22 Tex. Admin. Code § 215.10 - Clinical Learning Experiences
(a) Faculty shall
be responsible and accountable for managing clinical learning experiences and
observation experiences of students. Board Education Guideline 3.6.2 available
at https://www.bon.texas.gov
describes the purposes of clinical settings and reported hands-on clinical
hours to meet program and course objectives.
(b) Faculty shall develop criteria for the
selection of affiliating agencies/clinical facilities or clinical practice
settings which address safety and the need for students to achieve the program
outcomes (goals) and course objectives through the practice of nursing care or
observation experiences. Consideration of selection of a clinical site shall
include:
(1) client census in sufficient
numbers to meet the clinical objectives/outcomes of the program/courses;
and
(2) evidence of collaborative
arrangements for scheduling clinical rotations with those facilities that
support multiple nursing programs.
(c) Faculty shall select and evaluate
affiliating agencies/clinical facilities or clinical practice settings which
provide students with opportunities to achieve the goals of the program.
(1) Written agreements between the program
and the affiliating agencies shall be in place before clinical learning
experiences begin and shall specify the responsibilities of the program to the
agency and the responsibilities of the agency to the program.
(2) Agreements shall be reviewed periodically
and include provisions for adequate notice of termination and a withdrawal of
participation clause indicating a minimum period of time to be given for notice
of such withdrawal.
(3) Affiliation
agreements are optional for those clinical experiences which are observation
only.
(d) The faculty
member shall be responsible for the supervision of students in clinical
learning experiences and for scheduling of student time and clinical
rotations.
(e) Clinical learning
experiences shall include the administration of medications, health promotion
and preventive aspects, nursing care of persons across the life span with acute
and chronic illnesses, and rehabilitative care.
(1) Students shall participate in
instructor-supervised patient teaching.
(2) Students shall also be provided
opportunities for participation in clinical conferences/debriefing.
(3) When a high-fidelity simulation
laboratory is used to meet clinical learning objectives, the faculty shall be
trained in planning and guiding the experience and in debriefing and evaluating
students. Programs may use up to 50% simulation activities in each clinical
course.
(f) Faculty shall
be responsible for student clinical practice evaluations. Clinical evaluation
tools shall be correlated with level and/or course objectives and shall include
a minimum of a formative and a summative evaluation for each clinical in the
curriculum.
(g) The following
ratios only apply to clinical learning experiences involving direct patient
care:
(1) When a faculty member is the only
person officially responsible for a clinical group, the group shall total no
more than ten (10) students.
(2)
Patient safety shall be a priority and may mandate lower ratios, as
appropriate.
(3) Clinical learning
experiences shall be designed for students to meet clinical objectives in all
clinical activities (skills and simulation laboratories and hands-on
care).
(4) The faculty member shall
supervise an assigned group in one (1) facility at a time, unless some portion
or all of the clinical group are assigned to observation experiences or to
preceptors in additional settings.
(5) Direct faculty supervision is not
required for an observation experience.
(h) Clinical preceptors may be used to
enhance clinical learning experiences after a student has received clinical and
didactic instruction in all basic areas of nursing.
(1) In courses which use clinical preceptors
for a portion of clinical learning experiences, faculty shall have no more than
twelve (12) students in a clinical group.
(2) In a course which uses clinical
preceptors as the sole method of student instruction and supervision in
clinical settings, faculty shall coordinate the preceptorship for no more than
twenty-four (24) students.
(3) The
preceptor may supervise student clinical learning experiences without the
physical presence of the faculty member in the affiliating agency or clinical
practice setting.
(4) The preceptor
shall be responsible for the clinical learning experiences of no more than two
(2) students at a time.
(i) Clinical teaching assistants may assist
qualified, experienced faculty with clinical learning experiences.
(1) In clinical learning experiences where a
faculty member is assisted by a clinical teaching assistant, the ratio of
faculty to students shall not exceed two (2) to fifteen (15).
(2) Clinical teaching assistants shall
supervise student clinical learning experiences only when the qualified and
experienced faculty member is physically present in the affiliating agency or
alternative practice setting.
(j) When faculty use clinical preceptors or
clinical teaching assistants to enhance clinical learning experiences and to
assist faculty in the clinical supervision of students the following applies:
(1) Faculty shall develop written criteria
for the selection of clinical preceptors and clinical teaching
assistants.
(2) When clinical
preceptors or clinical teaching assistants are used, written agreements between
the professional nursing education program, clinical preceptor or clinical
teaching assistant, and the affiliating agency, when applicable, shall
delineate the functions and responsibilities of the parties involved.
(3) Faculty shall be readily available to
students and clinical preceptors or clinical teaching assistants during
clinical learning experiences.
(4)
The designated faculty member shall meet periodically with the clinical
preceptors or clinical teaching assistants and student(s) for the purpose of
monitoring and evaluating learning experiences.
(5) Written clinical objectives shall be
shared with the clinical preceptors or clinical teaching assistants prior to or
concurrent with the experience.
(6)
Clinical preceptors shall have the following qualifications:
(A) competence in designated areas of
practice;
(B) philosophy of health
care congruent with that of the nursing program; and
(C) current licensure or privilege to
practice as a registered nurse in the State of Texas.
(7) When acting as a clinical teaching
assistant, the registered nurse shall not be responsible for other staff
duties, such as supervising other personnel and/or patient care.
(8) Clinical teaching assistants shall meet
the following criteria:
(A) hold a current
license or privilege to practice as a registered nurse in the State of Texas;
and
(B) have the clinical expertise
to function effectively and safely in the designated area of
teaching.
Notes
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