Home > Career Options > Real Nurse Stories > Karissa Ellis

A Real Nurse Story: Karissa Ellis

When she's not overseeing the "Touched by a Nurse" ambassador program for the Wisconsin Student Nurses' Association, attending classes, working as a phlebotomist, studying, or dancing, 21-year-old nursing student Karissa Ellis is involved in one of the most important aspects of student nursing: hands-on training through clinical rotations at local hospitals.

Working toward her B.S.N. at Bellin College of Nursing in Green Bay, Wis., Karissa already has completed clinical rotations in cardiology and maternity care and has started her rotation in orthopedics. Her rotation assignments are connected to the classes she takes each semester. She attends subject-area lectures a few days a week; then gets the related hands-on experience during two or three eight-hour shifts each week.

Karissa actually begins her work the on night prior to her clinical rotation shift. She is given information about the patient for whom she will be caring, and prepares for the next day by looking at the patient's chart, researching his condition and outlining how she will care for him, including what vitals she'll need to take, which medications she'll give, and what physical signs she'll need to monitor.

Story Features

Email This Story Print This Story

"It's really nice because I can focus all my attention on one patient," she says. "I don't feel pushed, really, ever."

On the day of her shift, she listens to the morning report on-site with the staff nurses. "After the morning report, I like to discuss [it] with the RN I'm working with, just to remind her what I'm doing and what I need her to be present for," Karissa says. Then she makes a head-to-toe assessment of her patient so she knows what to expect for the day.

During the shift, her tasks are many: She gives meds, bathes patients, changes their bed linens, takes vitals, and inserts IVs. Although she does all the procedures herself, she's sometimes required to have an experienced nurse present. For instance, she can hang IV meds only with an RN in the room. And an RN must verify all medication before Karissa administers it.

In addition to the hands-on nursing experience, Karissa has the opportunity to observe other aspects of hospital care. She may attend diagnostic procedures or physical rehabilitation sessions with her patients. In rare cases, she can scrub in to observe a surgery.

"One of the great experiences I had as a sophomore student in the cardiac unit was scrubbing in for a coronary artery bypass and valve replacement," she remembers. "It happened to be with one of those surgeons who likes students and likes to quiz them and point stuff out."

Karissa loves working with doctors and nurses who take an interest in teaching students. "I like to be there when the doctors make rounds," she says. "I quiz the doctor as we leave the room. It's fun for me to see if I can follow [what they describe]. It's almost like a little review."

Karissa also finds many of her RN preceptors to be good sources of learning. For instance, she says, "I find that if [a nurse] has been working on a floor for a long time, she can look at a patient and immediately know what's going on." Karissa notes that the RN also can offer hints on telltale signs of possible complications and give advice about patient care.

Most nurses are understanding with students who are still learning, she says, as are the patients. "No matter how many times I practice, I always have a fight with the blood pressure cuff. Most patients just laugh it off," says Karissa. "I think they enjoy young faces. I think we bring a certain energy to them."

Definitely energetic, Karissa certainly must bring a smile to the patients she encounters. And doing her clinical rotations has solidified her faith in her choice of career.

"There's a moment during the clinical experience when it all suddenly makes sense and becomes easier," she describes. "It's in that moment that you know you have chosen the right field."