BHSN-Bridgeport Hospital School of Nursing Fall 2011

Ladybug15 · Feb 10, 2010

Thanks for the info on the clinical hours at the CC's. :) That's a great basis for comparison purposes. From what I've heard about BHSN, clinical is once a week at the beginning of the program on either thursdays or fridays from 8am-2pm. I assume at least a half hour to an hour break for lunch, but I could be wrong. Clinical starts on the first week of school. It is a reinforcement for things that you learned in the lecture and lab earlier in the week. Then I think you pick up a second day of clinical when you get farther into the program. All together, you end up with twice as many clinical hours than the state requirement. I am still waiting to hear back on the exact number.

I tend to agree with you in regards to the book list. It would make sense for them to hand it out at orientation. That gives students plenty of time to pick up the books before class, and figure out if they are going to use financial aid funds.

By the way, when is it appropriate to start applying for financial aid? I've heard that you shouldn't apply too early since once approved they only hold the funds for so long.

mattfd37 · Feb 10, 2010

Our cliinicals are on W & TH either 7-2:30ish or 3-10ish which is the same or better then BHSN. Apply for aid when it gets close to orientation.

Ladybug15 · Feb 11, 2010

Matt - during second semester of the first year, BHSN students have two clinical days a week from 7:30 to 2:30. This is based on a post I found from a current student. I'm not sure though what the clinical hours are like for second year students.

msdeannah · Feb 11, 2010

Hi

I'm in my second semester at Capital and we have clinicals tuesday and wednesdays from 7-1:30pm. So I don't think you will be getting twice as much clinical time as the CC. We start of in the lab for the first couple of weeks but then we are in our sites twice a week for the remainder of the semester.. It was the same way last semester also.

I am sure everyone is getting about the same amount of clinical time...

Ok back to studying... Good luck everyone.

msdeannah · Feb 11, 2010

Oh yeah. I tried the livescribe pen. I got tons of feedback and the recording quality was very poor. I do have a rather large class and we are in an auditorium so that may have contributed to the poor quality. In the end

I traded it in for a 50.00 recorder which I rarely have a chance to listen to.

My best piece of technology is my ipod touch. I downloaded a flash card application and I take that Ipod with me wherever I go...

Ladybug15 · Feb 11, 2010

Thanks for the info... that is definitely something to consider. I'm not really sure how the lectures at BHSN are set up so sound quality may be an issue if not seated close to the teacher. Probably a good question to ask during orientation.

What flash card app do you have? Is it a pharmacology app program? That sounds like it would be helpful.

Ladybug15 · Feb 13, 2010

Msdeannah - I just found an interesting post outside of this site about the sound quality of the livescribe pen. I will quote the comments:

Person 1: "When I was just recording my own voice as I was taking notes, the sound quality was excellent. It still remained at a good level with three people talking next to each other, but when testing it in a conference room, the sound quality dramatically dropped."

Person 2: "When you were recording audio, did you use the headset? The audio quality is VASTLY superior in a large conference room or lecture hall when using the headset. (You don't have to necessarily plug the headset into your head, just the pen; there's provision to hang it around your neck). The stereo microphones in the headset work really well, and often I can hear things on the recording that I wasn't able to pick out live."

Person 1: "I just did a test using the headset and you are absolutely correct, the recording is excellent."

Did you try this? I bet most people wouldn't even think to attach the headset if they had no reason to use it for listening purposes. They also recommend using the headpiece to listen to the recording when playing it back, as this will significantly improve the playback sound quality.

With this in mind, I think the biggest issue is not with the quality of microphone on the pen, but the quality of the speaker on the pen when being used for playback. The fellow I referred to as Person 1 above stated that after the headphone recording test he then went back and listened to the earlier recordings using the headset and he couldn't believe the difference in the sound quality.

Perhaps those who currently have this pen may find this tip useful.

scoochy · Feb 13, 2010

QVC sells a pen that appears to be much better than the Lightscribe pen. You can convert your notes into documents. Although I did not purchase it (have no use for it), I found it to be a handy tool. Would definitely try it out if I was continuing on to further my career..and the best thing is, QVC has a 30 day money back guarantee, so you might want to give it a try!

