Why are some nurses so rude to students?

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I'm in my second semester of clinicals and am on a cardiac telemetry floor. Some of the nurses are friendly and helpful, but most on this floor are just rude all the time. It seems that the whole atmosphere on this floor is one of disdain for their job and attitudes coming from everywhere. The HUC's (especially the HUCs), the techs, the food service people, they all have attitude problems also. I don't know if it's because we are students and are getting in their way (even though we are taking on some of their load...the nurses don't even check on the pts that we are assigned, I've had complaints from pts about it). Or is it because this floor just has a toxic staff where everyone is rubbing off on each other negatively? I know one thing, I will never work on this floor when I graduate. I did clinicals at this same hospital on a different floor last semester and didn't experience this at all. They were happy to have us there and treated us respectfully.

So, nurses, how do you feel about students? Do you like it when they come and are you nice/helpful to them? Or would you rather not have students when you are working?

Specializes in Med-Surg, Tele, DOU.
It seems like the OP is fishing for a specific type of response. She's already heard what she wanted to hear (that the nurses at her other clinical liked having students and found them helpful), and seems determined to be offended if anyone in this thread says otherwise. She is looking for validation that, as a student, the hospital revolves around her. It's a waste to even try to answer the question she asked, because it's not what she wants to hear.

wow, gee fuzzywuzzy, you were less fuzzywuzzy than I was gentle. :lol2: Perhaps, you are a bit more left brained with somethings and simply get down to the heart of the situation :confused: (kinda like me):idea:? I'm not sure. but, I must say, it is nice to make your acquaintance. I would be glad to work by your side. You come across as no nonsense and let's take care of that patient.

However, on the flipside, I must give care and patience to our younger nurses. I must communicate at least for a short-time so that perhaps others will understand the myriad of circumstances that we seasoned nurses find ourselves encountering when the newer RNs come to complete their clinicals.

You see, as I get older, the younger ones must learn. I have much to offer as do they. I believe if we all work together we will survive for the better of society. I'm sure that sounds corny but it is my belief. It really is. I was raised with my Great grandparents values rather than my parents. (long story)

Do I think the OP is gaining understanding from our posts or just seeking emotional validation? :confused: I don't know for certain. It may be that your assessment is correct. I'm not sure.

I do know that if the other students are reading, I hope they will learn to look for experiences that will develop them as critical thinkers. In the hospitals, we don't always have much help (as they should already know). Once they are out on their own, they may find themselves struggling hard. They will need to make some decisions faster than others. Not everyone will be patient and give them the time they need to make decisions. It's rough. I do wonder why the OP wasn't able to connect the dots when it comes to the differences between nursing student and full fledged nurse. Perhaps they hadn't read the first year nurses blog?

( Heck your situation is worse :down: :mad:. Another pet peeve of mine - why do we give so little to the elderly who tried to give so much to us? Why not honor the elderly by hiring enough staff to properly care for them? I don't get it.) At any rate, fuzzywuzzy, I do hope that you are well. Please protect yourself and your body. Heaven only knows how many times you have been placed in potentially dangerous situations in which you might have injured your back. Thank you for writing and I like your name. ;) Be well.

Sincerely,

Gentle

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Tele, DOU.
This happens everywhere, at least from what I have seen in my many years in nursing. Although I am only a personal support worker, we too get student psw's and some staff here treat them awful! I like to make newcomers feel welcome and am eager to show them the ropes and help them navigate their way around. I do this because I know how nervous they are and how much better it is for them and us when they get into the 'swing' of things. Unfortunately some staff are just plain mean and ignore their requests for assistance. And like a bad cold others get 'infected' and get an attitude towards students and new staff too. It's too bad this happens. It is not necessarry to be like this. All it does is turn people off and then they don't come in to help when we are short. Can't say as I blame them.

Oh goodness, there is not such thing as only a psw. Without you my day is pure hell. I appreciate all that you do. Thank you for everything though you may not work with me, you may work with my friend. Or you may be the person taking care of my family member. Thank you. I am proud of you.

I vividly remember 2 bad experiences I had as a student.

My first clinical rotation was on a TCU. My group had 7 students, and I don't know if the floor had dealt with students before. My class had 3 clinical groups: Thursday, Friday, and Sunday. The Sunday group started a week after the Thursday group. I was in the Thursday group.

Our 3rd day of clinical, the charge nurse looked right at us and said "Thank God you're here! We had the Sunday people here last week, and they didn't know ****! They asked all of these stupid questions! I don't have time for that ****!" Yes, she said that to our faces. That day, our instructor told us to come to her, not the nurses, with any questions.

