MDC Generic F/T Fall 2011 ;-D

Zaptastic · Jul 9, 2011

Does anyone know how the commute is to the Homestead campus? I have never been down there but I think that part of the toll road is all unmanned (you need the pass). I looked into the bus but it looks like it takes over an hour. I'm assuming Hwy 1 would take too long as well. Thanks for any tips.

*BTW, the advice in here has been so phenomenal and inspiring. I am pretty lazy so love reading all the motivational comments. :bow:

on eagles wings, ASN, RN · Jul 10, 2011

pixie as usual good idea! i'm going to copy & paste some stuff i found. i probably did it on the last thread but i'll do it again here.

that brings me to augmenting your study. semester one isn't soo bad but..get ready for semester 2,3 and 4. lecture classes are usually one day a week. during the summer two days a week. for every hour of lecture, i spend maybe 3-4 hours of study. for real!! you will need to make sure you manage your time well. make flash cards and go over them in the grocery store line...any time you find idle can be used to study. i download all lectures to my ipod and listen to those lectures as a review. i also do 3-4 hundred practice nclex question a week. if you get in the habit..that's on 40-50 questions a night.

as for the professors, they notice those students that are working hard. they will bend over backwards for you and help you out immensely when they notice how hard you are working. i have had emails returned by the professors at 11:00 at night. i have seen professors show up to tutor skills after pulling a 12 hour shift at the hospital. on the other hand, i have seen the students that don't really work hard...are barely getting by...given tutor referrals that they never go to..etc. those are the students that the faculty realises...that most likely will not make it through nursing school. the faculty has to manage their time as well...so you can imagine how much time they give those bottom tier students. the faculty has heard all of the excuses. "i have kids..and can't spend so much time studying", "your tests are too hard", etc..etc.

i have three kids in elementary school...a wife...a part time job. but yet, i have been very successful in nursing school. i have gotten used to balancing life with being a student. it is an art..but it can be done.

getting a's in nursing school is possible. it takes a lot of work...but believe me...completely possible.

4-color pens, a flash drive, lots of notecards, highlighters, and post-it flags for marking chapters, key points, etc. i personally used flash cards for each test, would put a rubber band around them and label them (ex- test 1- cardiovascular and respiratory), then at the end of the semester, it was easy to go back and study for finals. i also could make note of any concepts i missed on the cards after an exam. you can download lectures onto mp3 and listen to them in the car if your instructor lets you record. folders with lots of tabs/dividers. one poster in a previous thread (why can't i find it now?) had a great suggestion- he or she removed the binding from books at kinko's, and then would take the relevant sections to class and clinical vs lugging the whole book. for clinicals- a good all in one care plan book, or one specific to the area you are studying, retractable sharpie, black pen, and highlighter, a retractable name badge holder, hand sanitizer, and good shoes.

good shoes and a good stethoscope are well worth the investment. i always feel sorry for the students who buy the cheapest shoes possible then limp their way along after only an hour in the clinical setting. don't be tempted. buy something decent. i see a lot of people recommend dansko clogs, merrell, or new balance.

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i am also entering nursing school in september. since my college is about 45 minutes away from home and i am the type of person that likes to carry a backpack that is on the smaller side i came up with my own system that hopefully will work for me. if i have chemistry i pack up my backpack with my textbook, lab book, and my binder and go to class. inside my trunk i have one of those plastic storage containers and inside i have all my binders and textbooks lined up as well as extra pens, pencils, sticky notes. if i have a class after chemistry i go back to the car unload all of those books into my "portable library" and reload with the books i need for the next class. this is also good if the lecture ends early and you find yourself with an extra 45 minutes. i would hate to sit there thinking that i had a paper due with 45 minutes to work on it..but all the material was at home. this way you don't actually have to carry everything around, but it will all be at your disposal in case you need/want to use it. congratulations to everyone entering nursing school this fall--and thanks to everyone for the good wishes & advice!

* coffee pot

* some strong coffee (sometimes brewed at double or triple strength!)

* lots of travel mugs. you won't have the opportunity to do the dishes all of the time, you know!

* ibuprofen/acetaminophen for all of those headaches!

* a good planner - organization is key in nursing school!

* i also agree with sticky notes - i love them!

