Do you still have to refer to material or do you memorize it all?

[kstrac13]

When it comes to medicines and diagnosis i was wondering if nurses with years and years of experience remember everything such as medicines and diagnosis's or do some still have to refer to the text books ? Is it ok if you cant remember everything and have to revert to material?

[loriangel14, RN]

There is nothing wrong with using a reference if you need to refresh your memory on something.Any floor I have ever been on has a had a mini "library" of books. Our med room has a drug book so if you come across something you aren't familiar with you can look it up before you give it.Generally I think nurses tend to become knowledgeable regarding the medications and diagnoses that pertain to the particular area they work in. You wouldn't expect an L&D nurse to be familiar with oncology or take an oncology nurse expect her to deliver a baby.You cover the major areas of nursing in school but certainly no one remembers all of it nor are you expected to.Never be afraid to say " I don't know but I'll look it up".

[kstrac13]

Thanks that eases my mind. also i have another question are you familiar with knowing when a RN starts at hospital do they apply for a certain area like L&D or OR or does the hospital put the nurse where ever they want them like a floating nurse?

[loriangel14, RN]

When you apply for a position it will indicate what floor/area the job posting is for.

[kstrac13]

​ok that what i was wondering. so you can apply for certain areas?

[loriangel14, RN]

Yes you can.

[carolinapooh, BSN, RN]

The minute you stop looking stuff up, the minute you get too confident, you're in trouble. There are things I've learned in my short tenure, and there are things I haven't learned, and there is stuff that I remember sometimes and have to look up others. I work with RNs who have been in oncology for twenty years. THEY still look stuff up, even as there are things they can just reel off without thinking about it. Medicine and its components are not stagnant, and you can't be expected to be able to recite Mosby's Drug Guide from memory. Never, ever get too sure of yourself.

[applewhitern, BSN, RN]

Yes, we experienced nurses still look things up. I personally love to learn; I am always searching and reading. As long as you know how and where to find legitimate info, you will be OK.

[julz68]

There are several nursing apps out there also. I use Nursing Central and Epocrates. Those both are great resources for meds, lab values, disease processes, etc.

[Tait, MSN, RN]

I am never afraid to reference :)

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

there is no way you can memorize everything. Anyway, it tends to change so you need to continually be learning. As for hiring practices, in my area we post for an RN in a specific department and hire to that area. We may have more than one job available in more than one area, but the online application process still will have a separate post for each one. Float nurses in my hospital are required to be very experienced and flexible as they never know where they are going to be and need to be competent in many things.

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

I used to model that to students. Someone would ask me a question, and I would say, "Gee, let's look that up."

Why? Because being married to a first-class narcissistic bully and spending a few years in therapy taught me that it was perfectly OK to say, "I don't know, let me find out," and not have to worry about having to make up a lie or some sort of rhymes-with-wool-shirt to escape a threat or make myself look good. Telling the truth like that is very freeing and carries over into the rest of your life. Get in the habit and don't worry about it. Better to delay and ask than to forge blithely ahead into disaster.