Th0r · Feb 14, 2010

hey just browsing and saw this post. i am currently in nu104 (1st year) at bhsn, and here is a basic rundown on what to expect:

-orientation: is going to be scheduled sometime in late june. here you will get your preliminary schedule, order uniforms, and they have a book representative where you can order the book package from. the orientation is more one on one and you won’t meet many other classmates at this time. besides those books you will need to pick up a health assessment guide, drug book, and nursing diagnoses manual before you start in september. total cost of the package comes to $600 and the books will last you till you graduate. to be honest though, i don’t even use the books but i know of some students who do. it’s really up to you. best book worth getting is the brunner and suddarths med-surg book. tons of useful information and good reading for if you’re bored. also will help you on research for your clinical patients.

-nu101: you will be on clinical starting the first week. it’s pretty basic and you will just be interviewing the patient and then slowly performing more skills as you use them. you have three tests for this semester spaced every 3 weeks, they are not cumulative. by the end you will be passing out medications. the schedule looks like the following for day students.

mondays: off

tuesdays: lecture from 8.30-3.30 (with 1/2 hour lunch usually around 12.30)

wednesdays: 1-2 hour lab period, based on your lab group number. there are 4 lab groups (a-d) of about 25 students each.

thursdays and fridays: you will have either a thursday or friday for clinical and the other day you will have off. clinical runs from 8-1.30 for nu101. also no lunches during these days. you will be in a group of about 8 students per clinical instructor.

saturdays and sundays: off

-nu102: begins around halloween and runs till christmas. your main focus this semester will be developing nursing diagnoses and big care plans for clinicals. schedule remains the same as nu101. you have 3 tests this semester spaced 2 weeks apart, the final test is cumulative. than you are given a small thanksgiving break and a two week break after christmas, before nu104 starts.

-nu104: begins first week of january and runs till ides of march. schedule changes a bit here and so does the testing. you will have 3 tests spaced three weeks apart and one cumulative final. we also pick up an extra day of clinical.

mondays: off

tuesdays: lecture 8.30-4 (with 1/2 hour lunch usually around 12.30)

wednesdays: 2 hour lab period based on lab group

thursdays: clinical 7.30 - 2.30 (with 1/2 hour lunch usually around 11.30)

fridays: clinical 7.30 - 2.30 (with 1/2 hour lunch usually around 11.30)

saturday and sunday: off

also during this semester you will be given 2 days of clinical off as they schedule you, and also 2 days of jewish home, 1 day at the vna, 1 day of surgery, and 2 days of pediatrics. these will be on a thursday or friday and when scheduled you will simply not go up to the regular floor for clinical and report to that assignment for the day.

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also some tips:

-the lecture hall can be unforgiving. temperature shifts in that room rapidly, so my advice is wear something comfortable but also bring a sweatshirt or something when the temperature drops and be prepared to take it off a half an hour later, lol.

-i saw some mentions of a voice recorder. i personally have a droid and use their voice recorder app. ain't much special but allows me to email it directly to my gmail so i can listen at home. normally though i just record the lectures and listen to them while i drive. ends up being pretty time efficient.

-i have a cardiology iii stethoscope also a gift. let me tell you the difference in quality is pretty amazing. some patients don’t have the best peripheral blood flow so it comes in very handy when i can grab a blood pressure that the nurse on the floor can't accurately get.

-instructors are all great. i haven't met a bad one yet. some have reputations but the truth is they are all there to help you to become the best nurse possible. don’t forget that. if that means challenging a student some times, than i say let them bring it on.

-clinical will be held primarily at bridgeport hospital although you may also be rotated to either yale or griffin for a semester.

-passing grade is a 75 average for each semester. my advice is you normally have three tests to get that so do as best you can on the first so you allow yourself a buffer. and if your average is a 74.9, sorry no rounding up you will fail. i saw a few kids just miss the mark. the average is based on exams only. clinical doesn’t count and is only pass/fail. don’t stress yourselves out about this though only about 5 kids dropped out per semester so far. we started out at about 120-130. the weeding process seems pretty much done at this point and those that remain are those that are going to stay. and even if you do poorly you can wait a year and try again, so you may have new students joining your class as the semester’s progress.

