Math rage

Wannabeeinscrubs, ADN, LPN, RN · Jul 30, 2013

Wait, wait , wait.... you mean to tell me, that I will not be using imaginary numbers in nursing??!!??

nerdychik · Jul 30, 2013

I am so glad to hear someone else say they hate math/suck at it. Don't get me wrong -- I'm not thrilled about your loathing nor am I happy to report my own in the same area, but it makes me feel more confident knowing that I'm not the only nursing student who is not so great with math. Your confession gives me hope! Thank you.

queserasera, RN · Jul 30, 2013

I understand your frustration, I HATE MATH. No, I don't hate math, I hate that it doesn't come easy to me like it does to others! While I share your "math rage", it's more about being able to COMPLETE a college level math course vs. using the math (i.e. you probably won't have to know the quadratic formula for work.) But as other responders pointed out, dosage calculations are algebra, albeit, basic. I was able to skip college algebra for a finite math class which was more of a survey class of everything but calculus.

Good luck!

olioxenfree · Jul 30, 2013

Is it just me or does anyone else find the math classes you have to take like algebra completely and totally a waste of time and money? I asked a RN the other day if she had ever needed to factor a polynomial at work, and she chuckled and said no. I just find myself completely and utterly disenfranchised with the whole college system right now. *end rant*

I found the scientific math I did in Micro and Chem to be much better at preparing me for medical calculations. After calculating percent yield and serial dilutions, dosage calcs are a breeze. As for the quadradic equation....blah

llg, PhD, RN · Jul 30, 2013

If you don't want a college education ... don't go to college.

tayloramaRN2be · Jul 30, 2013

If you don't want a college education ... don't go to college.

Excuse me llg, I didn't know that my ranting about math would invite such a rude and classless response.

I never said anything about not wanting a college education. I came on this board to vent about about my schooling much like the nurses come to here to vent about work. If you cannot see that or accept that, I feel sorry for you.

mmc51264, BSN, MSN, RN · Jul 30, 2013

My poor heart is breaking!!!!!!!!!! :scrying: (former math teacher and self proclaimed math geek). Math is great for critical thinking and, as others have said, looking at things in different ways.

I love it when nurses say they don't use algebra. That is what almost all dose calc in real life is. And it matters. add a zero by mistake to an insulin drip.....

manusko · Jul 30, 2013

Don't worry it comes more in handy than art appreciation and intro to golf.

Luckyyou, BSN, RN · Jul 30, 2013

Being able to do that kind of math will give you confidence when you're standing in the med room or at your pump thinking, "So if my kiddo weighs 3kg and needs a 2mcg/kg/hr fentanyl drip, and my syringe is a 25mcg/ml concentration, how many ml/hr should the pump be set at?" -- and yes, the pump will calculate it for you, but rule number one is NEVER TRUST THE PUMP!

And maybe one day, knowing the quadratic formula will win you $25,000 on Jeopardy.

NotMyProblem MSN, ASN, BSN, MSN, LPN, RN · Jul 30, 2013

I absolutely LOATHE any kind of math!!! However, my 27 years of experience is worthless if I can't pass the drug calculation test that every hospital employer requires of its potential nurses. Not only do we have to pass this exam, but the minimum score has to be in the 80s. Try to make algebra a friend of yours...it could be standing between your nursing license and the time clock. :yes:

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · Jul 30, 2013

I think we all need to blow off steam every now and then!!!!!

OP....Rant on it feels good to gvet things off your chest!

MedChica · Jul 30, 2013

I do understand. I felt the same way. (That's why I went to a vocational school for my LVN. LOL) I was stuck in pre-req hell and I said, '...the hell with this!" I'm just one of those people who needs short-term results/gratification. I get disenchanted with ease.

I went to the university right after high school like everyone else. I like to learn. I like a challenge but I don't have the stamina for college; therefore, I don't have what it takes to be a 'traditional university student'.

(That's why I joined the military. LOL)

I could never go to school for a freakin' decade without seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. Two years here. 1.5 years 'there'. This I can handle.

I'm always looking for shortcuts. Always looking for ways to fast-track 'the process'. I don't like anything that looks like it's going to be a 'process.

I don't/never questioned the point of it all, though.

It's a major thing to be college-educated or it should be. Most people don't have degrees. I expect a lot out of the college-educated, I do. You're in college to learn. To know. To analyze info. To become a better and more flexible thinker. To be insightful. To understand how to synthesize information. To fix problems. To craft solutions.

So, there's a reason why you take English comp, Macro and Microeconomics, Personal finance, College Algebra, Government and 'Texas History', Art History, Sociology, etc...

'The Common Body of Knowledge'.

If you just want to learn a trade, get your diploma/cert/license and be done with it? That's what a trade/vocational school is for.

'Getting you a job' is not/was never the point of attending a college or university.