At my clinical site, seeing firsthand the conditions learned in class has helped further my understanding of the disease processes and their labs. Having a great preceptor to discuss the cases also progressed my critical thinking. As a visual person learning this information solely online and from a textbook can be challenging, so being in the hospital has allowed me to grow exponentially. Thanks to the relationship between the ICU and ED I have also been able to hop into the ED to give IVs and see anything interesting coming in. I could not have asked for a better group of people to help me grow in my skills and confidence as a future nurse. [Click on Marlo's name above for her full story.]

My clinical placement has turned out to be amazing! Since the facility is a critical access hospital, both of my preceptors are cross trained in every department. This means I have gotten experience in the ICU, Med/Sug, Labor and Delivery/OB, as well as ER. Whether it be starting an IV, accessing a port, performing a newborn assessment, monitoring telemetry strips, or inserting foley catheters, I have grown a tremendous amount from the beginning of the semester when I was too nervous to even take a set of vital signs. [Click on Charly's name above for her full story.]

My capstone experience is in the Emergency Department (ED) at a Wyoming hospital, and it has been nothing short of eventful and exciting. On day one in the ED I found myself in the middle of a code blue performing CPR for the very first time. That day truly set the tone for the rest of my time in the ED, as I have since experienced 5 codes, several STEMIs, strokes, cardioversions, gruesome open fractures, MIS-C, and more. Every day is an adventure in the Emergency Department, providing me the opportunity to see patients of all ages with varying acuity levels. In just two short months since beginning my capstone experience, my confidence has grown exponentially. [Click on Sierra's name above for her full story.]