Currently, I am nursing student pursuing my AAS in Nursing. My goal is to become an advanced practice nurse. As I thumb through scores of textbook pages, learning literally thousands of terms, I ask myself a question that no doubt has plagued many a student in the past: How much of this stuff will I actually remember?
I take my studies, and the profession very seriously. I want to be an asset to the medical field, and not just an empty uniform. I find myself not remembering everything that I have learned since I have started, and to be honest this has caused some anxiety for me.
I have heard of the "use it, or lose it" adage, but how much are we aloud to actually forget and still be considered an excellent nurse - one who "knows their stuff"?
You will remember what you need to remember and if you don't know something the important thing is to know where to look for the information and never "just do" hoping you are right.
^^^This says it perfectly. Nursing school gives you a very broad understanding of every area of nursing. There's no way to remember it all, and you certainly won't use it all. Try you best to remember the most important stuff (what your teachers emphasize) and you will be just fine.
I'd sell children for cash. For what it's worth, I can do that as well- I can pick up any book I've read in the last couple of decades and find a specific paragraph or image in a couple of page flips. For me it's more about remembering where it is on the page (spatially) than anything else, but it works.
That said, I (like the OP) have expressed chagrin on the amount of stuff I *don't* remember. True, like said above, I feel confident that I'll remember enough about something where I could look it up very quickly. To that end, I'm making a point to save all my notes, returned assignments and books. You can't carry them around with you on the job, but I'll be able to dive into them after I get home again.
However, please tell me that the inner mechanics of the Krebs Cycle rarely comes up in practice.
Instructor!!!(with hand raised waving) . . .Can I go home, my brain is full.
Nursing practice is like a zipped folder in a computer, you never know when something you learned will be pulled, and you'll be surprised when it does that you knew it all along.
I tried my best to forget every thing I did, saw, and learned in nursing school. Reason? Almost all of it was either ridiculous or a worthless waste of time.
I remember my patho and assessment, some psych. The other courses in my BSN were a complete waste of time. I remember my leadership class....the first one and the last one, because that's all I attended. Still got my A. You will need to read up on things throughout your nursing career.
I use Google everyday at work! I did well in school but there is no way I remember everything from school. A lot of times I have a disease I didn't even learn about. Like others have said, you will get to know what is on your particular floor. You start to see a lot of the same stuff and it will become second nature.
I really think you tend to remember the things you are good at and you think you will put to use.
This, and the stuff you just think is plain cool.
But give me an OB question that goes beyond lay them on their left side and I am toast.
I remember next to nothing about that stuff that I can fire off readily. I even found it rather interesting at the time, but it was just so alien to me and it's now quite removed from my day to day experience. I'm sure I've got some stuff buried in the back of my brain that might come out with the right stimulus (or at least alarms would go off in my head if somewhat was amiss).
Honestly, the key is to learn the stuff necessary to be a safe entry level nurse. Beyond that, OJT and continuing eduation all the way baby. I learned more (that is useful) during my critical care residency than I did in school. I wager it'd be the same for just about any specialty, esp. ones that are even more highly specialized like the OR and NICU.
Prudent nurses will stay current with advances in their specialties by reading current texts, journals, or attending appropriate seminars or conferences. My user name is based upon my opinion regarding the necessity of ongoing learning in our profession. Every shift is a chance to learn something.
To those saying they keep every hand out and what not, if you want to, go ahead. I just moved and man having a lot of stuff sucks. You might be better served by later purchasing select references appropriate to your practice. The internet is also a superb resource assuming one has learned basic research skills.
I honestly turn to the computer 90% of the time when I have a question. It's a lot faster than trying to find the right book and then the right page. Plus you can get very specific, fresh information.
I had no desire to work with peds or do OB/L&D while in school and I still have no desire there. Therefore, I "lost" all of that information. I remember some random things (such as retractions on a kiddo is BAD and a boggy uterus postpartum is BAD) but that's about it. If I was ever sent to OB/L&D/PP I would feel very uncomfortable and wouldn't feel safe enough to care for patients in that area. You don't use, you lose it!
yuzzamatuzz
99 Posts
^^^This says it perfectly. Nursing school gives you a very broad understanding of every area of nursing. There's no way to remember it all, and you certainly won't use it all. Try you best to remember the most important stuff (what your teachers emphasize) and you will be just fine.