What do you wish students knew?

[fsaav]

I've read a lot of posts about people being annoyed by some of the things nursing students do or the way they act when on the floor. I'm going to try really hard to avoid being that student so I was hoping that you could share some things that you wish students knew if you could tell them anything.

Thanks.

[Scrubby]

I love having students. Heres my two cents worth:

Please don't ask me questions when I'm right in the middle of something. It's great that students ask questions but there is an appropriate time to do it, not when I'm trying to help with bleeding, extubation etc.

Keep away from anything that is sterile please. If your unsure then ask someone.

Please tell me what nursing actions you have performed on my patient. I have a student at the moment who is really quite excellent but has a habit of doing things without telling me. He has great initiative and will put a diathermy plate and kendells on without being asked, but doesn't tell me he does it. This dangerous because I don't know if he has done something I may assume another nurse has done it. If something goes wrong then I'm going to be blamed because supervising him.

If your not sure of something then please ask. Don't nod your head at the nurse if you don't get what he or she is telling you if you don't fully understand. It can be annoying when you tell a student something, they nod at you and go and do the complete opposite.

[Bortaz, MSN, RN]

I can't get behind this. When I start a new job it takes me a while to remember where everything is, and I have to ask questions. Why would I expect a student to remember everything when I can't?

I thought it was particularly ironic coming from a poster with a little over a year of nursing experience. Oh, how soon they forget.

[Bortaz, MSN, RN]

Also, ALWAYS thank the staff when you are leaving.

Practically every clinical day for the last 2 years, when I walk into our post-conference a couple minutes behind everyone else, I'm asked "What took you so long??"

I patiently answer, every time..."I was thanking my nurse and patients for letting me work with them today".

I always get the weirdest looks and rolled eyes. I just see it as common courtesy.

Thank you for acknowledging that it's appreciated by the nurse.

[ZooMommyRN, ADN, RN]

3) If you hear a call light ring, please get it. Even if it not your assisnged pt.

Best of luck---i loved almost all of my clinicals

We were allowed to do this during med/surg but in other facilities for peds and L&D we weren't allowed to set foot in a room unless that pt was assigned to us OR we were covering for the student it was assigned too, would have been nice to be able to help out in this way but our hands were tied.

[emnicams]

We were allowed to do this during med/surg but in other facilities for peds and L&D we weren't allowed to set foot in a room unless that pt was assigned to us OR we were covering for the student it was assigned too, would have been nice to be able to help out in this way but our hands were tied.

I agree, do make sure with the instructor that students are allowed to answer call lights. We weren't in any of our rotations, unless it was our assigned patient. (The school I went to was VERY concerned about liability... we weren't even allowed to write so much as vital signs in the chart.. etc)

[georgianurseRN]

I've read a lot of posts about people being annoyed by some of the things nursing students do or the way they act when on the floor. I'm going to try really hard to avoid being that student so I was hoping that you could share some things that you wish students knew if you could tell them anything.

Thanks.

Ask questions, act like you are truely interested, ask to watch procedures, and use your preceptors experiences to your own benefit. Book nursing is nothing like the real deal. Go for it, and remember that we all make mistakes, don't be afraid to "fess"up.

[uscstu4lfe]

i was a student not long ago, i have no idea really. i/we were all of the same way. just one thing now that im a nurse.... cant you guys go find some place else to sit? you guys hog all of the seats. all i want to do is sit down.

oh.... whenever i'm paired with a student, i ask them if they have any care plans that they need to work on... and then ask them if they want to go work on that instead. usually they do, and i tell them to go sit down and work on that. i remember how stressful it was when i was doing things at clinical all day, and then had to go home and do my care plan too.... so i just let them do it while they are there.

[NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN]

The laibility has become a huge concern for many nursing schools...

I am in an LVN to RN program right now.

Some things they have done:

Unable to answer call lights if not assigned patient.

Some professors are so worried that you cannot do any bedside care without them present, yes that includes bed baths, so take into consideration 10 nursing students, 1 instructor. Some days....I get to do nothing, and as an LVN it's very frustrating because I see nurses running around and there is little or nothing I can do to help them.

So, yes I have had nurses give me upset looks, but I have seen fellow students trying to do something, and get chewed out for it.

It's a no win situation either way.

[Pepper The Cat, BSN, RN]

Don't say you aren't interested in learning a certain task or procedure because "I'm going to work in ER when I graduate and they don't do that there".

And ditto to the poster that said mind your boundries. We had a pt give the nurses a box of chocolates and the students ate them all before the nurses got to them.

We've also had to ask students to move their belongings off the conferance table so we nurses would have room to eat our lunch.

And I even had to ask one student not to sit on the table that we ate our meals off of!

[FireStarterRN, BSN, RN]

I've read a lot of posts about people being annoyed by some of the things nursing students do or the way they act when on the floor. I'm going to try really hard to avoid being that student so I was hoping that you could share some things that you wish students knew if you could tell them anything.

Thanks.

I would want them to know that they may touch the hem of my robe as I pass.

[uscstu4lfe]

oh yes, fake your interest in being there. you and i both know you don't want to be there, it's wasting your time, it sucks, there are ton of other things you'd rather be doing, etc. i feel the same way. but fake a smile anyway!

[LovingLearning]

oh yes, fake your interest in being there. you and i both know you don't want to be there, it's wasting your time, it sucks, there are ton of other things you'd rather be doing, etc. i feel the same way. but fake a smile anyway!

what an interesting thing to say. i am always interested. fascinated, actually, in the things my assigned rn does. i even let them know to bring me in to observe on anything they do if it looks like i have a minute to spare. i've been included on things which are next semester stuff and beyond simply because i've been standing there, and watching.

i don't understand those who don't take every opportunity that presents itself, even if we're not at that point in our education yet, i.e IVs. i've watched them start and d/c them even though i'm not allowed to touch; if nothing else, i clean up after the rn has done the IV. same thing with foleys insertion and removal...same thing for dressing changes on patients other than my own.

i am utterly absorbed in the process, and my rn that day knows that i am. i don't have to 'fake' being interested; i actually am interested.

so thanks to those rns who let me shadow and learn, even when we both know i'm not at that level just yet.

best-

lovin' learning