Clinicals and Ride Alongs

[DiaryOfAnEMT]

Hi!
So, I'm an EMT-B student and I'm currently starting my hands on training in the ER and with ride time as well. All I have been hearing from fellow classmates is that they have been screamed at, talked down to, and berated by the nurses in the ER.

Needless to say, I'm very worried. Any advice on what to do to minimize the chance of being screamed at? Or how to handle the situation if it arises?

And also, what should I expect in the ER and Ride Times?

Thank you!

 

[heavenjoans7]

When I did my Ride alongs everyone was nice to me but that isn't the case for everyone. Just do your best and what you are told, how you are told, ask for help if you need it and remember you are just a student. If you mess up it's only natural, just learn from it and as for people yelling at you, remember this is a very stressful job and you will get patients that may yell at you. Just don't take it personally. In my ride alongs, a patient yelled at me but at least I have the experience now. It's not like they can fire you anyways, you are not even working there.

 

[DiaryOfAnEMT]

Thank you so much for your input and advice! I will do my best not to take it personally. It made me feel better to hear "you are just a student" and "it's not like they can fire you"- that's so true and I hadn't thought of it that way.

 

[STXmedic]

I seriously hope they aren't being screamed at. If so, somebody needs to talk to the nurses.

When you show up, introduce yourself, tell them you're there to learn and to be of help. Be proactive. If you see a bed that needs cleaning and changing, go do it. Offer to run labs down. No, it's not your job. But the more helpful you are, the more willing they'll be to help you and teach you things.

The same holds true for being on an ambulance ride. Let them know what you're capable of doing, ask them what the y expect from you on scene, and be helpful. Help tidy up the back after runs. Help them wash the truck if you see them washing it. And if there's a lot of downtime, crack your book.

And my personal pet peeve- if they ask you if you have any questions or want to go over something, don't respond with "I'm good." I don't care if you're a paramedic student on your last ride before the end of your course. You're still a student and you still have a tremendous amount to learn. "I think I've got it down" comes off to me as "I'm not interested in improving, I'm just being forced to be here."

Best of luck. Rotations are what you make of them. They can be invaluable learning experiences, or a complete waste of time. It's up to you.

 

[DiaryOfAnEMT]

Thank you for replying! I had already had a plan in mind to be proactive and helpful, but hearing you advice it reinforces my belief that it's a good plan! I'm glad you also mentioned asking questions- I admit, I was a bit unsure if I'd come off as a nuisance if I asked too many. I truly want to learn as much as I can, I'm so passionate about EMS.

I seriously hope they aren't being screamed at. If so, somebody needs to talk to the nurses.

When you show up, introduce yourself, tell them you're there to learn and to be of help. Be proactive. If you see a bed that needs cleaning and changing, go do it. Offer to run labs down. No, it's not your job. But the more helpful you are, the more willing they'll be to help you and teach you things.

The same holds true for being on an ambulance ride. Let them know what you're capable of doing, ask them what the y expect from you on scene, and be helpful. Help tidy up the back after runs. Help them wash the truck if you see them washing it. And if there's a lot of downtime, crack your book.

And my personal pet peeve- if they ask you if you have any questions or want to go over something, don't respond with "I'm good." I don't care if you're a paramedic student on your last ride before the end of your course. You're still a student and you still have a tremendous amount to learn. "I think I've got it down" comes off to me as "I'm not interested in improving, I'm just being forced to be here."

Best of luck. Rotations are what you make of them. They can be invaluable learning experiences, or a complete waste of time. It's up to you.

 

[SwansonJohn99]

I seriously hope they aren't being screamed at. If so, somebody needs to talk to the nurses.

When you show up, introduce yourself, tell them you're there to learn and to be of help. Be proactive. If you see a bed that needs cleaning and changing, go do it. Offer to run labs down. No, it's not your job. But the more helpful you are, the more willing they'll be to help you and teach you things.

The same holds true for being on an ambulance ride. Let them know what you're capable of doing, ask them what the y expect from you on scene, and be helpful. Help tidy up the back after runs. Help them wash the truck if you see them washing it. And if there's a lot of downtime, crack your book.

And my personal pet peeve- if they ask you if you have any questions or want to go over something, don't respond with "I'm good." I don't care if you're a paramedic student on your last ride before the end of your course. You're still a student and you still have a tremendous amount to learn. "I think I've got it down" comes off to me as "I'm not interested in improving, I'm just being forced to be here."

Best of luck. Rotations are what you make of them. They can be invaluable learning experiences, or a complete waste of time. It's up to you.

I'm also starting my clinical ride alongs in a couple weeks. But if you don't have any questions and "I'm good" comes off as "This is stupid and I want to go home" or something similar what would you recommend? I don't want to piss off my preceptors especially if I have to come back.

 

[BassoonEMT]

If you can't think of a specific question after a call and they ask if you have any, you could always just do a recap of the call, talk through the presentation and what happened. If you have no questions because you were comfortable, ask if you can present the patient to them as you would to the triage nurse, to practice giving report. If you have no questions because your head is spinning, try something like "well there was a lot going on, i would like to talk about some things but do you mind if i have a minute to get my thoughts in order?" then you can think through it and write down anything you were curious about.

 

[BassoonEMT]

Also, I know it's a lot, but try to think of the questions during the call or patient contact. Since you may not be physically doing much at all times, but instead observing, think of what you're seeing. If you don't know what they're doing, or don't know why they're doing it, flag that in your memory to ask later.

 

[SwansonJohn99]

Also, I know it's a lot, but try to think of the questions during the call or patient contact. Since you may not be physically doing much at all times, but instead observing, think of what you're seeing. If you don't know what they're doing, or don't know why they're doing it, flag that in your memory to ask later.

Awesome. Thanks so much.