Health & Professional Requirements

Health Requirements

The clinical agencies with which the School of Nursing affiliates require that we provide documentation of various professional and health information for all students who have clinical experiences in the agency. Because of the nature of the nursing practice role, these requirements serve to protect students, faculty, and clients. Therefore, all documentation must be on file in the School of Nursing in order for students to register for classes and attend clinical.

1. All students must be cleared for clinical no later than twelve noon on the day prior to attending clinical, regardless of the time that clinical begins. This will insure that clinical faculty and agency personnel have adequate time to plan clinical assignments.
2. All documents are to be hand-delivered to the nursing office (Office hours 8:30-4:30, Monday through Friday, phone ext. 4150). Many documents that are provided are incomplete, and each document must be reviewed to verify that requirements have been met. Therefore, if you have mailed documentation, please follow-up to confirm that all health requirements are complete.
3. The School of Nursing will NOT accept documentation faxed to the School of Nursing. Original documents must be provided.
4. All students are responsible for knowing when their own documentation expires, especially if it expires during the academic year. Every student should verify documentation at the end of each semester. Requirements will be checked in the last week of each month, and students with missing documentation will be barred from clinical on the first of the following month (for example, students with CPR expiring on February 28 will be barred from clinical beginning March 1).

Physical Examination

All nursing students are required to have a complete physical examination. Annual physical forms should be submitted each academic year. Failure to comply will result in debarment from the clinical area.

The following immunizations/titres are required from all nursing students to remain in compliance with Federal OSHA regulations, Connecticut state law, and local clinical agency requirements. Evidence of disease is not acceptable, regardless of student age. Date of immunization or titre must be provided.

1. Measles vaccine (2nd dose given after 1980) or titre
2. Mumps vaccine or titre
3. Rubella vaccine or titre
4. Varicella (chicken pox) titre or vaccine
5. Diphtheria/Tetanus vaccine (dated within the last 10 years)
6. Hepatitis B vaccine (3 doses), documented history of HBV infection, positive titres, or documented refusal form. Students who have not completed the 3 series vaccine must sign the refusal form. (Refusal forms are available in the SON office)

Students who are hospitalized or students who have had a contagious disease, must submit a written statement from their physician before returning to the nursing program. This statement should include fitness for return and/or specific limitations regarding both class and clinical participation.

CPR

Evidence of current certification in CPR for Health Professionals which includes 2-man CPR for adult and child with special techniques. Acceptable CPR courses are BCLS for Health Care Providers from the American Heart Association or BCLS for Professional Rescuers from the American Red Cross. Community CPR is not acceptable.

MMR: the MMR titers once determined do not have to be rechecked, regardless of when drawn. It is possible that they may be lowered during pregnancy, but otherwise should remain consistent. In this case a qualitative titer is acceptable.

Varicella: Quantitative titers should be drawn once; if immunity is determined to be present then student does not need titer drawn for second year. In any case if student is immunized year 1 then titer should be drawn year 2, the key is QUANTITATIVE titer vs. qualitative (i.e. EIA index is not a quantitative titer).

Hepatitis B: Very Tricky. Some people NEVER develop immunity; some can lose immunity over time, thereby requiring a booster. So with this in mind:

• Those students that go through their series of injections during or in preparation for year one of the program, should then go on to have a QUANTITATIVE test for year 2 (Nichols number is: 51938P, apparently a classification system for labs). This value must exceed 10 milliunits/ml to establish immunity. If immunity is not established, the student should have a booster and have immunity rechecked.
• If a student produces a recent titer (less than 5 years old) that establishes immunity this will suffice for both years. In the event that a student produces a titer 5 years or older a quantitative titer is required for year 1.
• The student that comes to us stating they have had the series in the past, regardless of proof of the shots, still needs to have a quantitative titer done to establish immunity. For all intents and purposes for any student (even those who are readmitted or transferred) this should suffice as long as we were within a 5 year window of time from the initial establishment of immunity.
• If a student refuses to receive Hepatitis B immunization a waiver must be signed and kept on file.

PPD: Must be updated on a yearly basis in order to maintain status in the program, exceptions:

• Students who have received BCG immunization should not get a PPD
• Students who have had a positive PPD
• Students who are immunosuppressed, have cancer, or are on steroids should not get a PPD

If PPD cannot be obtained because of the above, student should have a SINGLE chest x-ray to document freedom from disease. Thereafter, on a yearly basis, a note must be received from the Healthcare provider stating that the student shows no evidence of symptoms of TB

Background Check: Because of new requirements in hospital and agency clinical contracts, Fairfield University School of Nursing has chosen CertifiedBackground.com as a source for background checks for our students. This is a service that allows students to purchase their own background checks and view the results on their web site in a secure setting. This company is recommended by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN).

All students will be expected to obtain a background check prior to their clinical experience. Click here to view details and instructions to register for the background check.

