Ahhhh....third day of nursing school and I am serioulsy stressing!!!

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Are any of ya'll going over the nursing process??? IT's so much to take in and nursing diagnosis, whoever heard a nursing diagnosis!!! Subjective and objective data. This is my fourth year in school for a two year, I did it this way so that when it came time for nursing courses that I'd only have to take those w/no prereqs. I already am thinking this is going to be too much!

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.

Yes, it is a lot. But this is what separates an RN from, let's say, a CNA--the nursing process. This is what you have been waiting for. This is what being a professional nurse is all about. This is the secret of nursing school. It's all new to you now. So, just let it sit in your brain. Take a break. Read it over again. Let it sit for a bit. Read it over again. The process is really just the scientific process amended to nursing. I like to assist students with their care plans and find that the nursing diagnosis is probably the hardest thing for them to understand. Do you have a nursing care plan book? If so, you might try reading the very first chapters--the ones before they get into the actual care plans. The authors usually discuss the nursing process in those early pages. Perhaps reading about the nursing process from some other writers will also help you understand it. Or, do a search on the web and read about nursing process and see what comes up. For the remainder of your nursing education "nursing process" is something you are going to learn to live with. It's not too much. It's just new to you. In a few weeks you'll be throwing the term around like you've used it all your life.

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Are any of ya'll going over the nursing process??? IT's so much to take in and nursing diagnosis, whoever heard a nursing diagnosis!!! Subjective and objective data. This is my fourth year in school for a two year, I did it this way so that when it came time for nursing courses that I'd only have to take those w/no prereqs. I already am thinking this is going to be too much!

It is alot; but don't stress too much because you will learn it and it will seem like nothing to you next semester. It is very overwhelming, let me tell you i cried and almost pulled my hair out, but everything will be ok!!! Im going to start my last level next week and im sooooo glad i made it here!!!! But u'll be ok!!!!

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Specializes in Cardiac Care.
Yes, it is a lot. But this is what separates an RN from, let's say, a CNA--the nursing process. This is what you have been waiting for. This is what being a professional nurse is all about. This is the secret of nursing school. It's all new to you now. So, just let it sit in your brain. Take a break. Read it over again. Let it sit for a bit. Read it over again. The process is really just the scientific process amended to nursing. I like to assist students with their care plans and find that the nursing diagnosis is probably the hardest thing for them to understand. Do you have a nursing care plan book? If so, you might try reading the very first chapters--the ones before they get into the actual care plans. The authors usually discuss the nursing process in those early pages. Perhaps reading about the nursing process from some other writers will also help you understand it. Or, do a search on the web and read about nursing process and see what comes up. For the remainder of your nursing education "nursing process" is something you are going to learn to live with. It's not too much. It's just new to you. In a few weeks you'll be throwing the term around like you've used it all your life.

Excellent advice!

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Specializes in L&D, QI, Public Health.

My first day I was stressing out and I still am, but it's slowly but kind of coming together.

I'm in my third week now and I'm thinking how much more can I learn in one semester!!!!

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We're assigned to read almost 5-10 chapters each week, 4 quizzes each week, checkoffs on about 3-5 procedures each week, attend 3-4 hospital orientations.... but at least I hear that it gets easier with each semester??? Since fundamentals is the foundation for all your nursing courses. I do however think i made a mistake when I thought I was doing something to help me. Instead of taking nursing courses w the prereqs I did all prereqs first so that I could focus on nursing courses by themselves. It's been over a year since I had anatomy& micro and we have to use the stuff we learned in there and that info has long gone because really all we did was memorization!!!!

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.
We're assigned to read almost 5-10 chapters each week, 4 quizzes each week, checkoffs on about 3-5 procedures each week, attend 3-4 hospital orientations.... but at least I hear that it gets easier with each semester??? Since fundamentals is the foundation for all your nursing courses. I do however think i made a mistake when I thought I was doing something to help me. Instead of taking nursing courses w the prereqs I did all prereqs first so that I could focus on nursing courses by themselves. It's been over a year since I had anatomy& micro and we have to use the stuff we learned in there and that info has long gone because really all we did was memorization!!!!