My pedi rotation was in a home for children with brain injuries. Most of the nurses were 20-something LPNs, we were studying to be RNs. Anyway, one LPN had just gotten back together with her cheating boyfriend, and one was wondering whether or not to rent her sister's house. I only know that because they sent the entire shift talking about it. It was our first day on the floor, and whenever anyone asked a question they got very upset about us interrupting their conversations.

Sometimes the instructor is the problem. One of mine kept disappearing. She also encouraged us to use the Dynamap for vital signs, instead of using the manual BP cuffs in every room. If you weren't very aggressive about doing procedures, you made beds, gave showers, and checked blood glucose all shift long.

I spend more of my time in clinicals these days balancing personalities, being a mind reader, and reconciling what my clinical instructor wants me to do with what the nurse in charge of my patient wants me to do, and overhearing pointed remarks about what I did or didn't do (all the while being unable to defend myself because I'm just a lowly nursing student), rather than actually learning nursing.

I can't wait until this rotation is over. I've never experienced this in any rotation before, and I hope to never experience it again. Bring on the next one! I'm done.

I totally agree with you. When I was a student I had nurses who treated me like a CNA and "extra help". I specifically had one of my instructors tell me to do just RN tasks and not aide tasks for the day. This meant to do assessments and give meds, chart. My one patient needed her teds put on. The nurse who was assigned to her said that I could put them on her. I told the nurse that my instructor wanted me to do RN tasks that day. She nastily replied that it was a nursing task. I was a CNA at that point and felt this was something that could be delegated to the CNA's. When I explained this to the primary nurse she got more argumentative about the issue so I just went and did it. When I have students I try to not treat them as aides but as future nurses. How are they going to learn if they are treated as aides all of the time?

Under no circumstances would this be happening to any of you with my friends. You are to be given safe secure environments to learn. Be aware that some of us know you are encountering this and we are greatly displeased. This is not acceptable. I'm so sorry. This simply isn't okay.

But again, this is why some nursing students are assigned to preceptors like me. One other note: Please do not ask me where your instructor is. I have no idea.

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It seems like the OP is fishing for a specific type of response. She's already heard what she wanted to hear (that the nurses at her other clinical liked having students and found them helpful), and seems determined to be offended if anyone in this thread says otherwise. She is looking for validation that, as a student, the hospital revolves around her. It's a waste to even try to answer the question she asked, because it's not what she wants to hear.

Right...I think the hospital revolves around me. Thanks for your in depth psychiatric analysis of me by reading a few posts on a website that people come to to vent or to get things off of their chest. You know absolutley nothing about me, so you have no idea how I really feel or think. Do I get irritated when people misunderstand what I was saying and then chastise me for it? Yes. I think I have a right to clear up what I was trying to say and also to have a discussion about the topic that I presented. I must have mistaken the purpose of allnurses...from now on, I'll make sure to agree with everyone that responds to me.:rolleyes:

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. I do wonder why the OP wasn't able to connect the dots when it comes to the differences between nursing student and full fledged nurse.

How was I not able to connect the dots between student and nurse??? Not once did I ever say or even think that we are one in the same...please explain what you are talking about.

BTW, I appreciate all of your posts. I did not post this thread to hear a certain response. I have appreciated all of the responses that were respectful and understood what I was saying, even if they were telling me the truth that they sometimes don't like having students and the stress of having them. The difference is that yours and others posts were helpful nd understanding and not just people jumping down my throat for a certain statement that I made that was taken the wrong way. Some were and those were the ones that I responded negatively to.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Tele, DOU.

I do wonder why the OP wasn't able to connect the dots when it comes to the differences between nursing student and full fledged nurse. Perhaps they hadn't read the first year nurses blog?

Oiye, yes I see.

Katy, I didn't communicate that thought clearly. I will try again.

I am trying to word this correctly, so please continue to ask for clarification if you do not understand what I am trying to convey. I'm open and will try again if need be. That said, here I go . . .

My thought, though not worded correctly, is that our nursing students would read what the new graduates are encountering on the floor. The levels of responsibility and frustrations that many First Year Nurses encounter. From this mental vantage point, I thought that perhaps it might be easier for student nurses to understand why we as older or more seasoned nurses are abrupt and seem rather cranky at times.

