My Summer Externship

by Erin Miley

I had been planning on doing an externship since my freshman year. This pushed me in every aspect of school. I knew that I had to achieve high grades because most programs have a certain GPA requirement and the competition is fierce. My externship took place during the summer of 2011 at Jersey Shore University Medical Center (the heart of the Meridian System) in Neptune, NJ. Saying that this was the best experience I could have hoped for would be selling this experience short. It was a 10-week program where we received orientation to the hospital and Patient Care Associate (PCA) training. We spent the next eight weeks, two 12-hour shift per week on the floor of our choice. I chose the Medical Intensive Care Unit/ Cardiac Critical Care Unit (MICU/CCU). It was intense. I was placed with an experienced nurse (RN) and by the end of the eight weeks was taking her full assignment.

This experience was vastly different than what one seen during the short six hours in clinical weekly. You take report in the morning and set your goals for the day. During the first couple of days my goal was always the same- Keep the patient alive! As the weeks progressed I was able to individualize goals to the patient’s we were assigned that day. I was able to take everything that we have been taught and put it together to meet the patient’s needs. I completed a full assessment every two to four hours as indicated, gave medication, charted, and wrote notes on our patients for the day. My nurse was always with me answering any questions I had or teaching me a new skill that I had not been exposed to or had never done. I was able to see people intubated, extubated, getting central lines placed. I was able to put in nasogastric (NG) tubes, foley’s, draw blood, measure the central venous pressure (CVP), and cardiac output, wedge pressure, and other measurements with a Swan catheter.

I spoke to and updated doctors on the patient’s condition. Similarly, I spoke with the patients’ and their families to explain what was happening to them. I became more comfortable with talking to doctors, patients, and families. I also became more comfortable entering patients rooms, turning, lifting, and repositioning the patients.

Also, we were required to go to two-hour classes every week on various aspects of nursing care. We received an orientation to the library and all the services offered. We were taken on a virtual dementia tour. We were shown what it is like to have dementia and made to complete six tasks. The most any one person in our group was able to complete was three. We were given sample simulations and stroke education. Lastly, we were given an NCLEX review.

I highly recommend that every nursing student consider applying to various programs. It takes initiative to get a position but I say that it is worth it! This experience was invaluable to my learning experience. Currently, I am hired per diem as a PCA in the MICU/CCU. While this externship does not guarantee me a position in the MICU/CCU, I will be given preferential treatment because I am still employed in the system and because I am not just another face to my manager. She knows my name and has seen me interact with patients, families, doctors, and other nurses.