Three o'clock in the morning.

That’s how early IU SON, Bloomington seniors Natalie Anne Slagle and Megan Eble had to get up on in order to car pool from Bloomington to their clinical site at Bedford Hospital and its 5:00 a.m. start time. 

“Within the medical field,” says Natalie, “there is never an exact ‘end time’ for a shift. Our clinicals are supposed to last anywhere from 8–12 hours, but can sometimes last as long as 14”, which means that there were times when Natalie’s and Megan’s school day began  – and ended – in the dark.

“Clinicals” – in which students work under real world conditions in a hospital setting – offer students the opportunity to gain direct, hands-on patient care experiences under the supervision of a faculty member. IU SON, Bloomington’s program requires students to complete 860 hours of clinical experience, making nursing one of the most time-intensive and demanding majors on the Bloomington campus. 

Students begin their clinical training in the sophomore year, with classes conducted primarily in IU Bloomington’s NLRC nursing lab (“our safe space”, says Natalie). In-hospital clinicals begin junior year, continue through senior year, and end in Capstone – a highly-concentrated clinical experience in which students learn to be more independent, refine their nursing skills, and prepare to practice as licensed professional nurses.

Clinicals are such an essential part of a nurse’s training that students must make up every hour they miss. If a student misses more than 20% of his or her clinical hours (even if excused and made up), the student will not pass the course.  Students who fail clinicals – even if they pass lecture – must repeat the entire course. 

Despite the intensive, in-classroom training that takes place before clinicals ever begin, Natalie, Megan and fellow senior Emily Pedigo agree that there is absolutely no substitute for the firsthand experience of working with patients in a hospital setting.

“I will never forget my first clinical experience,” says Natalie. “It was at a retirement facility, and I was so nervous to say ‘hello’ to my patient. Prior to clinical, we practiced everything on manikins and had minimal face-to-face interactions with real patients. I knew the book material thoroughly, but lacked the communication aspect.”

“The biggest eye-opener about clinicals,” says Emily, “is that everything isn’t by-the-book. Every patient is different. You can understand everything the book tells you, but you have to be able to apply it and adapt to each patient’s unique situation. You also have to use your time wisely. If you don’t take advantage of the opportunities that come to you during those clinical experiences, you might not get another chance to do that certain skill or see that certain procedure.”

“Clinicals give you the chance to connect knowledge from lecture to the real world,” adds Megan. “I remember (Clinical Assistant Professor) Marsha Hughes-Gay teaching us about how a heart failure patient may have an ashen gray color to their skin but, until I cared for a patient suffering from this condition, I didn’t really grasp the concept.” 

Early morning hours and 12-hour shifts are only a small part of the personal sacrifices – and personal commitment – that all of our students make to become outstanding professional nurses, which is one reason we are so proud of their many accomplishments.