Not Working Well: Clinical Placement for Nursing Students in an Era of Pandemic

As the COVID-19 pandemic intensified in early 2020, clinical placements for nursing students across the Portland Metro area were rapidly disrupted, exposing deep cracks in an already strained system. In response, the Oregon Center for Nursing convened weekly meetings with clinical and academic leaders to surface real-time challenges and conduct targeted interviews with key institutions. The resulting data revealed widespread cancellation of placements, inconsistent policies across sites, and growing reliance on simulation-based training as programs scrambled to meet educational requirements without access to clinical settings.

Healthcare agencies expressed mixed sentiments—while many continued to support student placements, limitations like PPE shortages, staff burden, and infection control guidelines sharply reduced capacity. Nursing programs faced parallel struggles, often operating with unclear guidance, reduced faculty, and logistical hurdles intensified by institutional policies and public health constraints. Some turned to community-based activities or telehealth as alternate solutions, though concern over educational quality persisted.

Ultimately, this publication frames the pandemic not just as a disruption but as an accelerant for long-standing issues: strained collaborations, insufficient placement infrastructure, and divergent priorities between educators and clinical sites. With a communal sense of urgency emerging from the crisis, the findings underscore the need for transformative collaboration and system redesign across Oregon’s nursing education pipeline.