student. reading this thread, basically i have been warned about how some "senior nurses" can be. my mom has been a nurse for over 30 years(retired 5 yrs ago,thank god!:bowingpur).she tried to talk me out of becoming a nurse because of alot of unprofessionalism thats in the hospitals. i wear my heart on my sleeve and i can be a little emotional at times. she told me she has seen where senior nurses have deliberately gave new nurses a hard time. knowing that thier skills and knowledge are limited. she says many senior nurses are intimidated and often jealous of new nurses. because they may be younger,higher starting salaries and often these new nurses are taught updated ways to give care to patients. the best advice she gave to me is" research the school,see where they assign you to do clinicals,when job searching,ask around to see what hospitals offer intense and indepth orientations.make sure the nurses are supportive and most of all you don.
love ya mom:heartbeat
*im so glad im gonna be a correctional nurse. that environment i know well..(former co)
I can see both the students and staff nurses view. I have been a staff nurse for 24 years, and still remember how I felt in clinicals. Now, I am the Unit Education Coordinator in the Children's hospital where I work, AND a CLINICAL INSTRUCTOR.
From the students point of view, they may be new to nursing entirely. It may be a second career for them. If this is their first clinical assignment, I would expect them to be hesitant to jump in. It is important to have each clinical group get a good unit orientation and what is expected of them on the unit, needs to be put out in plain site. Let the Nursing Instructor know you are having a problem. Isn't that what the Instructor is there for-both for the students and the staff?
But...if I see my students sitting around, they end up doing paperwork related to Pediatric Growth and Development, Med administration routes (po, IM, IV, ET, PR each one seperately), and they are also required to have their charting up to date at the time I see them. If this isn't enough to keep them busy, then I have them follow another staff nurse and help him/her with their pt care. That includes suctioning, tube feedings, meds (and they better know what and why they are giving it), wound care, assisting with Surgery pt arrivals to the floor. I also expect them to be in their pts room whenever the staff nurse, Doctor, ANP, or any ancillary dept is in the room, how else will they know what is going on with their pt? If they cannot do that, they have additional work at home, a write-up of the Pathophysiology of their pt illness/diagnosis. Each student is also required to do a Process Recording and Play Therapy on one of their pt's during the clinical rotation. They will be sent home and flunk the clinical day, if they cannot answer my questions about their pt, and refuse to do the disease write-up, if I feel it is needed.
Tell me I am mean, but I have had students tell me they learned so much, because of what I had them do. I can also be understanding with the students, such as a death in the family, unexpected surgery, personal or family illness, etc. Each situation requires a different response from me. I also ask them to look at not just the Pediatric patient, but the parent/caregiver as the pt too. Both will be treated with respect and compassion. My first class graduates next weekend. I still get hugs and Thank-you's from the students and hospital staff, too.
I agree, you can't learn if you are not at the bedside. My daughter graduated in May, and I instruct for her school. The other instructors demand the same from the students as I do. My daughter says people always come to her to ask questions, because she knows the answers. Isn't that what nursing is: caring for the pt/family, answering questions, teaching others, being compassionate to your pt/families and staff, and continuing to learn yourself, even after you graduate. If you stop wanting to learn, teach, and be compassionate to others, then you need to find another line of work. :wink2:
Suggest students try to remember that other nursing staff are very busy with their patients. Please try to stay out of their way so they can do their work, and confine your questions to your assigned nurses. If you have time, let other nurses know if you are willing to help.
:twocents:
blueiwahine
203 Posts
I agree...when I started nursing school...we had preconference in the morning and they sent you off to your floor...without a clue as to what we were suppose to do,other than do not do skills you have not checked off on...I had no previous hospital experience, no family members that were nurses, never been in the hospital for illness, etc. So I definitely felt like I was in everyones way and I'm sure I looked like I was lazy...For most part... the nurses had no time to give us much input, because they were so busy. So yeah...there are alot of students who are lazy, but some honestly just do not know what they are allowed to do and not do.