A nursing skills lab allows students to practice nursing techniques.
Skills labs are an important component of training programs for licensed practical nurses (LPNs) and registered nurses (RNs). They allow students to practice nursing techniques on mannequins before they must complete them with real patients in nursing homes, hospitals and other medical facilities. Each nursing program is responsible for setting the rules for the nursing skills lab, although some are common from institution to institution.
Dress
A nursing skills lab simulates the experience of providing actual care and nursing procedures to real patients. For this reason, many institutions require students to wear nursing scrub uniforms or lab coats when in the skills lab. Closed toed shoes are also a must since students practice with needles and other sharp objects that have the potential to injure someone if dropped.
Prohibited Items
Some nursing programs ban students from bringing cell phones into the nursing skills lab since they may be a distraction. Food and drink are also prohibited since a spill could damage the equipment or mannequins used in the skills lab. Most training programs for nurses provide reference materials in the nursing skills lab to assist students when practicing. These materials must remain in the nursing skills lab at all times since they are a resource shared with all students.
Mannequins
The mannequins used in nursing skills labs are expensive for training programs to purchase, often costing between $20,000 and $30,000. To protect this costly piece of equipment, rules govern what students can do with the mannequins in the nursing skills labs. Moving mannequins is often prohibited unless a student has permission or assistance from an instructor or lab assistant. Betadine shouldn't be used on the mannequins as this will stain them.
Cancellations
Dates and times of nursing skills labs are assigned in advance to each student depending upon which nursing classes he is taking. It's important that students attend during these scheduled times to practice their skills since they must successfully demonstrate them before advancing to the clinical experience. Each school has cancellation rules for the nursing skills labs which may lead to students being fined or being dismissed from the program if they fail to follow the cancellation rules.
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