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What are clinicals in nursing school? Nursing clinicals are where you learn the important hands-on skills that you’ll need to provide safe, effective, high-quality patient care for the rest of your career. It’s also an opportunity to learn how to communicate and collaborate with patients, their families, and other members of the healthcare team.
Many students find nursing clinicals intimidating. It’s never easy to be the novice on the unit, and fear about making mistakes as a new nursing student is normal. However, you can overcome these feelings and have great learning experiences.
Review what to expect during nursing clinicals, nurses’ real-life tips for surviving them (and maybe even thriving), and how to conquer this all-important experience with confidence.
The purpose of nursing clinicals is to give nursing students the chance and confidence to practice skills in real-life situations. These skills may include:
Nursing students also need to get used to speaking with doctors and other healthcare professionals. Likewise, they may feel shy about talking with patients and their families. One way to learn how to educate and coach patients is through direct experience.
Critical thinking for registered nurses (RNs) and decision-making are two other areas where student nurses can sharpen their skills.
A clinical instructor is always on hand during clinical assignments, and each student nurse is paired with a nurse preceptor who works in that setting.
Some nursing clinicals such as the operating room, involve more observation than actual skill building. But these experiences are still great exposure to what can happen during patient care.
Having a preconference with the clinical instructor and fellow students provides time to plan for the day, review patient assignments, and answer questions. Postconferences are a chance to discuss what went well and what could have been better.
Student nurse clinicals begin during the first or second semester of the first year of nursing school, depending on the program.
Student nursing clinicals can take place in many settings to provide a variety of experience. Clinical sites may include hospitals, clinics, home health agencies, community health centers, assisted living facilities, and nursing homes.
Nursing clinicals are usually assessed in terms of:
There are common mistakes that many nursing students can avoid, and there is plenty of advice for students who want to put their best foot forward.
Beth Hawkes, nurse author of the book “Your Last Nursing Class: How to Land Your First Nursing Job,” is a true expert. Hawkes shares that medication errors by nurses, giving incomplete reports, and falling prey to stress are three of the most common mistakes made by nursing students during clinical assignments.
Jenna Liphart Rhoads, Ph.D., is a nurse educator, author, and editor. She shares that not getting enough sleep is a big problem for many nursing students. Keeping “under the radar” and “hiding” from clinical instructors is also common. Finally, not asking for help can also have a negative impact on nursing students’ clinical experiences and learning.