-you will also have a chance to join the accelerated program. you will apply at the end of nu104. in order to join you need to have all your prerequisites and corequisites done by the time you start the accelerated program in june. you will end up forfeiting your summer but also graduate that december. so i say the trade off is fair. ill let you know more about that once i apply.

-after nu104 you get a 2 week spring break. nu105 follows which is maternity, which runs through april. nu201 runs through may. than you either have summer off starting in june to come back in september and graduate in following may or class through the summer to graduate that december.

-along with clinical and exams you will need to pass a few competencies per semester. examples of these are health assessment, injections, wound dressings, catheter insertion, and a few math exams for drug administration. math exams are basic calculations and algebra, not too difficult if you’re good with math. you need to get an 80% on the math exam to pass. and if you fail any of these you will be given one more chance to complete it.

-you will need to research your patients the day before clinical. this usually involves going to the hospital the day before anytime after 2 pm and logging into the computer to get lab data, checking the patients chart, and going to introduce yourself to the patient for the following day.

-as far as patient load. you will start with one patient a day and eventually work your way up to dealing with more. they normally don't want to always overload you so expect about 2 patients once you hit nu104.

-uniforms are maroon scrub top and white pants. grab the white cargo pants if they are quite nice. not sure if they offer them for girls.

-pda/smartphone use: they dont allow it on the floor. although i dont find it useful anyways. with researching the patient and always being on the floor i have quickly memorized many of the common drugs and actions without even realizing it. if you really need to look up something quick no ones stopping you from drifting into a corner and doing fast research.

-other supplies you will need are light pen for neurological checks, a watch, and a white pair of leather shoes.

that’s all i can think of for now. hope it was informative. if you've got anymore questions either post or pm me. im usually on once a week.

Ladybug15 · Feb 14, 2010

ThOr -

Thanks so much for all the info. From the sound of it, it really seems like BHSN is an excellent program. I can't believe only 5 kids drop out on average! That is so much better than I thought, and relieves much anxiety. It sounds like the professors really want you to exceed. I am pleasantly surprised that they allow second chances on certain clinical examinations.

I'm sort of bummed about the use of PDA's/iPhones but it is understandable.

Glad to hear you have and love the Cardio III steth. Do you recommend this over the Master Cardiology due to the double side? Or do you think the attachment that comes with the master should be fine for the peds rotation? I assume that the majority of the time the students deal with adult patients. Is that correct?

Thanks for the tip on the lecture halls. Do you have to wear the uniform to lectures as well or just for lab/clinical??

If you don't use the books, what do you use to study? Do they hand out presentations? I assume you also use a NCLEX book. Any tips on which NCLEX book you've found to be the most effective?

Th0r · Feb 14, 2010

We mainly deal with adult patients. Only two days of pediatrics thus far but everyone seemed to manage fine with their stethoscopes. However, this may change seeing as maternity is next semester. I will keep you posted.

Uniforms are worn only for labs, clinical, and research. You can wear whatever you like on lecture days. Also instead of the uniform you can opt to wear professional attire and the BHSN lab coat to lab and/or researching your patient. While researching your patient for the following day you will just be gathering relevant past history and evaluating their mental status. No examinations or aide of any kind. You wont even be able to get them a glass of water if they request, afterall they may be NPO.

Yeah I use a NCLEX book when I feel weak on a particular subject. Test questions are similiar in style as they try and gear you towards high scores. Lecture notes are emailed a week in advance (if your lucky). Sometimes though we get emailed lecture notes the day before. I just print them out, bring them to class, and jot down any other useful information not on the handouts. Also use the recorder incase I missed anything.

Reading works for others. Its more about time management than studying. Especially if you have a job, family, kids, or any other responsibilities outside of school. I mean if you have time to read, why not? It will maybe give you an extra few points on the exam but that can mean a big difference sometimes.

Ladybug15 · Feb 18, 2010

EEEK! I just found out my letter is in the mail!!! They said it was mailed out either yesterday or the day before. That means I should see it within the next day or two. The secretary said that I'll just have to wait a few more days to find out, but she said it pretty bubbly with an increase in pitch throughout the whole sentence. Do you think that means it is good news?? Oh why couldn't she just tell me over the phone…. how cruel! Doesn't she know that I'm going to be up all night now!?!?!?