Am I Always Going to Argue with my Instructors?

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I am currently taking my first nursing class now, Pharmacology, as an online summer class. I have breezed through the class with minimal effort and have an "A," with only a week to go.

My big issue is all of the errors on tests and assignments, is this typical in nursing school? I have to defend my test answers weekly (usually successfully). I find that they rely heavily on the book answers (an older text at that), and some have been blatantly wrong. I know medicine changes rapidly since I work in research, but some of the errors were easily known by a layperson (such as recommended dosage for daily aspirin therapy).

Another issue I had was with a homework assignment, we were given a pediatric patient who was diagnosed with asthma after acute respiratory distress during a soccer game. He it put on Theophylline and Azmacort (triamcinalone inhaler). I am confused as to why she chose Azmacort since it is no longer available and why the patient wasn't prescibed a fats-acting inhaler such as albuterol.

I think I am going to have a hard time keeping my mouth shut in nursing school. Working in research, I like to research and stay current on the newest published studies. I also tend to over-think and over-analyze things which gets me into trouble on tests.

Is it worth it to argue in nursing school or is it better to just nod your head and go along with things?

You will never as a nurse give meds that are not safe for your patient. But unless you are a NP, you won't be ordering meds, just giving them.

My pharmacology instructor specifically told us that we are the last check before the med is given to the patient, and doctors do, in fact, occasionally make mistakes when writing prescriptions, and those mistakes occasionally make it past the pharmacy. If we give an incorrect med or dosage, just because the doctor ordered it and the pharmacy dispensed it, then it is our license on the line, not the doctor's. This alone will probably have me asking questions, respectfully of course.

However, at the same time, I, like the OP, have an inquiring mind. I like to know the rationale for everything I am doing, but even if I did not, if the patient asks about a specific med, won't they likely be asking us when it's being administered? I'd like to be able to explain to my patient the doctor's reasoning, because correct me if I'm wrong, is that not another facet of a nurse's job? There is always a drug guide, but who do I go to if the information can not be found there?

I'm a new nursing student, so maybe I'm misunderstanding something, but my instructor was very clear that we are not to administer drugs unless we know why they are being given. Maybe you can shed some light on your differing view point for this new student?:confused:

OP, as you can see, I feel that there are times to challenge a question, an order, etc. Always respectfully, and always with references to back up my point of view. Because I'm not arguing simply for the sake of arguing, I'm simply seeking a better understanding, I usually say something along the lines of, "Can you please clarify this choice/answer, because in my studying this is what I found and how I understood it?" I hate the idea of alienating any of my instructors or the doctors that I'll be working with, but at the same time, I won't feel comfortable if I don't have a good reasoning behind what I'm doing.

"OP, as you can see, I feel that there are times to challenge a question, an order, etc. Always respectfully, and always with references to back up my point of view. Because I'm not arguing simply for the sake of arguing, I'm simply seeking a better understanding, I usually say something along the lines of, "Can you please clarify this choice/answer, because in my studying this is what I found and how I understood it?" I hate the idea of alienating any of my instructors or the doctors that I'll be working with, but at the same time, I won't feel comfortable if I don't have a good reasoning behind what I'm doing."

Thank you, that summarizes it better for me. I think maybe I need alot of clarification too from the instructor because it is an online class and we don't have a verbal dialog. It is pretty much self-study and by the book, so there is alot of things I feel need to be clarified or updated. Even between the 4th and 5th editions of the book there is alot of contradicting information.

I'm a new nursing student, so maybe I'm misunderstanding something, but my instructor was very clear that we are not to administer drugs unless we know why they are being given. Maybe you can shed some light on your differing view point for this new student?:confused:

I meant that you would never, as a nurse, give meds that are not safe for your patient. That's it. If the med isn't safe, don't give it. I believe we are in agreement? ;)

But the issue is not whether the med is safe. Here it is presented as whether the med is THE BEST CHOICE. That is not our call as nurses.

Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.

Choose your battles wisely. Instructors do make mistakes, and if you can provide hard evidence (that is, it's in the current textbook) justifying your answer choice, then by all means approach the instructor. Don't argue, but just say, "I'm confused, this is what's in the book, can you clarify this for me?"

Most instructors are reasonable and will grant you the credit. If they don't give you the credit, they will explain why...remember that these exams are also testing your critical thinking skills: it's not enough to know the information, but to know how to apply it.

Also, while literature searches are great and a valuable learning tool, remember that for most instructors the gold standard will be the textbook, because that's where the info is and that's what they're teaching you. It probably won't help your relations with instructors if you skip (or ignore) the textbook and come armed with literature searches for every test question you got wrong :)

I meant that you would never, as a nurse, give meds that are not safe for your patient. That's it. If the med isn't safe, don't give it. I believe we are in agreement? ;)

But the issue is not whether the med is safe. Here it is presented as whether the med is THE BEST CHOICE. That is not our call as nurses.

Yes, we are in agreement. I'm sorry, I misunderstood what you were saying.:o I thought that you were saying that we would never be given unsafe orders by doctors.:eek: Please forgive my confusion.

As far as it being the best choice, I also agree, not our call. However, I will always be interested in the reasoning, to be a better nurse for my patients and for my own curiosity. I pray that I get to work with at least some doctors that will be willing to take a moment to teach.

Thank you, that summarizes it better for me. I think maybe I need alot of clarification too from the instructor because it is an online class and we don't have a verbal dialog. It is pretty much self-study and by the book, so there is alot of things I feel need to be clarified or updated. Even between the 4th and 5th editions of the book there is alot of contradicting information.

Precisely why I hated the one online class I've taken so far. I have a need to fully understand things, a natural curiosity, I suppose. My micro instructor went so far as to say that I'm too hard on myself and don't need to strive for perfection when I would ask for clarification on certain test questions. I told her that it's not necessarily a need to be perfect, just that I'm trying to comprehend the material. If I'm misunderstanding something, I like to get clarification before moving on.

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