Unfortunately, I am concerned that our profession will lose many excellent new nurses in the first year because of the stress and intensity required on the job. Some states put more burdens on nurses than others, which isn't good, imho. Hence if a nurse in his or her first year of nursing is practicing in a state that does not have acceptable patient ratio laws, that poor soul will be horribly put upon by a group of money hungry executives that do not care if the nurse is physically and mentally exhausted. That nurse will then become embittered within a system that isn't easy to escape. Leaving the profession isn't easy because typically nurses do make a decent income. Currently the economy is poor/jobs are scarce. The newer nurses then become more callous and a bit short tempered. Over time the newer nurses become the older or more senior nurses.

It is a vicious cycle. My thoughts are to teach critical thinking so that you can save time, move faster and stay safe. I also think boundaries are important as well. It is less important to make money, if one is tired. The time spent making money, would be better spent with ones family. In other words, I would rather newer nurses be leary of picking up extra shifts. I would rather them spend time recuperating, meditating on things of beauty and things which will keep them balanced in all areas of their lives. Money isn't worth making sometimes.

In the end, I suppose that I believed perhaps you and other student nurses would be able to read the first year forum and see what you were getting into. From there, it would be more clear why we as seasoned nurses respond the way we do.

I apologize if my thoughts in this post are not as succinct in previous posts. I am tired now. Father's Day has been busy and good.

I wish you well in all you do.

Sincerely,

Gentle

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Specializes in retired from healthcare.

Here are some guidelines that might help.

When you follow the staff around to the patients' rooms, don't just stand and stare at them.

Offer to help by doing things inside your own qualifications, ie. help to put

the patients' shoes on. Help with getting them dressed, and/or ask what you can do to help them.

When they talk to you, make some indication that you heard them.

The words, Yes, No, Okay and thank you, and other short responses are

helpful so that the staff-members who help train you are feeling validated.

When they talk to you and get no response, this can be humiliating.

Let them know that you want to help with reducing the work load.

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Hi everyone, this is my first post here :)

I finished school in December and have been working on a complex care and rehab floor and I have to say that I love having students, but I can see this topic from both sides now that I have had student assignments.

I am very happy having students assigned to my patients, although it may slow some things down, I find having a student there that is able to help with ADL's, eating, repositioning etc., is so helpful, especially since I am a new grad and am still working on prioritizing and getting everyone washed up and ready for physio in time. When all 4 of my pts are in the beginning rehab stages and therefore are mostly depended for adls and need to be ready for physio anywhere from 9-11am it is so helpful to have extra hands. When I have complex care pts that need to be fed and they are very slow eaters having a student there that will not only feed the pt but provide some company and an ear for the pt to talk off is wonderful because as much as I would like to be able to help the pt with their meal and have a conversation with them while doing so, I just do not have the time to provide that kind of attention so I am thankful that a student can provide that attention to a pt as they deserve it! The days students are on our floor (2x a week) lots of showers get done and getting a shower is so much nicer than getting a bed bath! This is where students can help to take a load off. Yes you still have to go back and do your assessments and make sure everything is done, but think of all that time saved by having a student get pts ready for the day, set up and feed meals! Yes for the student this isn't the best learning experience depending on what semester they are, but the students we get on our floor are first year rpn students and this is their first clinical experience, so adl's and basics are definitely appropiate. Keep in mind where I work we do not have CNA's or aides or anyone to help us with these things, so our patient load is lighter than I have seen mentioned in posts on this forum but we are doing full care.

There are downfalls to having students, no doubt, especially when you have more than 1 student assigned to your pts for the day. Having to wait for the student to report vitals to you before giving meds, charting not done properly, oversights on certain things can certainly get on your nerves, even more so when you are super busy and running around like mad (why is it that all your pts have to ring the bell at the same time?). But as long as the students are willing to help when able to and are not too afraid of the nurses or pts then it really doesn't bother me. Its the apprehensive ones that are shy/afraid of interactions with pts that can put a damper on the day. Funny I say that because I was a shy apprehensive one and I remember what it felt like but its just one of those things you just need to get over!

I had some very bad experiences as a student, it seems to be a right of passage... nurses really do eat their young. You just have to learn which nurses to avoid and not ask questions to and which ones are a little more patient and willing to show you different/interesting things. My first 2 years of school the placements were horrible, nurses high-fived each other when they didn't have a student, they did not want us doing anything at all, and they didn't want anything to do with us. Thankfully by the time I got to my last year where it was just me and a floor nurse as a preceptor, other nurses were more than happy to come to me with opportunities to practice new skills such as starting IV's or doing complex dressings.

As a new grad I have to say I find it endearing and it makes me feel pretty awesome to have these eager nursing students follow me and ask me questions. They are so respectful and polite, more than willing to help with anything - even if its not their pt assignment - and I just love bringing a few of them in when I am doing a complex dressing change or showing them something that they have not yet learned because those are things that a) its a great learning experience for them b) it makes them feel welcomed, therefore helping them with confidence etc and c) it makes me feel awesome - who doesn't love having students look up to them??

