Hate nursing school, please help

[Higgs747]

can someone help me, I'm currently enrolled in a grad entry program, and in short I hate everything about it. I can't stand the lack of organization in the program, subjective grading, and that in what tests there are focused on therapeutic communication.

In short I'm sick of material, including the complete lack of education on science and treatments, and the professors obsession into turning every damn thing into a paper on my feelings.

I was a successful candidate for medical school but I passed it up because I believed in nursing, still do really, but I am so sick of writing papers on nursing theory, my feelings toward patients attitudes and outcome and writing completely redicous patient care plans. I see how these things are important but not that they are the only important thing, I'm supposed to be an ANP, how am I going to heal the patient, say that I care?

Whats more is that this semesters grades should pretty well make sure that I can no longer go to med school.

P.S Apologies for the spelling and grammar, I'm just angry.

[sunnyjohn]

Have you considered transferring to another nursing school?

Some direct-entry ANP program have a heavy theory focus that does not appeal to the clinically minded. While nursing theory is very important it might not be your cup of tea.

You know, there is no shame in admitting nursing is not for you and going on to med school. The nursing model and medical model do differ.

Even with a low GPA there is still hope for med school. There are post-baccalaureate program that will help you boost your GPA and get in.

Check it out at Student Doctor Network Forums

[sunnyjohn]

I have friends whose last name is Higgs. They are from the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

[greasy]

I just finished my BSN degree and that is all I did was write papers. I am not a better nurse or instructor because of my BSN classes. All it is, is busy work. There is research saying papers are not a good learning tool. Hang in there. Are you an LPN or RN becoming a ANP?? Your e-mail didn't disclose that. If the nursing school you are going to is mostly writing papers, then you are in the wrong school.

[sunnyjohn]

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[Daytonite, BSN, RN]

i can tell from reading what you've put in your post that you are in a bsn program. am i right? these are the kinds of things that are expected in bachelor degree students. my bsn program also focused on communication skills and we had to keep a journal of our feelings about our clinical experiences. our care plans were long referenced papers. writing is a skill expected to be thoroughly exercised by bachelor degree candidates. you need to understand that the nursing content is separate from the bachelor degree requirements imposed by the college. the nursing school has to merge the requirements of the two.

if what you want to do is basic hands-on nursing, then what you need to do is look for a school that focuses on that. however, you are in a school that is also going to be giving you a bachelor's degree as well and that is part of what some of this work is for. i think you will find that to become an anp you will need a bachelor's degree. most people i've talked to that have a bachelor's degree in anything have said they had to do a lot of writing as part of their programs. any of the social or behavioral sciences seem to focus a lot on communication skills. communications 101 was a required course of all students no matter what their major was at the university i went to. they started teaching us assertiveness and therapeutic communication skills from day 1.

i have two friends that are mds. they both had considerable writing that was due during the course of their programs. i typed up a couple of their research papers for them. they also had problems with professors who gave very difficult tests that students flunked. it's very hard for 4.0 medical students to get scores of 38 points out of 100 points on tests and be told that was the highest grade in the class. they also hired secretarial companies to type up their class notes, copy and distribute them to members of their study groups. higher degrees require higher efforts.

[Higgs747]

Its is a DNP program, which is funny in that, the degree of doctor refers to the practice of, and not study of a subject. I defiently feel that I wandered into a PhD program.

thank you for all your responses, it helps me to know that other people are in the same situation.

[jjjoy, LPN]

I feel for you. Nursing education is a unique beast. I can't say that it suited me and I personally have many disagreements with how it is often approached. What they teach and how one actually practices are often very different. And as you have found, there's often more emphasis on interpersonal relations and how to perform certain tasks than on the science. I'm not saying the science isn't there, but my experience was that we were expected to read and memorize a ton of info on labs, pathophys, treatments but what was discussed and emphasized and critiqued were coping, comfort, education and of course the infamous, endless nursing care plans. My only experience is BSN level so I'm sure it's very different. But I imagine similar issues exist at higher levels since it's all the same field and same academic department.

I also see some confusion over what is nursing vs medicine, especially in the advanced practice roles. While some say it's distinct and obvious, I don't see it. The direct entry grad programs are still very new. Advanced practice nurses traditionally brought years of clinical experience to their role. Most nurses will agree that they learned much more during their first year or two nursing than they did in their nursing program, especially in regard to assessments and using their "nursing judgement". I don't see how direct entry programs can effectively bridge that gap without majorly changing their approach. Maybe with your experience you can help hone better programs in the future.

[floridagirl0103]

I feel for you. I already have my Bachelor's and I was deciding between going back to nursing school through the accelerated program (1 year have my B.S.N.) or going to the community college and getting my ADN. It made sense to go the quick route and get my BSN but I have heard so many bad things about the BSN program and such great things about the ADN so I went that route. I am SO glad I did. The instructors are awesome and we have so much time in clinicals. We do have papers to wright but not a lot. I'm in my first semester and we just had to do 2 papers. The town I live in is predominantly a medical town and I have heard from many a doctor's & hiring staff that they prefer the ADN graduates over the BSN graduates because they know what they are doing. I am not talking about around the country, just in the town I live in. We did have to do TONS of theurapeutic communication projects and talk about feelings, etc. but next semester we will be getting deeper into the abnormals of systems of the body which should be fun. I love nursing school although I am studying my butt off constantly. We have 130 students and about 10 staff. I hope it gets better for you. One advantage you have is when you graduate, your done. I will be working full time while getting my BSN online.

Take care...

[BeenThereDoneThat74, MSN, RN]

I can't say for sure, (because I am not familiar with the graduate direct entry rograms), but what you are describing sounds like the first semester of nursing school to me.

Perhaps med school is really what you want?? Just throwing it out there...

[nurseangel47]

Is it too late to just drop nursing school grad program and reenter as a med student? It sounds like you're the kind of hands on person who'd be great as a physician. I can imagine how all that bs* theory nursing must be driving you up a wall....am sympathetic to your angst.

Don't be angry. Just regroup. There's gotta be a way out of the program you're in. Is there a counselor or whoever at your grad school that you can broach the subject of alternate education with? Or even, like I said before, go into med school anyway? Don't wanna lose a great nurse to the doc's side, but we all ultimately fight the good fight together, after all....

[S.T.A.C.E.Y, LPN]

What you are describing sounds like my first three years of nursing school. Urgh. I thought I would never make it through. I mean honestly, how many papers can you write about 'caring'? I was thoroughly disappointed with most of my nursing program, because there was SOOOO much focus on the stuff you described.

"In short I'm sick of material, including the complete lack of education on science and treatments, and the professors obsession into turning every damn thing into a paper on my feelings."

I AGREE! That was precisely why I just could not get myself into alot of nursing student hooplah. On the side I've been studying my own stuff of interest. I just made myself write the dumb papers, and keep my eyes on the final goal. Thankfully, I am within months of being done, and cannot be happier. If you do decide to stay there, or there isn't anywhere else for you to transfer to, just know that its only a short period of your life.....just don't make it your whole life. Good Luck!