20 trainees of the nursing school of the helios-frankenwald hospital rehearsed the serious case in the last days on ward 7. Saturday marks the end of the "schoolchildren run a ward" project.
Sophia oechsner is putting on a bandage while talking to her patient gerhard schmidt. The latter has full confidence and lets the procedure pass in a relaxed manner. The 22-year-old is one of 20 health and nursing trainees who are currently preparing for their exams at the end of their three-year apprenticeship. And this was also the purpose of the project weeks from the 25th to the 25th. February to 18. Marz. During this time, each trainee was responsible for six patients on ward 7, twice for four days at a time. Normally one nurse is responsible for twelve to fifteen patients. But for the sake of seriousness, this number was cut in half.
Sophia oechsner sums up her work in the last few days as follows: "the project weeks have given me a sense of security!" they now know what to look out for in the day-to-day care of the ward. She has learned to combine different activities under one roof. Among other things, the staffelsteiner was responsible for basic care, she worked out visits, assisted in feeding patients, documented, performed bureaucratic tasks necessary for admission and discharge, and brought patients to the operating room.
Worked independently
Her colleague lisa welscher also speaks of positive results after the project weeks. There is a difference between working at a station according to instructions and acting on one’s own responsibility.
Sophia oechsner and her colleagues have been working on the various wards in the clinic on and off since they began their training. The difference with the project weeks, however, is that they always work under the supervision of a registered nurse during their assignments. In the final weeks, however, they had to act independently. The practical instructors did not interfere. Only if the prospective nurses had questions or were uncertain, were they available for help and advice.
"The project is very valuable", said doris hummer. Like her colleague peter oelschlegel, she has completed additional training as a practical instructor. It is important to her to give the prospective students a sense of security. They also want to pass on their specialist knowledge in the field of nursing in a practical way. "It is important to me that the trainees see the patient as a human being!"
Preparations for the project weeks took around nine months, explains peter oelschlegel. For example, they had to find a suitable station, talk to the staff and arrange the shift schedule. He has also found that the project weeks have a positive effect on the trainees’ communication skills. Many a fear of contact with superiors and doctors has been alleviated.
Rough responsibility
The head of nursing andreas ebert combines the project weeks with good preparation for the exam. He is convinced that these days are a good opportunity to apply what has been learned, which has a positive effect on the exams.
"The project is really super!", said deputy project manager anna-lena porzelt. The trainees had noticed that the nurses bear a gross responsibility. Porzelt also says that she is now looking forward to getting back to her regular job: "the project days were a lot of fun, but they were also exhausting!"
Sophia oechsner and lisa welscher now know that the job of a nurse can be very strenuous. But their career aspirations, namely to earn their living as a nurse from next year on, have not changed at all.