Clinical advice

[Memphis89]

I need some clinical advice. I did not come prepared for our first clinical rotation and did not complete all of my care plan and community referral sources. I made a 74. I thought the second rotation went better until I realize I did not turn in my grading tool with my clinical work to my instructor. My teacher said she was disappointed because she knows I can do better. I feel so sick and want to quit nursing school. Any advice of similar screw ups? Did it get better?

[HappytobeARNP, MSN, APRN]

It sounds like you just need help with your organizational skills. You have the knowledge but you just need to execute. I would get some sort of planner and write down what's due and when. Your planner should be organized by subject and you should set a reminder to review it every evening. Also download one of the free task apps to your phone and have it remind you of what's due.

It takes time to adjust to nursing school and the demands. The good thing is that it's early in your academic career so you have time to learn and adjust. The great thing is that you identified the problem and you want to fix it. This is definitely a fixable situation but it's up to you to find what works best.

Nursing school is about much more than just assignments. As a nurse you are expected to independently care for other people and save lives so organization and time management is a requirement.

You were accepted for a reason. You were chosen because they believe in you. Now you just need to find the tools to help you succeed.

Best wishes!

[wannabeny]

Don't throw in the towel over a problem that can be fixed easily by learning to better your organization skills. Nursing school is a well-organized beast that takes some getting used to. As an ADHD sufferer, organization is a constant struggle (as in, I regularly set my house alarm and leave my keys in the door kind of struggle), one thing that helped was creating a weekly checklist just for clinical; the day before I made sure all of my required assignments were completed properly, in my clinical folder, and in my car along with my clinical equipment so I could just grab and go in the AM.

breathe. You will have many silly moments in school; this one is quite fixable.