How do you retain all of the info that you learn in NS?

tfleuter, BSN, RN · Dec 22, 2009

I think it's pretty common to feel this way about college education in general with the system that we use now. I remember feeling the exact same way for microbiology, chemistry, A&P, ect. What I have found is that even though you don't remember every little detail throughout the semester, you still were introduced to the concepts and once you hit on them again, it will come easier and faster the following time. I feel the same as you after completing my first semester of actual nursing courses, but I imagine a lot of things will come together as the semesters go by and you'll be surprised how much you do know. Even more so when you are working in an environment where you are actually using the knowledge and not just memorizing it for a test.

kwantiko · Dec 22, 2009

repetition. these are your first exposures, it will become second nature when you see it every day.

Jay2daq · Dec 22, 2009

I agree. and im glad that others feel the same way. I don't like admitting it to my fellow classmates though. Its nice to hear others feel that way as well.

Im sure it is just repetition....assessments, im getting better at them, because i'm starting to them more and more.

One nurse i worked with for 1 day was super helpfull she would tell me things like, you don't start learning untill you get out of nursing school, and start working as one (WITH a preceptor).

...you get to be an expert in your field. She is a cardiac nurse and she knows her cardiac stuff like no other. She continued to tell me "Put me in Maternity and i would have no idea what im doing or fundal assessments"

It will come with time :)

llg, PhD, RN · Dec 22, 2009

How do you remember? You don't. You forget a whole lot of stuff. You remember the stuff you actually use in practice repeatedly. You remember the basic principles of things and forget a lot of the details. Hopefully ... the basic principles that you remember drive you to look up all that stuff that you forget ... and give you the foundation to re-learn and use the information once you look it up.

hiddencatRN, BSN, RN · Dec 22, 2009

I finished my first quarter and am making electronic flashcards of my notes and paper flashcards (I never understand people who say flashcards are just memorization of terms and that you need to be able to "understand concepts." You can put concepts on flashcards too...) to put on my iPod. I have really great test-taking skills, so I started to worry that they were masking the fact that the things I learn are just hovering in short term memory, waiting to be forgotten. I've decided I'm going to create a cumulative deck of "cards" to go through. The program I use lets you select for cards you get wrong, so I'll still be able to focus more on the newer stuff and get the older stuff periodically.

I had a professor once say that you should study every day like you have a test tomorrow. I don't always put that in to practice, but I think it's great advice. Go over the new notes, review the old notes, and you have continual reinforcement of the material as it ages. You'll still lose stuff, but more exposure means more sticks in long term memory.

caliotter3 · Dec 22, 2009

As long as you have references to consult, you won't have a problem. Information that you need on a daily basis will become second nature. As for forgetting Nursing I and Nursing II, you should establish a review schedule that includes material from your entire course not just your present semester. You will find that this helps you when NCLEX time rolls around, and that is just around the corner.