| When Whitney Dunbar graduates with a | | | | learned to the scenario.” |
| bachelor’s degree in health and nursing in June, | | | | Dunbar said the first time she worked with a patient, |
| she will be working triple the hours of normal nursing | | | | she was nervous to talk to them. “I was afraid |
| graduate because of her externship experience. | | | | I’d say something wrong or do something |
| Dunbar, a senior nursing student at Wright State | | | | wrong,” she said. “As I’ve gotten more |
| University in Dayton, Ohio, was one of thirty people | | | | experience, I’m not nervous at all.” |
| chosen to participate in an externship program at | | | | Although she isn’t nervous to talk to patients |
| Dayton’s Miami Valley Hospital in the Coronary | | | | anymore, Dunbar said her biggest fear is that |
| Intensive Unit. Later, Dunbar was accepted into an | | | | something will happen to a patient because she did |
| extension of that externship program where she was | | | | something wrong. |
| one of three students chosen to continue working in | | | | “That’s probably every nurses fear,” |
| the unit. | | | | she said. |
| Dunbar, who chose to go into nursing because she | | | | Dunbar said some of the challenges she faces are |
| enjoys taking care of others, said her nursing course | | | | learning how to think like a nurse and learning all the |
| load is heavy because professors may only have | | | | information necessary to be a nurse. |
| three hours to relay a large bulk of very specific | | | | While Dunbar said she thinks there should be more |
| information to students once a week. | | | | clinical time for students in her program, she said she |
| Not only do the students have hours of lectures, | | | | likes how the program offers a wide variety of |
| they may have twice or more the hours of clinicals. | | | | clinicals. She said counselors and advisors are easily |
| When preparing for a test, Dunbar starts studying a | | | | accessible, and there are nurses and an instructor on |
| week ahead of time, for about four to six hours a | | | | hand during clinicals. |
| day. | | | | After graduation Dunbar plans to apply for the |
| “The tests aren’t straight memorization from | | | | internship in the Coronary Intensive Care Unit and |
| the notes,” she said. “You need to use critical | | | | hope to eventually work there as well as go to |
| thinking and know how to apply the information you | | | | graduate school and become a nurse practitioner. |