Any nurses out there graduate knowing everything?

Nurses General Nursing

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I am just wondering if any one who is a nurse now graduated and felt like you "knew everything". Did school prepare you for the nursing world? Right now I'm studying for an exam and am feeling extremely overwhelmed to the point where I don't even want to be a nurse. I feel this way sometimes when I get overloaded with information. I love being in clinical, but I just cannot understand how we are supposed to remember all of these diseases and what they do and what meds they are treated with, and then complications, and interactions. I'm really freaking out. Does all of this knowledge come with years of nursing or am I just an idiot?

I know everything. I just can't remember it all at once.

:smackingf :hhmth:

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Specializes in Med/Surg.

I agree with the poster who stated I don't remember everything I learned in school but I know a lot more about the things I see everyday.

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Specializes in ICU.
I am just wondering if any one who is a nurse now graduated and felt like you "knew everything". Did school prepare you for the nursing world? Right now I'm studying for an exam and am feeling extremely overwhelmed to the point where I don't even want to be a nurse. I feel this way sometimes when I get overloaded with information. I love being in clinical, but I just cannot understand how we are supposed to remember all of these diseases and what they do and what meds they are treated with, and then complications, and interactions. I'm really freaking out. Does all of this knowledge come with years of nursing or am I just an idiot?

Kramer (1974) called this reality shock http://www.wisc-online.com/Objects/ViewObject.aspx?ID=NUR6204

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Also, in school, things are sort of compartmentalized into whatever you're studying at the time....when you start work, you have to pull it all together, and that takes a few years to really feel comfortable with most things you get hit with. The everyday stuff begins to feel everyday, then someone comes in with some weird diagnosis, and it's back to a reference of some sort. And nursing books do NOT have every possible thing in them :)

Ask a lot of questions...:) Old nurses are very afraid of new "quiet" nurses ;)

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Specializes in ICU, Telemetry.

And I'm scared of the new nurses who don't ask questions because they not only think they know everything, but they think the experienced nurses know nothing. Realizing what you don't know is the safest thing for you and your patient.

Always remember, nursing is heuristic learning -- you have a basic amount of knowledge, but what keeps your patient alive at 3 am when the doc's not answering your 911 page and the patient is going down the drain is the experience of you and the other nurses. When you find where you want to practice, for your sake try to find a spot that has at least 50% nurses who've been in that area more than 5 years. Those are going to be your real teachers.

The scariest night I ever had as a nurse was when I was an LPN (2.5 years experience in telemetry) on a floor of 4 RNs...and the charge nurse had been a RN for less time than a year, and the other 3 nurses had graduated within the prior 3 months and were just off orientation. Everyone was running to me asking about meds, drips, "hey, my patient looks funny...." I think I sweated off 10 pounds because I knew if someone really went bad, I had nobody to back me up. Not their fault, but try to find the environment with the highest saturation of experienced nurses, for your sake, as you go out to practice.

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Specializes in Medical Surgical Orthopedic.

I used to sneak my med surg book into the bathroom at work and try to figure out what some of my patient's diagnoses meant. Then I realized that a lot of people don't know a lot of things, so I'm not ashamed anymore and I conduct my "research" out in the open.:up:

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Of course not! I just graduated in May, started my first job in June. I felt like I didn't know anything when I started and still have a whole lot to learn. It's getting better though. My confidence is slowly starting to build and it's exciting when I put things together in my head. I realize now, nursing school gave me a good base, but learning comes on the job. It doesn't matter how much you know about diseases/nursing in school on tests, it's different when applying it to the real world. So stop freaking yourself out! Just get through it day by day, dont try to memorize everything, it is not possible and will only cause you frustration, which will hurt you come test time. Focus on what you need to know for the test and worry about what you need to know on the job once you get there. Get a good NCLEX study book with content and questions. I used NCLEX books to study a lot. They are good at pointing out the important stuff and getting rid of all the fluff that comes in your text book.

I know the stress you are going through as I just got done being where you are. It sucks. One of the most stressfull times in my life was in nursing school, trying to focus 100% on school, but still having a family to care for, etc. You will get through it. Just focus on school for now and take it one day at a time. And I'll say it again, don't try to memorize everything!

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Specializes in ER, progressive care.

You will never know EVERYTHING - nursing is an on-going learning process! And it's normal to not know a whole lot as a new grad. Just ask questions, and lots of them! It scares me when new grads think they know everything and don't ask any questions. I always ask questions - I would rather seek out answers and be sure instead of be only "kind of sure" and "guess" - "okay, is this how I'm supposed to set it up? I THINK so...so I'll just do it this way" - etc. I had a patient the other night on TPN and was also to receive lipids Q72H. I have read about TPN in school and complications/what to look for, etc, but until I actually do or see something, things really don't stick. I have never done a TPN/lipids set-up ever in my life and instead of only being "sort of" sure, I sought after one of my colleagues and asked if they mind helping me set it up because I have never done it before.

I look up drugs - we have Lexicomp on our computer which is a wonderful thing, but the only downfall is that it doesn't have nursing implications. I carry a drug book with me as well as a book on diseases (called the Professional Guide to Diseases by Springhouse) which is excellent. On my off days I'll also research stuff.

Utilize your resources, consult your coworkers and other disciplines. Ask doctors questions - most of them are more than happy to teach (of course, if you call them at 0300, maybe not so much lol). Real world nursing does not equate to nursing school. In nursing school (and on the NCLEX), you always have the perfect scenario and all the time in the world with only one patient, and everything happens by the book...but in the real world, it's not like that. I learned that pretty quickly.

When I studied the NCLEX, I was very overwhelmed. You can't possibly memorize everything, and don't try to, either! Good luck!

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Specializes in LTC.

HELL no!! Fear is what keeps you from harming someone.

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Specializes in ICU.

There are nurses who have been in the field for 30 years not knowing everything.

What I love about nursing is there is always something new to learn. You can learn from a seasoned nurses, and seasoned nurses can learn from new grads.

You can learn so much from a case you have never seen before and carry it to your next patient.

No one comes out of school knowing everything. Ask questions. Its OK.

I failed my cardiac exam in school. I told myself, "well, guess I'm never going to be an ICU nurse" Well, 4 months into my career, guess what I became, an ICU nurse. When I was actually in practice, a lot of things I didn't get on my exam made complete sense seeing it in action.

You will never know everything in nursing, so never expect to.

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keep yourself open and humble, learning will be eternal.

leslie

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As many other people have said, you never know everything. And you will find as soon as you start your job in nursing, that it's very very different than nursing school. I've been a nurse for years and I still have a drug guide, a lab manual, and a medical encyclopedia in my bag every day. As you work the floor, you will find there are always people that will help you. Use your managers. They didn't get to be your manager by being incompetent.

You will also start to see the same types of things over and over. You can read what a hypoglycemic episode looks like a thousand times, but it's when you see it that you learn what to do. Just remember, pay attention to your patients. Use your books. You will be fine.

The NCLEX is scary and stressful, but take a little time each day to study. Make flash cards and drug cards; just writing things down will help you remember. Don't try to study 5 hours each day -- an hour or two, then take a break. You won't retain anything if you try to study everything at once.

And get good sleep the night before the NCLEX, eat a good breakfast in the morning. Have faith in yourself and your knowledge. Good luck!

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