A typical day for a first year would be again, the same as most students, in that they would
go to the ward and take handover with the ward staff, and in that, they would have a
handover sheet.
They would then work with an RN -- they'd be assigned by the NUM to an RN -- and they
would work with that RN for the shift.
Usually, if it's a morning shift, they do showers and bed-making and that sort of thing.
If it's an afternoon shift, they'll start off doing observations.
But the usual work revolves around doing showers, personal care, activities of daily living,
communication with patients, vital signs, and I also expect them to look at patients'
notes and do things like falls risks and pressure area assessments on particular patients.
My expectation is that they will always know what's wrong with the patients that they're
caring for that day.
Then they will have their meal breaks, and I usually ask if they're first years whether
they want to go together, but I think it's nice if they stay on the ward and stay with
the cohort of people that they're working with for the shift for both morning tea, or
whatever meal break they're having, and we meet at afternoon for a debrief session.
And that's normally the scope of their day.
The role of the first year, first semester student on clinical is, as it says, a student.
You're there to learn and experience and practise skills, and the wards are very busy -- there's
a lot of people on missions, buzzing around on their own mission -- their role is definitely
to support you -- to support -- it's in the ANMC that they're there to facilitate your
learning as well but they don't always have that as their main focus.
So because you're the student, it's very important for you to go knowing what you want to learn,
and how you're going to best learn it, and to be aware of your subject content, to know
what your personal objectives are, and to seek out opportunities.
And if you're struggling in any way to meet those needs, to call your facilitator and
get them to support you in ways, because the staff, as I say, it is their role, but they
also have a lot of other roles that are maybe taking priority at the time.
When you are taking your patient for the first shower, you must realise that you have to
start somewhere, and this is how it's going to be.
It is daunting, it will be difficult, but it's only -- once you start, within the week
if you're really out there, doing things and enthusiastic about learning, you will have
done twenty before you leave.
So then it won't bother you any more, but you have to start -- the first one, you have
to say, "I'm going to do this.
I have learned how to do it, and I'm going to do it".
And the patient is really not too bothered, because they've been in hospital -- they need
that shower, you know -- they're not -- we're not -- they're not thinking about you as another
human being who is looking at their body, or something like that.
They're just thinking that you are someone who is going to help them meet their needs,
and they're very what should I say, they're not too inhibited about it -- they actually
have a conversation with you when you're showering the patient, so it becomes easier.
You should remember that you're a nurse when you're providing cares [sic] for your patient,
because that way, you will know that you're actually addressing their needs, not... not...
and assessing them as you do -- you're a professional, you're assessing, OK, does the patient have
bruises, does the patient -- is the patient -- having pain, or is the patient comfortable?
Do I need to provide privacy?
If you think about these questions, you take your mind off the other things, so this is
what I would [do].