Drug Cards are Lame!!

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Mar 31, 2011

What are drug cards? Are these something you have to create? I am assuming it's a flash card type thing for drugs, I had bought a set. But not sure if these are different since you're talking about hand cramps and stuff. lol

Despareux · Mar 31, 2011

Yes, we have to hand-write our own. They are basically just flash cards with a ton of info about a specific drug.

mangopeach · Mar 31, 2011

I won't say they are lame, but I feel you on the back aches,neck cramps, tired eyes,tired hands and all that. My class recently decided to set up a sharing network. Maybe that might cut down on the time that you spend doing your cards. We don't have cards, we have sheets that we have to fill out so people have been uploading their sheets for others to use. We all upload a sheet when we do a new drug. Big help! Last time I went to clinicals, half of my drugs were already uploaded so I did not need to write up a sheet for those. Of course, I still check my drug guide to make sure the info is accurate, but it definitely saves time.

CuriousMe · Mar 31, 2011

I won't say they are lame, but I feel you on the back aches,neck cramps, tired eyes,tired hands and all that. My class recently decided to set up a sharing network. Maybe that might cut down on the time that you spend doing your cards. We don't have cards, we have sheets that we have to fill out so people have been uploading their sheets for others to use. We all upload a sheet when we do a new drug. Big help! Last time I went to clinicals, half of my drugs were already uploaded so I did not need to write up a sheet for those. Of course, I still check my drug guide to make sure the info is accurate, but it definitely saves time.

Wow! Did you get this approved by your faculty? We'd be kicked out for this on academic dishonesty charges.

elkpark · Mar 31, 2011

I went to school prior to the invention of preprinted "decks" of drugs cards for purchase (actually, decks of preprinted cards first became available toward the end of my nursing school experience, but our school wouldn't allow us to use them), and long before anyone ever imagined anything like drug info apps on phones and other handheld devices. Since then, over the years, I have taught in nursing programs where students used purchased, preprinted cards or phone apps. The big difference I've noticed is that students who compile and actually write their own cards, as we did in nursing school, learn and retain the information about the drugs a lot better than students who just whip a card out of a preprinted deck or look at a screen. The actual physical act of hand-writing the information onto a card or worksheet anchors the information in your brain a lot better than simply reading it (even repeatedly) does. The students I've worked with over the years who have been allowed to use preprinted cards and other options have not mastered the basic info about common drugs that they really need to know.

Yes, I know -- I hated writing drug cards, too, when I was in nursing school. But there is a legitimate, educational reason why your school is making you do something as antediluvian as writing stuff down on paper. :)

caliotter3 · Mar 31, 2011

Wow! Did you get this approved by your faculty? We'd be kicked out for this on academic dishonesty charges.

He, he, he. It's a good idea until someone in the faculty finds out about it and decides to make a stink. :devil:

Nurse Kyles, BSN, RN · Mar 31, 2011

Can you type them? My school requires "hand written" drug cards, but we are allowed to type them in a chart format. Mostly they just want you to be doing the work, rather than using pre-made cards. Doing the work helps you to remember.

mangopeach · Mar 31, 2011

Wow! Did you get this approved by your faculty? We'd be kicked out for this on academic dishonesty charges.

Yes this is approved by my school and its in plain view for them to see. All drug sheets are uploaded via message board on the same school site where we access our info online for classes. Our drug sheets are for our own learning. They are not graded assignments so this is absolutely not an issue of academic dishonesty. We are required to create a folder for our drug sheets for all meds discussed in class and all meds of our assigned patients, however they are not graded. Its strictly for us to learn these drugs. If other schools grade med sheets then I would see how this would be a problem. Since they are for our own learning, its not an issue. I still have to consult my drug guide and make sure I know about the drug when I'm passing meds and giving my patient education. Sharing the sheets just cuts down on the time it takes to write them up.

mangopeach · Mar 31, 2011

He, he, he. It's a good idea until someone in the faculty finds out about it and decides to make a stink.

They know. Maybe my school is a lot less strict about this than others. We students have a discussion section on our school site that is monitored. The purpose is not to just copy someone else's work. You still need to learn them, but it sure cuts down on the time it takes to write them up. These are not graded so there is no issue of academic dishonesty. The forms the school gave us were to be hand written, so much easier to type them in now that a student created a fillable PDF form. My clinical instructor now prefers them to be type written. Not a requirement, but she says she prefers the type written ones and encourages us to do so since we are building a folder that will be useful for our entire time in school and the future.

Despareux · Mar 31, 2011

Yes, I know -- I hated writing drug cards, too, when I was in nursing school. But there is a legitimate, educational reason why your school is making you do something as antediluvian as writing stuff down on paper. :)

You're right about that! I know I learn best by writing my drug cards. But golly-g, I thought pharmacology was bad!

klweiberg · Mar 27, 2013

I typed mine on 4x6 index cards and my Pharmacology Instructor LOVED me for it and even suggested I sell them! She didn't like trying to decipher someone's handwriting any more than the person writing out the med card liked the hand cramping. I have nerve damage from a neck injury and my hand goes numb fairly quickly.