1. Describe your first hands-on clinical experience in nursing school. What fears did you have? What surprised you the most? What were you most proud of?
a. My first hands-on, clinical experience in nursing school was wonderful. The clinical rotation took place in both a long-term care nursing facility and in a medical-surgical unit of a hospital that was focused on respiratory/cardiac patients. The first half of the semester, we would go to the nursing home, and the second half, we would go to the hospital. Because I had prior experience in long-term care, I did not have many fears in the beginning. I worked for several months with residents in an Alzheimer’s unit, so I was actually quite excited to work with similar patients again. My only real fear at first was how to
…show more content…
Over the first few weeks, my nerves went away and I became fairly comfortable there in the nursing home. It was a very “busy” long-term care environment, but I enjoyed that aspect about it. The nurses were friendly and always willing to answer questions, which is probably what surprised me the most. I was not used to nursing staff who went out of their way to help STNAs or students, so that definitely was a positive impact on my clinical experience. In the last three weeks of the long-term care portion of the clinical, one nurse would ask me to do things with her almost all day long. She demonstrated how to pass and administer medications, perform assessments on different patients, care for patients with NG or PEG tubes, and so much more. In the end of that clinical rotation, she told my professor that I demonstrated exceptional patient care, worked with their nursing staff like I was an employee, and although only a sophomore, proved that I had the professionalism and work ethic of a senior in her preceptorship. She also recommended me to their Director of Nursing who stated that “I had a job there any time!” This was probably my most proud