I am currently attending Everst College in Alhambra. Like many of my fellow classmates, I have most of my prerequisites to enter into a community college nursing program. However, I was not willing to wait on a waiting list the current 3-5 years just to start my first year of nursing. I was drawn into Everest by the sales person showing me the pristine looking 6-bed lab and $10,000 life-like computerized maniquin. I was even impressed that the director had a Ph. D. I was thrilled that I would be in class Monday through Thursday and be able to utilize any part of the school or faculty on Fridays as I needed them. I was told that the clinical experiences would not only satisfy the state requirements, but would put me into a position of greater experience over other recent LVN grads. I was told that I would be taught by highly qualified knowledgeable teachers. (That's why the school can charge so much for the program). I now that there are rights being violated here, I just don't know how to classify them. I have been keeping a detailed log of what goes on day by day in the classrooms. This file is a bit lenghty, but please read. I am scared to know that some of my classmates will be out in the nursing field after passing this class and you should be, too.
First of all, We are currently in MED-SURG. We have not been in one hospital, At all. Attending to patients after coming out of surgery is a BIG requirement for the state. As a class we have followed CNA'S & MA's extensively. We have had little to no involvement with LVN's and thier responsibilities within the sites we are scheduled. To give a recent example of the type of rotations encountered, here is a story of the most recent. To be considered as our OB, Med/Surg & Peds rotation, We were assign to 2 different low-income doctors offices. Last week, 1 student drove 36 miles to her assignment only to be sent home by the facility because she did not speak spanish. That same day, 2 students were assigned to an affiliate office. They were harrassed by the MA supervisor for asking to observe the LVN. The director's response to the situation: Only spanish speaking students will be assigned to the one site. The other site, just follow the MA. Now back to the pristine lab and $10,000 maniquin. I now know why they looked so good. They are rarely used. It has been months since we have been in the lab to perform any procedures. The majority of the class does not know how to insert a catheter, administer injections, or perform a nasogastric suctioning. These are the basics folks! The class is continually asking for these procedures to be demonstrated and practiced in the lab. There was an accredidation firm that came in and passed the program with flying colors in June or July o7'. The company felt obligated to take a special survey of the entire class due to the response they recieved from the test group and other students in the program going to their reps with complaints.
Another HUGE, HUGE, HUGE issue is the lack of qualified teachers that they are employing. Go ahead and keep reading but you won't believe it. The most blatent act of unprofessionalism came a few weeks ago. (This particular teacher has had MANY complaints made about her (verbal to director & Pres., petitions, letters). This teacher often times seems as if she is not coherent. Also, the information that she gives us in class, is often times incorrect. The teacher has also put students and patients in unsafe situations several times in clinical.) On this day, The teacher wrote that study time would be until 10am on the board. At 9:45 She Began harassing a student in her very early 40's for having her textbooks on her desk. As the teacher made the comment "You the oldest one in the class, Why you have your books on the desk... What, you to old to listen?" She took the student's books and papers and threw them on the floor. The director and president did nothing.
Another example of a non-qualified teacher, The class was prepared to take a final. This teacher came into the classroom pissed off at her collegues. After a lengthy negative speech. She made the announcement to the class "I don't care anymore if you pass or fail, I don't care if you use your books... As a matter of fact. Here's the answer key!" She threw the answer key on the first desk and stromed out of the room. Some decided to use the key, some used their books, some didn't use either. When then first wave of students finished they went to the director. About 10 min after they went to him, the teacher came running in the class and hurridly sat down at her seat. The director came in, he asked why were using our books. The teacher lied and said "these students were having difficulty taking the test, so I allowed them to use their books to be fair." It is rumored that all of us that were in the classroom at that time had points deducted for having our books out. The teachers and director WILL NOT let us see our final tests under any cirumstances
After taking finals or quizes, the teachers have become adamant about us just accepting our grades without being able to see our tests. Since the begining of class there have been 2 tests taken by the class that have been completely lost by the teachers. The entire class has had to repeat them. There has also been, on every test so far, AT LEAST one question where the right answer has been marked wrong. There has been NUMEROUS instances that the last page of a test was not included so 10-20 points were automatiaclly deducted because the student never knew they were there. There has also been grades recorded on the wrong student frequently.
These are only very few examples of the school's inadequacy. So please post your story if you have run into any of these problems at other everest colleges.
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