Nursing Student Interns

East Alabama Health offers nursing student intern positions for nursing students who have completed the first two semesters of nursing school and want more hands-on clinical experiences to enhance and apply learning gained through nursing school. This paid position allows the nursing student to perform basic nursing tasks under the direction of a registered nurse while working 24 hours or more per month. Nursing student interns are immersed into the culture, practices, and policies at EAH, resulting in a better-prepared and more skilled nursing graduate who is well-equipped to begin their first nursing position at EAH upon graduation. After graduation, the graduate nurse at EAH benefits from a Nurse Residency Program that includes educator-led, active learning activities, clinical skills boot camp, and mentorship throughout the first year of nursing. The Nurse Residency program supplements the unit-based orientation where new graduates learn from a skilled nursing coach. For more information on becoming a nursing student intern at EAH, contact EAH’s Nursing Student Intern Coordinator at 334-528-1236.

Kali Dudley, NSI, 4T: "Being an NSI has helped me become more comfortable with being at the bedside and caring for patients. Being able to work directly with an RN for an entire 12 hour shift is a great way to see all the things that being a nurse entails. I get to see report given/received, blood transfusion process, med passes, bedside procedures by physicians, and so much more. I feel much more confident about my assessment skills than I did prior to my role as an NSI. I have been able to document in my patients’ charts and get experience with the ins & outs of Cerner. I think the transition from a nursing student to a new grad will be a much smoother process since I’ve had this experience."

Seth Freeman, NSI, 5T: "Working as a NSI has really given me many opportunities to learn and grow as a nursing student as well as put my nursing skills to the test! I even get to practice some basic nursing skills which make me feel very confident. This job as a NSI has given me a more positive and realistic look into the nursing world. Going through nursing school is a pretty challenging and scary thing, but with this position I’ve never been more confident in my clinicals and classroom setting. Being a NSI has also helped me hone in on my critical thinking skills! The feedback I receive from nurses help me learn in real time so that I can apply them in future clinicals and in class. I do believe being a NSI can allow nursing students to get the experience they deserve since sometimes it is hard when you have other students in your clinical group. This position allows one on one time with a nurse so I’m then able to have some questions answered and concepts made clearer. I’ve been very blessed to be given this opportunity and I cannot wait to see how I’ll grow as a nursing student who will one day become a nurse!"

Destiny Smith, NSI, 5T: "This NSI program has truly been remarkable and very informative. It has shown me a side of nursing that I would have never seen without this program. Gaining skills while also being in Nursing school is a luxury that I wish all nursing students could have the pleasure of doing. This program has helped shape, mold, and has given me the confidence to be a successful Nurse. While in the process of learning skills, I have also learned how to apply information taught in the classroom with real life settings, which I feel has contributed to the success of passing my classes. It is completely different seeing something in a book versus experiencing it in real-life which it what this program has exposed me to. The nurses I have had the pleasure of following, have definitely contributed to me wanting to make East Alabama Health my forever home. I highly recommend every Nursing Student to apply!"

Erin Longest, 6T: "Becoming an NSI has made me more confident in not only my nursing skills but also patient and family communication. My extra experiences in a clinical setting have set me apart from my peers, and my clinical instructors and teachers have noticed. The real-life experience I gain every shift has positively affected my classroom performance, because experience truly is the best teacher. I do not graduate for another six months, and I have already applied for my first jobs as an RN. As an NSI, I am able to fine-tune the things I learn in school and apply them to a practical working environment."