2 answers
Jessica
Student
Grundy Center, Iowa
3
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What are the clinicals like in nursing school?
#clinicals#nursingschool #medical-school
2 answers
Tonya Lawrence, PhD, MSN, RN, CNM
Nurse,Mentor,Educator,Leader
75
Answers
Updated
Tonya’s Answer
Clinical experiences in nursing schools provide the opportunity to put knowledge into action. Nursing students work with their nursing faculty or a nurse preceptor in a healthcare setting to care for patients. The care includes assessing the patient (identifying what the body and mind are doing to show what could be the possible healthcare diagnosis/problem), observing (how does the body reacts to the healthcare diagnosis/problem), educating the patient/family, administering medications, communicating with healthcare team members, documenting in a computer system the care/education provided to the patient/family, practice how to develop plans for the patients, and interventions (inserting a urinary catheter).
The clinical experiences can be standard as well as diverse depending on the opportunities the nursing school’s faculty/clinical coordinator are able to organize. For example, the standard (common) clinical experiences are in a hospital setting (in-patient setting) in the specialties of medical-surgical units (care for those with unmanaged chronic diseases or patients stabilized after surgery), perinatal/maternity unit (care of women before they deliver the baby/babies, during delivery of the baby/babies, care after the delivery of the baby/babies, and care of the baby), and pediatrics (care of children).
The clinical experiences can also be diverse in the hospital on units such as critical care (care of patients who are critically ill/unstable in their health status), perioperative services (observe various surgeries), emergency department (care of patient with need to fix an immediate health challenge), oncology (care of patients with cancer), cardiac (focus on health conditions of the heart), and numerous other specialties of the body. Also, clinical experiences can occur outside of the hospital settings in areas such as health clinics, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, schools (work with a school nurse), and birthing centers.
I had the standard and diverse clinical experiences in nursing school. I did not appreciate how diverse the experiences were until after I graduated with my Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), listened to other nurses and nursing students’ experiences, and taught at nursing schools. For example, my clinical experiences included: a homeless shelter, Women Infant and Children Healthcare Center, clinics, a birthing center, and homecare including hospice experience. All of the experiences made an impact on my work experiences.
Even today there are potentially other experiences such as work with a flight nurse preceptor even if the student cannot fly with the nurse. The experiences expose the student to a little bit of what it will be like to be a nurse.
The clinical experiences can be standard as well as diverse depending on the opportunities the nursing school’s faculty/clinical coordinator are able to organize. For example, the standard (common) clinical experiences are in a hospital setting (in-patient setting) in the specialties of medical-surgical units (care for those with unmanaged chronic diseases or patients stabilized after surgery), perinatal/maternity unit (care of women before they deliver the baby/babies, during delivery of the baby/babies, care after the delivery of the baby/babies, and care of the baby), and pediatrics (care of children).
The clinical experiences can also be diverse in the hospital on units such as critical care (care of patients who are critically ill/unstable in their health status), perioperative services (observe various surgeries), emergency department (care of patient with need to fix an immediate health challenge), oncology (care of patients with cancer), cardiac (focus on health conditions of the heart), and numerous other specialties of the body. Also, clinical experiences can occur outside of the hospital settings in areas such as health clinics, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, schools (work with a school nurse), and birthing centers.
I had the standard and diverse clinical experiences in nursing school. I did not appreciate how diverse the experiences were until after I graduated with my Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), listened to other nurses and nursing students’ experiences, and taught at nursing schools. For example, my clinical experiences included: a homeless shelter, Women Infant and Children Healthcare Center, clinics, a birthing center, and homecare including hospice experience. All of the experiences made an impact on my work experiences.
Even today there are potentially other experiences such as work with a flight nurse preceptor even if the student cannot fly with the nurse. The experiences expose the student to a little bit of what it will be like to be a nurse.
Dr. James Zavala
Lieutenant Colonel
133
Answers
Lorton, Virginia
Updated
Dr. James’s Answer
Instead of giving you a long, drawn out response, here is a site I beleive will answer your question:
https://nurse.org/articles/what-to-expect-in-clinicals/#:~:text=What%20Are%20Nursing%20School%20Clinicals%3F%201%20Clinicals%20are,need%2C%20in%20a%20safe%2C%20non-risk%20environment%20before%20
https://nurse.org/articles/what-to-expect-in-clinicals/#:~:text=What%20Are%20Nursing%20School%20Clinicals%3F%201%20Clinicals%20are,need%2C%20in%20a%20safe%2C%20non-risk%20environment%20before%20
Hi James! Thanks for sharing this link. Do you happen to have any personal experience to add about doing clinicals, or have you heard about them from someone you know and could share their experience?
Alexandra Carpenter, Admin
I have known several Doctors, nurses and EMTs throughout the years. They all tell me the same thing. Rotations are long hours and in different locations. Those different locations provides different experiences since not all hospitals provide the same type of care. But, they also say this: it is a very rewarding job and they all felt a sense of satisfaction that they were able to help someone in need.
Dr. James Zavala
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