As long as a student is eager to learn, eager to help, and makes sure they get those vitals to me asap and do their charting properly I am one happy nurse! To those nurses that would really rather not have students maybe telling the instructor that or even asking to just have 1 student assigned to your pts would be helpful?

What a great topic! Boy do I wish I knew about this forum when I was a student!

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@ OP:

I see this quite differently. I too work DOU. You aren't there to feed the patient, help the patient get to the bathroom or help the CNA!!! That statement isn't okay for me.

You are there to learn. I'm going to explain to you why we are giving Mrs. X clonidine for her blood pressure instead of metoprolol at this point in time. Mrs. X will be fine if she doesn't eat her breakfast, lunch or dinner immediately. She won't be fine if her blood pressure is too high and heart rate is in the high 50s. I have a decision to make and you need to know exactly why I'm making that decision.

I take your presence very very seriously. I want you to learn and grow. I want you to work side by side with me with understanding.

I understand that my patients need emotional support. However, it sucks to provide emotional support to someone who is slightly dusky or has a small change in fluid electrolyte balances. Small changes can lead to big problems later if I don't pay attention. I want you to learn how to pay attention too.

Meanwhile, there are other experiences I am more interested in you seeing. For example, I want you to witness a potential hostile situation being managed calmly and carefully with wisdom. You won't see this if you are taking someone to the bathroom. I want to explain to you why it was important for Nurse Y to use humor, with an irritated family member. Or perhaps it was better to provide an over abundance or empathy at that moment.

Ever considered service recovery? When something goes wrong. How do we correct the situation.

All these things cannot be learned and understood if you are taking someone to the bathroom or providing emotional support to a noncompliant diabetic who has gotten themselves readmitted for the 5th time in the last 6 months.

And even if my posts come off rather brusque, guess what I am still trying to teach you. I'm trying to get you to understand what my goals are for you. Believe it or not, by the time you will have finished with me you will have gained more knowledge and wisdom, than with a nice nurse who isn't going to dig in and really teach you.

Contrary to how media has portrayed nurses in the past, we are not always going to be nice. Nice is useless if my patient is crashing.

Nice was also a useless trait Friday night when my patient had a bradycardia of 50-40 at 2300. Now it's your turn. Why did I consider nice being a useless trait for this 75year old man at 2300? There was no atropine ordered for use and the patient was tolerating the heart rate fine. His initial SBP was 142. I paged the cardiologist 2times by 0031 and he hadn't called back. SBP 139. Patient is a sweetheart of a guy. Has had diarrhea for a couple of days and is still having this problem. I gave the immodium. IVF are running. I work the night shift as you have guessed and my patient has had a long day. He's ready for some sleep. I spoke with the attending physician, who said to monitor the patient because the patient was maintaining his BP and was asymptompatic. My patient was on bedrest, so I bathed him because of the loose stool. He also wasn't diaphoretic or dizzy again my patient was on bedrest.

Again, it's your turn now. What have your instructors taught you? Take the time on and off today and think through, why I might have been showing patience (character trait) but not necessarily nice. Why was I more concerned?

To figure out the answer, you will have to ask me questions. I will be in and out today - It's Father's Day!!!! and We are off to make sure the Daddy has a wonderful day :D :redpinkhe :clown:

You do bring up some very good points and boy would I have loved nurses showing me how to deal with many of those things. At the same time, toileting, feeding, adl's, general patient interactions, health teaching are important things for students to do and depending on where they are in the program, the focus on clinical skills and critical thinking is different. If these are first semester students that have absolutely no experience with basic interactions, teaching them about the things you mentioned is great and very useful but that doesn't mean the basics aren't important as well. I think balance between the hands on knitty-gritty part of pt care and the critical thinking/assessment is important and the balance is determined by the care area and where the students are in their learning and experience. From your post I have the understanding that you do the medical part of patient care and CNA's do the other part of care that involves adl's? If these students are on your unit to only do the medical aspect of care because they will not be responsible for the tasks that CNA's do then I definiately see your point about them not being there to help with ADL's and toileting, however that part of care is still a learning experience.

