Sunday, December 16, 2012


The first week back in the schools went extremely well.  My skills returned to me quickly and I felt comfortable doing the screenings again.  There were many positive things I saw and experienced while being back in the schools for the first week. 
One positive thing I experienced was a welcoming feeling from the school staff.  Having the faculty on board allows for a cohesive process and makes the day much smoother.  The principle greeted us in the main office with a smile and warm hospitality.  The next positive thing I saw was the maturity of the junior nursing students.  They came into the building helping us unload the equipment without being asked and set up their stations with ease.  Their ability to handle themselves in such a professional manner really helps the senior’s job in coordinating the screenings.  Another positive thing I saw was the reactions of the students.  The third grade students were excited to see us and seemed like they were having fun with us.  When the students enjoy being with us, the process goes very well without incident.  The next positive observation was the moral of all the senior nursing students.  I was feeling overwhelmed the few days leading up to our first day as leaders but was put at ease by the teamwork we put in to make the day successful.  Being the first day in charge, I was not sure how to handle myself in any tricky situations.  One example being the ipads showing multiple records of students when their ID numbers were input.  The solution was extremely simple but never having dealt with such a problem, I was not sure what to do.  After playing with some settings in the ipad, I found the records were easy to navigate and the right student was located.  The final positive experience I had involved the CWRU faculty. After seeing how efficiently we worked, the faculty commended us for such a great job.  This was great for my confidence as being a senior leader.  I felt very reassured and am now more comfortable in a leadership role among nursing students.        
There were many differences being a senior in the school settings.  Having more authority scared me at first but I was put at ease after directing traffic between the juniors.  I instructed the juniors to set up their stations and paired up the runners to be in charge of bringing the students in for screening.  Being in the atmosphere and not actually screening was extremely different.  I still had interactions with the students but not to the extent I was used to.  Also, the junior nursing students showed respect for my position yet were still comfortable with asking me questions. 
I learned a lot being one of the senior nursing leaders.  There is a lot of effort that goes in to setting up each school and making them aware of our visit.  There was a schedule sent out with all 70 schools and our visits but schools still seem in the dark.  I learned how to ease the process of checking in students, screening them, and returning them to class.  This process is vital to make our visit successful.  Any delays will throw off the schedule and push back times for other schools as well.  Overall I had a great time being back in the schools and am excited for the rest of the semester.

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