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About the Internship
About the Internship
The purpose of my internship site’s work is to provide nursing support to researchers in their clinical research trials. This work matters because it supports vital research trials that can advance healthcare research. There are many ongoing research trials at the CTSI CRC, ranging from oncology to pulmonary care. Did you know the CTSI is supporting researchers who are developing a device that law enforcement can use to test street drugs for dangerous opiates?
Project Summary
The CTSI Clinical Research Center (CRC) provides nursing support and assessments to researchers/research teams who conduct clinical research trials. The tasks the nurses complete vary from completing blood draws to administering study medication.
Workplace
Workplace
Some skills and strengths I already have are the ability to take vitals, teamwork/communication, compassion for others, drive, and the eagerness to learn. These strengths will help me learn new skills, build valuable new relationships, open up new paths, and grow my strengths through my connections with patients.
I have been assisting the nurses to the best of my ability to provide relief from the large number of tasks they have to complete daily. By becoming more knowledgeable, I have been able to complete more work at my site, allowing the nurses to delegate more patients to me, thus giving them more time to treat the patients I am not licensed to help with. Through gaining more independence, I have been able to ask for more work to complete, contributing more to the overall work that must be completed.
Successes and Challenges
Successes and Challenges
A time when I have felt successful is when I started an IV for the first time. I have been completing blood draws, but did not know how to start an IV. To prepare me for this task, the RNs had me watch them start an IV and walk me through the steps that they were completing. Then, one of the RNs had me practice the process on a styrofoam cup. Once I felt comfortable, I started an IV on a patient on my first try with one of the RNs watching in case I needed any assistance. Another success I had was completing a patient visit independently. Once I was knowledgeable enough about a certain study and felt confident I knew everything I needed to do for the patient, the nurses started to delegate those patients to me. I would take their height/weight and vitals, complete their blood draws, and discharge them all on my own. By successfully caring for these patients on my own, I was able to build on my confidence and better my skills as a student nurse intern. These successes can be applied to my future by giving me the confidence needed to complete new tasks, regardless of whether I fail or not, since starting something new is always the hardest part.
It has been challenging learning to read and understand the flow sheets that are used for the different research trials active at the CRC. I have made some small mistakes due to not understanding something that was written on the flow sheet. I have made sure to speak with my colleagues and my supervisor to be able to better understand how the flow sheets are written whenever I have been confused about something. Another challenge I have faced is failing to complete a blood draw. Some patients can be harder to stick due to their veins not being as prominent. We can only stick a patient twice before a different nurse has to attempt. It can be very discouraging when I am unable to stick a patient, but I feel comforted knowing that even seasoned nurses sometimes have difficulty as well. These challenges have shown me that it is vital to communicate with my colleagues because they can provide valuable information on how I can better myself.
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