A day with you as a student would be wonderful as from the sounds of it the students that are with you for the day learn very valuable information and skills.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Tele, DOU.
You do bring up some very good points and boy would I have loved nurses showing me how to deal with many of those things. At the same time, toileting, feeding, adl's, general patient interactions, health teaching are important things for students to do and depending on where they are in the program, the focus on clinical skills and critical thinking is different. If these are first semester students that have absolutely no experience with basic interactions, teaching them about the things you mentioned is great and very useful but that doesn't mean the basics aren't important as well. I think balance between the hands on knitty-gritty part of pt care and the critical thinking/assessment is important and the balance is determined by the care area and where the students are in their learning and experience. From your post I have the understanding that you do the medical part of patient care and CNA's do the other part of care that involves adl's? If these students are on your unit to only do the medical aspect of care because they will not be responsible for the tasks that CNA's do then I definiately see your point about them not being there to help with ADL's and toileting, however that part of care is still a learning experience.

A day with you as a student would be wonderful as from the sounds of it the students that are with you for the day learn very valuable information and skills.

Yes, I do understand what you are saying regarding adls etc.

However, be aware that shifts in thinking must begin to take place within the brain once a student begins passing medications. My friends and I work with each student where they are and according to their program - when we can!!! Unfortunately, our patients' bodies do whatever the body wants and as such, we must respond accordingly. Rather than lose the student, teach the student. Rather than see a blank face, explain the whys and put the student in the thick with hands on. Yes, we will even throw you in the code or rapid response. You are not safe with avoiding experiences if you are with my friends and I. :lol2:

If a student is in the first semester, then why not pair them up with the cna? This is what the programs have done in the areas that we live in. As the students progress in their learning then their focuses become different. As do ours. Does this make sense?

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Specializes in Peds, PACU, ICU, ER, OB, MED-Surg,.

I enjoy having students assigned to my patients, if the students are there to learn. I don't have to tell you that not all students are created equally. Some students bring their books and think clinical time is homework time. They don't take any opportunities presented to them. My daughter graduated from nursing school a year and half ago and I gave her this advice: When you are in your clinicals seek new learning experiences. Be first to volunteer for all opportunities. Even if you have done it before in a previous clinical if it is a skill i.e. starting an IV do it again and again. This is how you learn and become confident. Having students does not lighten our load it adds to it, remember that and try to be appreciative to the nurses that do take time to teach you.

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Katy,

You seem awfully defensive and easily angered.

The fact of the matter is that the system is broken. I had a few really good clinical experiences in nursing school due to a couple of phenomenol nurses who took the time to teach. I also had way more negative clinical experiences. I swore I would always go out of my way to help nursing students when I became a nurse, and I have had several nursing instructors and students go out of their way to tell me they appreciate how I work with the students.

That being said, it's a messed up system. I love to take students, but often my patient load is overwhelming and I feel like I am doing the bare minimum to get by (NOT the kind of nurse I want to be). Certain students certainly are a huge help because they are able to check in with the patients and let me know the patient needed something right away and it was something that they were able to take care of on their own or with their instructor.

The problem is that we get students from multiple schools, and honestly, some of those instructors completely disappear and the students become fully my responsibility. I would love to be a nursing instructor in the future (a GOOD one), but as floor nurses we do not get anything extra for taking on students -- as one other poster put it, we put in the work but the instructor gets the pay and credit which is a problem if they are one of those disappearing instructors. The floor nurses don't even get a choice if they are getting students. I like getting students, but I know some of my fellow nurses really hate it and are bad with students. I notice when I am working with those nurses who really are not good with students and often go out of my way to talk to the nursing instructor about changing assignments, or I just grab one of those abandoned students when I am about to do a procedure and ask if they want to watch or do it if they are OK'ed for that procedure.

As much as I like teaching, some days I really don't have time to do it like I want to due to my patient load (just like I am very often not able to listen to the patient and give the care I want to as a nurse due to my load ---my BIGGEST disappointment with nursing). Some days I can barely keep my own head above water, and teaching someone else to swim in those moments is impossible.

I wish the system could get fixed. I thought it stunk when I was in school, I think the students deserve more now, and I think staff nurses should somehow be rewarded when they do go out of their way with students (even if it isn't financial but a specific positive comment on an annual review or SOMETHING).

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If a student is in the first semester, then why not pair them up with the cna? This is what the programs have done in the areas that we live in. As the students progress in their learning then their focuses become different. As do ours. Does this make sense?

You know, I never even though about that probably because we don't have the CNA's but that does make an awful lot of sense now doesn't it! So by the time they get to you they are ready for the medications and assessments and such. I am glad there are nurses out there like you who will explain the why about things. Its so important! I have been constantly learning since starting my first job and I'm lucky there are a few nurses I can go to with questions when I don't know where to find the answer that are nice about it and don't give me the eye roll because I am inexperienced...but everyone is right so far, there are just some cranky nurses out there.

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