A & P I - How much detail do I need to know?

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Specializes in Skilled Nursing/Rehab.

Hello, all!

I just finished an 8 week summer Anatomy & Physiology I course. I am pretty sure I got an A in the class, but due to the quick pace and my schedule, I did not read all of the chapters completely. I had a good instructor who made sure we got the "general idea" about things that he thought were important. My concern is - how much detail do I need to know about this stuff as I go forward in my nursing career? (I am taking pre-reqs for an ADN program.) In particular - do I need to deeply understand the chapter on chemistry? Do I need to know what cAMP is and how it works with hormones? Things like that...

I learned a lot, but I am nervous about not knowing enough of the details... Any opinions from more advanced nursing students or nurses would be welcome!

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Specializes in Mother Baby RN.

For A&P I, the general idea is completely fine. You'll go more in depth in A&P II and definitely in Pathophysiology!!!

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Specializes in Skilled Nursing/Rehab.

Thanks for the reply! This was apparently not a very popular thread... but hearing from you makes me feel better! I am a very detail oriented person, and I really want to do well, so I was worried! Thanks!

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Specializes in Mother Baby RN.

I am the same way. I'd say save the space in your brain for Pathophysiology and Pharmacology...you'll need the details there for sure! Med-surg is pretty much the marriage of those two courses. Sorry you didn't get more responses.

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When you are in the nursing program, you will not necessarily need to recall wee little details.

If there is a specific hormone, action or whatever, you will know then if you really need to remember it (trust me, it will be obvious).

The A&P you learn now will usually come back to you as you cover each subject.

You will think, "Agh! I don't think I remember anything from A&P", but sure enough, you'll be in class talking about GFRs and you'll realize that you remembered way more about the kidneys than what you gave yourself credit for.

Just remember, the pathophys stuff is cool and you need to understand it BUT what you do about it as a nurse will be more important for you to learn.

Cheers!

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