Guiding Principles & Regulations

Management of the program

Internship Program is stipulated and managed by the College of Nursing. Participating hospitals are expected to facilitate the program implementation under direct guidance from the college.

Each regional nursing college at KSAU-HS, in Riyadh, Jeddah, and Al-Ahsa will be responsible academically and administratively for interns assigned to the region  regardless of the student initial registration site. The three colleges, however, shall be committed to a unified program implementation as per the stipulations of the deans’ agreement dated and signed on March 2009.

Clinical Placement Sites

Internship training is conducted in clinical settings that are properly recruited by the university whereby a placement agreement between the two parties is signed.

Currently, the hospitals affiliated with the Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs are the primary placement sites for KSAU-HS Nurse Interns, specifically the following sites:

Preparing for Internship Training

1. Basic Life Support (BLS) Certification:

   Interns should have a valid BLS certification in order to start training.

2. Immunization:

   Interns should comply with all immunization requirements requested by the clinical setting prior to commencing bedside practices.

3. Interns Professional Meetings:

   Internship Coordinator will arrange for holding maximum of 4 professional meetings with potential graduates during the last semester before graduation. The said meetings aim at preparing students for the internship year and discussing the arrangements needed before they start (Attendance is mandatory).

Starting Internship Training

Upon starting internship training, interns must attend the following orientation:

• Hospital orientation.
• Internship program orientation.
• General Nursing Orientation (GNO) offered by each participating hospital.
• Orientation to specific clinical areas.
• Other orientation activities deemed necessary by the training site and mutually approved by the concerned CON.

Attendance requirements during internship

1. Time Period of internship training:

   The internship training counts for one calendar year (52 weeks), inclusive of two weeks leave for Eid Al-Fetr, two weeks leave for Hajj, and one day leave for the Saudi National Day.
   In order to fulfil time requirements of the program, the college of nursing Intern must attend 100% of the specified clinical time. Therefore any missing clinical time, due to absenteeism, marriage, deferment or else, must be made up for before completion of the program.

2. Leaves and Absence Stipulations:

   The college has developed policies, procedures and guidelines to guide and regulate different types of leave privileges during the internship year. It also provides guidance in relation to punctuality, unauthorized and authorized absenteeism.

3. Working Hours:

• The college Intern shall follow the clinical site shift patterns and working procedures including working nights and weekends. In doing so, the Intern will gain an understanding of patient care needs, continuity of care, and will be able to function more independently.
• The college Intern shall work a roster of 44 hours per week.
• During the holy month of Ramadan, the Interns will work reduced hours (30 hours per week instead of 44 hours) as per Saudi Labor Law stipulations.

Payment during internship

Saudi Nurse Interns will be paid an established monthly salary as per the Kingdom’s Civil Bureau law and the Ministry of Education rules and regulations under which the university is chartered.

The stipend will be received for only twelve months period. In cases when the training period is extended for whatever reason, the extended time shall not be paid.

If an intern requests deferment of her training, for a period equal or more than 3 months, the concerned college will formally withhold payment of the stipend for the same period of deferment.

Interns’ Study leaves

The college interns are required to attend few mandatory workshops during internship program, namely:

• Medication safety.
• Pain management.
• Vascular access and IV fluids.
• Blood and blood products.

Additionally, they may attend any other workshops deemed essential for their training and mutually agreed on by the concerned college and the recruited clinical sites where the field experience is carried out.

Interns may also enjoy a maximum of 3 days study leaves to attend workshops and conferences relevant to practice area. The said study leave time is considered part of their training and they don’t have to make it up.

Learning Activities

College interns are held accountable for self-directedness, commitment to own learning and professional growth. They are responsible for utilizing various resources to facilitate achieving the program learning outcomes such as; attending in-service sessions, using library facilities, accessing electronic database, attending unit meetings, facilitating in-service education activities and others.

Additionally, they are accountable for advocating and negotiating their learning needs and objectives with the clinical site staff who are directly involved in their training.

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