It will come back you. You'll see.

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Specializes in ER/Trauma.
but at least I hear that it gets easier with each semester???
I actually think that because you're so used to getting completely chewed out - you get innured to it :p :chuckle

But yes, what the others have said is true - it WILL come to you.

And it WILL take you time.

It took me about a semester and half before I finally grasped the basics and significance of the nursing process. Up untill that time, I was completely lost: the whole deer in the headlights phenomenon. All my mind could report was words - not the concept.

But sheer work and repetition helped me to understand the concept. And once I had a few clinicals, it heped solidify and cement the concept :)

You'll get it too. You're not alone. Try and see if others in your class are having the same difficulty. Form study groups. Badged TAs. Drop into professor office hours. They're all there to help!

Yes, it does seem impossibly overwhelming - but you must remember to put it in context... it is only the THIRD day of school ;)

Remember, a journey of a 100 miles, begins with one small step. The distance looks daunting - you've barely made a dent.... but it IS a start!

Have courage! :)

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Assessment (of patient's needs)

Diagnosis (of human response needs that nursing can assist with)

Planning (of patient's care)

Implementation (of care)

Evaluation (of the success of the implemented care

ADPIE !!!!!!!

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It's overwhelming, but it does start to make sense. This is the beginning of our wonderful career in nursing. It is what separates us from CNAs, nurse assistants, etc. You can do it!

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Ugh! The nursing process. It is so completely unfathomable because it means...close to nothing. Other professionals on the healthcare team hate it because it is a bunch of jargon, and I have to agree. And some of these diagnoses are laughable. What the heck is "impaired energy field"? On second thought, I don't want to know or I may regret my decision to go to nursing school. (I'll pretend it has something to do with the batteries on the defibrillator needing recharging...)

I asked one the of the old timers on staff (a woman past 70 who has been a nurse since her 20s in countries all over the world) what she thought of this "innovation" -- the nursing diagnosis. She said, "What do you think of it?" I said, "I think its a bunch of nonsense." She winked and said, "You're learning..."

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The hard part for me was figuring out nursing diagnoses and how to prioritize them. Once I figured them out it was so much easier. The nursing process is just that, the nursing process, the systematic approach to patient care the nurse takes.

Assessment-Do your assesment, history, the works, this allows you to see what you are dealing with and gives you an idea of what to address in the next step.

Diagnosis-This was what was confusing to me. You have to come up with NURSING diagnoses, not medical, remember that, you are a nurse not a doctor, so never use medical diagnoses in the nursing diagnosis. You are going to take what you learned about the patient in the assesment step and make as many nursing diagnoses as possible. Of course, any person could have 20 nursing diagnoses easily and there is no way a nurse can take care of 6 patients and attend to all 20 of each patient's nursing diagnoses so that is why we have to prioritize. To prioritize remember to use you ABCs and Maslows Hierarchy. This confused me at first but I realized that Maslows first need is Physiological Integrity and the ABCs are just that, Phys integrity. Actual problems usually take precedence over risk for problems. Nursing diagnoses are 3 parts, PES-problem related to etiology(cause) as evidenced by signs and symptoms. Risk for diagnoses are normally two parts Risk for__________related to_______. You have no as evidenced by because the patient is only at risk for the problem, they don't actually have it so there are no signs and symptoms.

Planning-This is where you plan what you as the nurse are going to do in your implementation stage and what your patient's goals are. What the nurse is going to do are called nursing interventions. They need to be specific and start with The Nurse will..... An example of being specific; instead of saying nursing will turn patient frequently, you should say nurse will turn patient every two hours. The nurse coming in after you should be able to pick up your plan where you left off. These have to be things that nurses can do, I used to get dinged on my careplans in the beginning because I would put things down that were outside a nurses scope of practice. You also have to state your patient's goals. Goals are specific and shold start with this; Patient will......

Implementation- This is where you put your plan into action.

Evaluation- You evaluate the patient goals you set forth during planning. We had to say goal met, goal partially met, or goal not met and state what was observed that led us to that particular conclusion.

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