What is Med Surg really like?

RbLegend · Feb 8, 2008

Honey - if you already work on Med-Surg - don't sweat it! As a student - it was a peice of cake for me. You only have 2 pts! As a nurse working the floor? I would have 10 pts /night shift - if anyone would get sick- and I would get so tied up with really sick pts. You couldn't tell if someone had died! Because you could not 'round' on your pts!

I know this sounds funny but true!

So I got my EKG course- went to Telemetry- so at least I would not have such a heavy load - and at least they were on monitors! So I could be assured everyone was alive!

Then I decided the ICU nurses had it made with 2-3 patients- so I got critical care certified- its easier with less patients!

Nrsstudent09 · Feb 9, 2008

I'm on my Med Surg rotation now and it is my first clinical rotation. I find it to be really easy. We are on a post-op/trauma floor and other pts mixed in. I've had COPD pts, a fractured hip, fractured tibia a wide range. I honestly think it's really easy and find myself bored at times. I also have prior health care experience and think it helped a bit. Good luck and be confident and you'll be fine.

mcknis · Feb 9, 2008

Medsurg was easy for me too. I did enjoy it because I am already used to it (aide on a medsurg unit), but was not ready for post-op. I enjoy post-op, but do not feel I can care for all of my pts effectively. I feel that in the real world, unless you have a great aide on medsurg, pt care decreases greatly. There needs to be a mandatory max number of pts a nurse can take based on acuity!

EMTmurse · Feb 9, 2008

Honestly, i found med/surg easy and boring. But im after the emergancy side of nursing after being an emt.

locolorenzo22, BSN, RN · Feb 9, 2008

really? Med/surg? I'd just go with...know how to assess, give your meds, LISTEN to your patients, and check every procedure TWICE before you do it......it's just another day to me....

Joe NightingMale, MSN, RN · Feb 9, 2008

I'd echo everything else here. Our Med Surg lecture course is tough, lots of material very fast.

But the rotation is fairly easy, and I don't have any previous medical experience. Mostly it's just managing your time, your meds, and your charting. Just stay organized and be careful and it'll be fine.

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · Feb 9, 2008

Lecture-wise, there's A LOT of material covered in Med-Surg. It can be overwhelming if you don't stay on top of your reading.

Clincial-wise, it wan't too bad...though a lot of it does depend on the patient(s) you are assigned. On my last clinical day, I ended up with one of the healthiest sick patients I'd ever seen who did not need me for anything more then her 1000 meds and Accuchecks. Meanwhile, many of my classmates were swept off their feet by their patients.

It all does even out though--the clinical before last, I was the one rushed into the ground with my patient, while other students got to veg.

Logos · Feb 10, 2008

I really like med surg- Actually clinicals of any sort are my favorite part of nursing school.

I don't think it is that hard, but I don't have anything to compare it to because I have had 19 weeks of med surg so far and nothing else.

I am always hoping that I will get to do something new- I want to put a cath in and I would love to go to an OR or have someone with a dobhoff, I seem to be getting healthy patients.

Although this past week I had a woman who was just depressed and anxious and then she found out she may have ca- Well she does but the doctor was totally softening it up for her. She gave me quite a bit of experience with therapeutic communication.

manofcare · Feb 11, 2008

I work on a med/surg floor as a nurse intern prior to graduation in May. The clinical end of the unit is great, lots of clinical experience such as IV starts, NG tubes, Foleys, teaching, etc. Remember your 7p's, look the room over when you walk in. Note what is running, IV condition, pt LOC, etc. Really good learning area. The course is pretty fast paced and it doesn't always line up with your clinical experience. For example, you may have a pt post lap chole and you have not covered that in your course. Do yourself a favor and look at the procedure and learn what to look for and interventions before, if you can. The clinical end makes the book stuff more real. I really believe that med/surg is the core of most nursing. That is why I chose to go there before the end of school. Great learning experience.

APBT mom, LPN, RN · Feb 11, 2008

Things that I liked about med surg was that it was out of the classroom and that I was finally getting to see what was in all those boring chapters that I read. I loved doing the skills we learned in the lab on a real patient (those dummies need to be updated). I also got to see a lot of things that I know I will never forget (first code, reaction to a blood product).

The things that I didn't like about med/surg was the patients got repeatative. Mostly uncontrolled blood sugars, heart attacks, pneumonia, MRSA, C-diff. Even though the patients themselves were different they were usually admitted with the same diagnosis. It makes it hard to do find new experiences when the course of treatment is the same.

What everyone says about how you'll see a little of everything on a med/surg floor is true and it's the best area to start perfecting your skills.

leashmarie · Feb 12, 2008

Lecture - too much material, too fast is what first goes through your mind--- then you adapt. You have to, to keep up with your other classes. Depending on your professor, it can be the best or worse course you take. Commonly, this may be where you start doing Case studies. When you're not used to the workload, it's hell... But just keep telling yourself--- I made it through my first semester, I can do anything :)

Clinical--- What a joke... Lol. Perhaps this is because I worked for a few years as a CNA in our hospital's TELE unit, or because I had a VERY strigent first clinical instructor... But as others have said, KNOW YOUR MEDS, and be sure you know your proceedures before you do them. Having a PDA rRREEALLY helped me-- there's all types of programs you can get online for *FREE* to help out :)