You're Going to Practice on ME?!?!

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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I'm looking into Masters Entry programs, and have a friend who is currently receiving her BSN in an accelerated program. Apparently they have to practice injections and IVs on each other! Is this true of all nursing programs? Ack! :uhoh3:

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We practiced IVs, SQ and TB injections on each other but not IMs. It's really not that bad.

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As long as it's not foley's I am game. However I do have a two poke maximum. If you can't get it with two, too bad.

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

I would utterly and completely object. I didn't pay to go to school to be someone's guinea pig. I went to school in the 90's and never, ever was asked ,nor would I have allowed practice care.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Cardiac.

That's how I learned as a paramedic.

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Well, I'm also a pre-hospital RN and I didn't practice intubations on my partner, nor did I practice place intraosseous needles on my grandson. I still would have refused.

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I had to sign a waiver that I might be used as a practice subject.

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Specializes in Med/Surg <1; Epic Certified <1.

No, we don't use each other for practice, nor is it encouraged on any level. I wouldn't even know WHAT to inject in to someone without killing them!! Everything is done in a lab setting with "dummies". I would be very unhappy if we had to practice on each other as I'm not fond of needles AT ALL!!

And forget foleys and NG tubes, lol.....

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Specializes in L & D; Postpartum.

In the 70's we did practice on each other, at least IV's. If not your fellow student, then who should the practice subject be? WE have to learn skills somehow and somewhere.

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We just learned all our injections in clinical lab with dummy arms and because of legal reasons are not allowed to practice on fellow students. We are required to purchase a nursing pack which contains all kinds of supplies (sterile of course) and I would love to practice outside of school with classmates but I have no idea what we could use for the injection that would be safe to practice with. Any suggestions?? FYI I would let a classmate give me a few pokes... better to practice on eachother when we are most nervous so that when we actually have to do it in a clinical it will ease the jitters.

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Specializes in RN, Cardiac Step Down/Tele Unit.
No, we don't use each other for practice, nor is it encouraged on any level. I wouldn't even know WHAT to inject in to someone without killing them!! Everything is done in a lab setting with "dummies". I would be very unhappy if we had to practice on each other as I'm not fond of needles AT ALL!!

And forget foleys and NG tubes, lol.....

Same in my accelerated program - our patients were our guinea pigs , but of course it was fine. Although, one student did volunteer to have the instructor insert an NG tube. Brave gal, ended up with a nosebleed for her troubles! But we at least got to observe one!

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Specializes in NICU.

We did IM, blood draws, and IVs on each other. If somebody felt strongly about not getting poked they could have probably avoided it, but nobody did. I have great veins and had a couple different students practice on me. No big. Practicing on real people is so different than practicing on the dummy. Worlds apart. I would definitely draw the line on foley or NG tubes however--unless there was some serious extra credit involved ;)

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