How to really get your point across at end of placement?!

I'm coming up to the end of what has been hell (I'm really not exaggerating). My placement has just been......how can I describe it.....a waste?? I have learned nothing, other than where not to go. I did kind of switch off from it and just get on with it and try and take what I can but I've taken nothing. I'm being honest. The staff were nice enough but the ward itself and the way they worked was just unreal. The matron would continually remove hcas from the ward and ask us to stand in for them......is this even aloud?? I don't even know anymore. It gotten to the point where I was fed up of complaining because it fell on deaf ears. There's other students who feel the same and plan to lodge complaints because no one is interested in us and we've told university everything. I can't get back the waste of a placement but I don't want another student to have to deal with that. Being used as 1-1 and a hca IN THE NUMBERS for 10 weeks. Being left in the ward alone whilst everyone goes for breaks, no correct moving and handling equipment (my back is in bits and it's my own fault really)....the list goes on. I don't know where I'd start to make sure it doesn't happen again. Any advice much appreciated

Reply 1

PaediatricStN

12

Original post by wbnurse

I'm coming up to the end of what has been hell (I'm really not exaggerating). My placement has just been......how can I describe it.....a waste?? I have learned nothing, other than where not to go. I did kind of switch off from it and just get on with it and try and take what I can but I've taken nothing. I'm being honest. The staff were nice enough but the ward itself and the way they worked was just unreal. The matron would continually remove hcas from the ward and ask us to stand in for them......is this even aloud?? I don't even know anymore. It gotten to the point where I was fed up of complaining because it fell on deaf ears. There's other students who feel the same and plan to lodge complaints because no one is interested in us and we've told university everything. I can't get back the waste of a placement but I don't want another student to have to deal with that. Being used as 1-1 and a hca IN THE NUMBERS for 10 weeks. Being left in the ward alone whilst everyone goes for breaks, no correct moving and handling equipment (my back is in bits and it's my own fault really)....the list goes on. I don't know where I'd start to make sure it doesn't happen again. Any advice much appreciated

Hi,

Fortunately I've never had such a bad experience as a student, but I did speak out about unprofessional boundaries that I witnessed on my final placement.

You've highlighted two separate issues here.

One is the way student nurses aren't being appropriately taught and accommodated at this placement.

The other being an issue of slide sheets not being used which is a common example of substandard clinical care. Chances are if all this is going on, there are much wider issues in management, clinical care and working culture.

Your university should support you in raising both issues. You could either go to your personal tutor or named placement officer. My university gave us placement feedback forms, and there was always a chance for us to say whether we had witnessed substandard practice.

You could also find out if the Trust have a whistleblowing/raising concerns policy with some kind of flowchart or matrix to guide you through the escalation policy of who to go to about this. (Your university should have their own procedures for supporting students who raise a bad placement experience).

Equally, if you are a member of a union, they should also support you in raising concerns and may have a helpine you can ring.

You could do one, all, or a combination of the above. Ideally your university should, at the very least, know you are raising a concern so they don't put you on the placement again for management or something. When I raised the concern as a student, I did so first with the line manager of the clinical area, as I felt confident to do this, but informed my university at the same time so if I needed their support it wouldn't be a surprise.

One of THE most important things in this is that you need to make sure the way you raise these issues is balanced, factual and as articulate as possible. Try not to include emotions, but just detailed bullet points of specific examples of what has happened - give dates, times and even names of staff if you can.

In going through this process, keep your own personal record of whom you have spoken to, when and what about - so you have evidence for, and can remember what you have tried to do about this.

You could also choose to write a reflection on this situation - it may help you process some of it. Reporting placements is not an easy thing to do, but is the right thing to do by your student colleagues, and most importantly, your patients.

Wel done for recognising this is something that needs to be escalated. Hope you get on alright, please come back if you need any further support. Hope that is useul.

Reply 2

InArduisFouette

21

first question: have you documented this, fed it back to the LEM and the placement team / link lecturer / personal tutor ?

Reply 3

ButterflyRN

9

I agree with what the others have said and suggested. I know you have told the university but have you told the practice link team? They tend to be very good and can spend time with you on your placement so they can see for themselves what is really going on and how they can support you in getting the skills you need and if it is completely diabolical they can feed back to the university and raise issues that you have had with the more senior level nurses who are above the Senior Sisters/Matrons. I know when I trained you could leave feedback which did go to link tutor, PLT and the ward itself. If it is documented on paper then there is evidence and if students are all saying the same thing then it cannot be ignored.

How to really get your point across at end of placement?!

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