* lots of folders/binders for notes/paper

* lots of black clicky pens (don't have to worry about those lids) - and black is the only acceptable ink color on charts - so do away with blue/red/whatever other colors.

* highlighters! i highlight a lot and like to color code my notes...i guess i'm somewhat anal-retentive when it comes to that

* recorders for lectures are nice, that way you can also listen to them again in your own time - just make sure it's okay with your instructor before you record them! one of my instructors threatened to sue if she caught anyone recording in her class!

* flashcards!!! buy these in bulk if you have to

* a good watch with a second hand - it can either be a traditional one with a sweeping second hand or a digital one that shows the seconds. make sure it's waterproof!

* a good stethoscope!!! i cannot stress this enough - don't buy a cheap crappy $20 one, you won't hear much and you will just end up spending more money on another one, again and again. i suggest buying a decent stethoscope right off the bat. i highly recommend a littmann stethoscope - i would get the classic ii s.e. as a minimum. the lightweight seems like a good deal because it's cheaper and lighter around the neck but every nurse that i have talked to that has one says it sucks and they wish they bought something different. i have a classic ii and it's great! definitely worth the money. i also highly recommend getting some sort of name tag for it and never letting it leave your sight because unfortunately those scopes tend to grow legs and disappear

later down the road you can upgrade like i did because i'm so close to being done and i wanted a better stethoscope for my precepting rotation (i am precepting in the icu)...i recently bought a littmann cardiology iii for $159.99 - they usually run for $200+ (i got a nice discount from my job

) but for nursing school purposes, i would suggest the littmann classic ii s.e.. shop around for prices - allheart (uniforms - nursing scrubs, nursing uniforms & medical scrubs - allheart) seems cheap but they kill you with the s&h charges. look on different websites for prices as well as in medical supply stores in your area.

* some sort of post-it flags or something

* if you can afford one, an ipod touch is nice - there are a lot of useful medical apps out there! you can make do without one, though.

* comfy shoes! i have a pair of white crocs specialist - crocsâ„¢ specialist | crocs, inc. - very comfy and no holes!!! i always wear the backstrap in the front so that i can just sleep these on but your foot also stays inside the shoe despite not having a fully-closed heel. my only gripe about these is that they aren't slip resistant - they have the crocs bistro (same exact style) with a slip-resistant sole for $10 more.

* a storage clipboard. i bought one at walmart for like $10. it has a calculator by clip side that i can easily access if i need it for dosage calculations...and the clipboard opens up so i can store all of my papers and other clinical junk inside

* penlight

* bandage scissors

* hemostat - you never know!

as for books:

* a good nclex-rn review book. i highly recommend saunder's or pearson prentice hall reviews & rationales nclex-rn book - they are both excellent!

* have a good drug guide before you get into the program - lippincott's drug guide or davis' drug guide are really good ones.

* a good nursing diagnosis book.

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pixiemom · Jul 10, 2011

thank you, on eagles wings! those clips are really helpful! :up: i've already ordered some of those books that are mentioned and put some of the advice to work already

there is another thread on here that some of you might be interested in reading - "one in four rns wants a new job" - https://allnurses.com/nursing-news/one-four-rns-587619.html a depressing title, i know, but some of the advice on that thread is really useful and teaches you what to look for in prospective jobs, what to avoid, etc. it's also an eye opener. some people might find it discouraging, but i took the positives out of it, and used the rest to help myself be less naive, more grounded. if i know some of what to expect, i am better able to handle it when i face some of those situations. hopefully, they won't take me by surprise and that will help me get past those challenges.

dea089 · Jul 10, 2011

YAY!That would be awesome! Do you want to meet at the door of the classroom? I will stand outside and wait for you, or you wait for me? I will be wearing blue jeans and a MDC t-shirt. I hope you get this message in time!:redbeathe

I didn't get your message before class! :eek: :uhoh3:

I was actually a few minutes late because it was pouring and I drove from ft lauderdale. I can't believe we were both there. The guys who taught the class were great!

pixiemom · Jul 10, 2011

I didn't get your message before class!
I was actually a few minutes late because it was pouring and I drove from ft lauderdale. I can't believe we were both there. The guys who taught the class were great!