Malpractice Insurance

All Undergraduate and Graduate nursing students are covered by the Fairfield University general liability policy for activities performed in their role as student nurses. This requirement serves to protect the University, the School of Nursing, the clinical faculty member, and the individual student.

All full-time Sophomore, Junior and Senior nursing students are charged a small fee to cover the cost of this policy. The fee will be included with their tuition bill.

All part-time nursing students have the fee for this liability policy included in their lab fees which are assessed for each clinical nursing course.

All RN-BSN and Masters students are required to carry their own professional liability insurance in addition to the University policy. This requirement is due to the mandate from the clinical agencies with which we have contracts. RN/BSN and MSN students are covered by the University policy only for their work as a student in relation to course objectives.

Licensure

All registered nurse and graduate students are required to provide a current Connecticut R.N. license.

Clinical Practica for Graduate Students

Practicum Application
All students who plan to enroll in practica courses must complete the application form one semester prior to the semester in which they wish to enroll. Application packets are available in the School of Nursing office. Deadlines are May 1 for a following spring enrollment, October 1 for a summer enrollment, and February 1 for a fall enrollment. No contracts will be initiated with affiliating agencies until a complete practicum assured placement; thus, progression in the program may be hindered. Due to contractual and insurance limitations, (1) all clinical hours must be completed within the official course timeframe, and (2) an Incomplete will not be granted for practicum courses.

Nurse Anesthesia Clinical Practicum
All clinical experiences will be at Bridgeport Hospital and arranged through the Bridgeport Hospital Nurse Anesthesia Program. Students gain hands on experience with a variety of regional (neuraxial and peripheral blocks) and general anesthesia techniques under the close supervision of a supportive CRNA and MD faculty. In addition to the routine surgical cases, our nurse anesthesia students gain experience in trauma, major burn and high-risk obstetrical cases. High-risk pediatric procedures and organ transplants are not performed at Bridgeport Hospital.

The anesthesia services offered are progressive and dynamic. Much effort has been made to provide our patient community with the most current anesthesia practices and services. This department ideal is accomplished by utilizing our ongoing Quality Management System (QMS).

Our QMS identifies patient care and practice issues requiring future education and/or skill development and generates staff, faculty and student participation. This promotes continuous improvement in patient care and a stimulating educational environment.

Occupational Safety And Health Administration (OSHA)

Students:
All undergraduate, second degree, RN, and graduate nursing students are required to successfully complete the School of Nursing's "OSHA Requirements" (in accordance with OSHA mandate 29CFR 1910.1030), prior to participation in clinical experiences. Completion of the following requirements will deem the student to be "OSHA certified" for one year:

• Read and study an OSHA self-study guide created by the Connecticut Hospital Association, which is available in the Fairfield University Website
• Attend a review session and take the Connecticut Hospital Association OSHA examination
• Obtain a score of 85% or greater on the OSHA examination

Upon completion of the review and examination session, students will be given a copy of the "Fairfield University School of Nursing Policy on Accidental Exposure to Blood or Body Fluids". The student will then be asked to sign a form called the "Personal Responsibility Form for Accidental Exposure to Blood and Body Fluids". This form indicates that they have read and understood the policy and recommendations regarding accidental exposure to blood and body fluids. Their signature also reflects their understanding that they are responsible for medical follow up and psychological counseling following accidental exposure.

OSHA review and examination sessions will be provided by the School of Nursing according to the following schedule:

• Sophomore, Junior and Senior Students: December
• Second Degree Students (First and Second Year): June
• RN/BSN and MSN Students: Based on clinical courses

Revised 7/99, 9/03 and 5/04 by Diane Mager, Director of the Learning Resource Center

Policy on Accidental Exposure to Blood or Body Fluids

In case of accidental exposure to blood or body fluids, students and faculty members are expected to follow the procedure outlined below. The Fairfield University School of Nursing Incident Report form will be completed.

Accidental Exposure to Blood or Body Fluids

• Immediately wash exposed area with soap and water, then Betadine Scrub for three minutes. If exposure to mouth or eye, flush the contaminated area with at least one liter of water.
• After washing, immediately report exposure to Clinical Instructor, who will then report the exposure to the Nurse Manager of the Unit that you were working on when the incident occurred.
• Follow Clinical Institution protocol for accidental exposure (protocols may vary among Clinical Institutions).
• Depending on the Clinical Institution: Baseline bloodwork will be drawn on patient and student immediately following the exposure. (Permission must be obtained from both the patient and the student in order for blood to be drawn. The student may have the bloodwork drawn at the Institution where the exposure occurred, or a Physician's Office of his/her choice, but it must be drawn within 24 hours of the exposure).
• Fill out Clinical Institution's Incident Report. Fill out Fairfield University School of Nursing Incident Report within 24 hours, and report incident to course coordinator as well as to the Office of the Dean.
• Immediate follow up with a physician is recommended.

Faculty Responsibilities:

Verify that the student follows the above steps. Immediately report the incident and the procedure followed to the course coordinator and to the Office of the Dean. Policy updated and reviewed 2/28/08.