From left to right: Emily Razzano, Lauren Childres, Taylor Kraus, Emma Sharp, and adjunct clinical instructor Alison Mutton, BSN, RN
In a unique opportunity last week, several Reinhardt nursing students visited with the Life Flight/Air Methods pilot at Piedmont Cartersville Medical Center. “The students spoke with the pilot while the flight team prepared a patient for transport,” said Alison Mutton, adjunct clinical faculty of Cauble School of Nursing and Health Sciences. “He gave us a tour of the helicopter – called ‘the horse’ by the flight team — which can travel at 150 miles an hour. It is based near McCullum airport and can travel from their base to Piedmont Cartersville Medical Center in 7 minutes!”
Mutton and the students viewed the unique display of the highly organized medical equipment inside the helicopter, which is compact, secured to the aircraft, and within reach of the nurse and paramedic at all times. He also shared details about the exciting career paths of flight nurses and paramedics, and discussed the types of education and clinical experiences required for these roles. “Students were given a rare glimpse into this highly specialized clinical space and gained answers to their questions about the challenging and rewarding field of flight nursing.”
The students who visited with the pilot were seniors in Nursing 403: Nursing Care of the Adult with Acuity. For their clinicals, they were placed in the Emergency Department at Piedmont Cartersville Medical Center. They each complete four to five shifts in the Emergency Department followed by four to five shifts in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Mutton said their experiences in both areas are guided and supervised by an experienced nurse who works as their clinical instructor. Mutton fills that role in the Emergency Department at Piedmont Cartersville Medical Center. The role of the clinical instructor is to be “alert to these opportunities during the clinical shift and to find ways to connect the students to the experience as participants or as observers.”