Aww, where were you sitting? The guys were fantastic!! And Carlos was cute too! :redpinkhe

I'm so glad that he went over the test with us - omg I was going to fail. It was alot of info and the questions were kind of tricky - he even said so. Have you finished all of your steps or do you have stuff left to do?

dea089 · Jul 10, 2011

Aww, where were you sitting? The guys were fantastic!! And Carlos was cute too! :redpinkhe
I'm so glad that he went over the test with us - omg I was going to fail. It was alot of info and the questions were kind of tricky - he even said so. Have you finished all of your steps or do you have stuff left to do?

I was sitting over by the windows. Where were you sitting? I thought the same thing...he was totally cute! I was actually done with the test when he started going over it...but somehow I didn't miss any.:balloons: Some of the questions weren't even covered in the class but those were the ones people were asking about:yelclap: when they asked if we had any questions...I would've missed those for sure. :bugeyes:

I have to get another rubella titer this week since I had to be vaccinated.

I can't believe orientation is only one week away. Yay!:yeah::redbeathe

on eagles wings, ASN, RN · Jul 11, 2011

I did the cpr recert yesterday. my arms still hurt lol.

1 more week!!!!!!!!!

pixiemom · Jul 11, 2011

I was sitting over by the windows. Where were you sitting? I thought the same thing...he was totally cute! I was actually done with the test when he started going over it...but somehow I didn't miss any.:balloons: Some of the questions weren't even covered in the class but those were the ones people were asking about:yelclap: when they asked if we had any questions...I would've missed those for sure.
I have to get another rubella titer this week since I had to be vaccinated.
I can't believe orientation is only one week away. Yay!:yeah::redbeathe

I have to get a mumps titer for the same reason. I hope I have antibodies by now, it's been like 3 weeks since I got the booster. OMG, 1 week! :eek:

pixiemom · Jul 11, 2011

I did the cpr recert yesterday. my arms still hurt lol.
1 more week!!!!!!!!!

LOL - mine too! And my knees! :lol2: wow......but it was fun and interesting. At least it's good for two years! Are you done with all of your steps yet?

on eagles wings, ASN, RN · Jul 11, 2011

LOL - mine too! And my knees! wow......but it was fun and interesting. At least it's good for two years! Are you done with all of your steps yet?

No I need to get my titers done :s I'm freaking out because my PCP went on vacation and I couldn't see him...

I might just end up paying for them somewhere if I can lol

fem · Jul 11, 2011

On Eagles Wings,

I posted 2 places that are cheap to get titers, drug tests, etc done...

it is on the prior thread we were all posting on.

(MDC Fall 2011).

I found my lab manual (big sigh of relief)

Buy Merrell Jungle Moc Leather White shoes. Your pocket book will hate you, your feet will love you.

Does MDC allow I-phones during clinicals (with an application for drugs = drug bible). I've heard some hospitals don't allow phones while you are on the floor. Does MDC allow Ipod Touch (with an application for drugs = drug bible).

What do the students do who can't afford such extra's? I'm betting all RN students don't have this item. I believe NSU requires an I-phone with appropriate applications. I believe it is part of the tuition expense.

Gotta run,

FEM

pixiemom · Jul 11, 2011

On Eagles Wings,
I posted 2 places that are cheap to get titers, drug tests, etc done...
it is on the prior thread we were all posting on.
(MDC Fall 2011).
I found my lab manual (big sigh of relief)
Buy Merrell Jungle Moc Leather White shoes. Your pocket book will hate you, your feet will love you.
Does MDC allow I-phones during clinicals (with an application for drugs = drug bible). I've heard some hospitals don't allow phones while you are on the floor. Does MDC allow Ipod Touch (with an application for drugs = drug bible).
What do the students do who can't afford such extra's? I'm betting all RN students don't have this item. I believe NSU requires an I-phone with appropriate applications. I believe it is part of the tuition expense.
Gotta run,
FEM

Good question! I've been asking that same question since the beginning of these threads, but haven't gotten an answer yet. I would like to know if the iTouch is allowed. I know alot of hospitals don't allow phones, like the iphone, but what about the itouch? :confused:

MDC *Generic F/T* Fall 2011 ;-D

MDC Generic F/T Fall 2011 ;-D