How to Prepare for Nursing School 2nd Attempt

[BanannaFish]

Hello!

I am planning on applying to nursing schools again for my second time. I failed in my Junior year in my maternity rotation after being told that I could not critically think, and that I essentially could not put the pieces together on my care plan. However, I was told that my data collection, from every instructor I have ever had, is very good. I want to utilize my strength, and work with fact that this is a strong point of mine. Are there books or programs where I can practice case studies or care plans that have gotten good reviews? I have ATI, but I think I need something more intensive that will force me to write out my reasoning for an intervention or diagnosis. Any thoughts?

* I am planning on shadowing a maternity nurse this summer or fall, and learn from her nursing diagnosis or her own care plans.

[caliotter3]

I would seek a tutor in nursing to help you specifically with care plans. I would do an internet search for texts on care planning, invest in one, and do extra work on my own to get this skill down. If you are good at gathering the data, learn how to put it together into the care plan, then you will conquer your previous problem. Put an ad on the bulletin boards (get permission from the office) at local nursing schools to find a student who is good in care planning. Or approach the maternity instructor at one of the schools and ask for a recommendation for a student who was/is good at maternity to give you help. You may have to pay this person, but it would be worth the added expense to be successful. Good luck.

[Ozzy84]

It's so weird that they decided just because of Maternrty class. I am not sure how you did other class. Maternrty class really not much important in general or for nclex. Med surge mainly course that you need to suck it lol

Maybe nursing is not good for you or try to finish an other degree and apply for accelerated programs if you still wanna be nursing after finishing your degree.

[BanannaFish]

I actually did spectacular in medsurg. I received scores of "Excellent", and even found an uncharted grade 4 heart murmur. This was noted in my evaluation, and my instructor even pulled me aside to say how proud she was of me. I never had a problem with med/surg.

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

Many students who do well in basic med/surg find the specialty areas and advanced med/surg to be more challenging in later semesters. This is precisely because the expectations are higher, including the expectation of having a more sophisticated appreciation for the nursing process and its application; assuming that because you're great in early semesters guarantees you'll coast in later ones isn't a functional stance. We see this all the time here. It is a common reason for early failure. It is also particularly hard to fail a student in the last semester, but it does happen, and that is the number one reason why there, too, in my experience.

Identifying a murmur isn't that big a plus in the infinite scheme of things, and I would recommend you rethink hanging your hat on it, so to speak. Hands-on skills and grades without nursing process (does not equal sign here) nursing.