ACLS

[Idaho80]

i just finished my preceptorship in the icu, my preceptor knew that i either want to go into traveling, icu or ed. during my three week preceptorship my nurse had me check out the acls book and would quiz me throughout my training she stated that it was good to start learing the acls protocols now instead of while studying for my boards. my question is it a good idea to focus on my advance studies now or wait until i am an rn with more experience? i really enjoyed my time in the icu and my preceptor gave me a referral to the ed i know that the acls certification would look good on my resume but part of me wants to focus on passing my boards.

[FrogKissingNurse]

well i think an acls certification isn't going to do you much good if you don't pass the boards. i'd secure a pass on nclex before you start looking into acls classes. at least that is how i'm going to do it.

[jedi88]

Hi! Good luck on your boards. I passed ACLS before starting nursing school so it can be done. I was an EMT for a few years so I had a good foundation in the BLS component. I studied the book and CD until I could recognize all of the EKG and memorize the drugs and dosages. I figure by time I finish nursing school and am actually working I will have taken ACLS a few times so I will know it inside out. I think it is really important to know what to do in a code so I want as much experience as possible with it.