all about Med-Surg

QuarterLife88, MSN, RN, NP · May 1, 2012

I just had med-surg. I was afraid I would fail due to heresy about a high fail rate for med-surg 1, but I passed. Now I will never listen to other people again unless it's about positive helpful hints to pass a class. Anyway what helped me was to really know my clinical manifestations (what the patient will look like) and interventions (what you need to do to make them better), as well as procedures and the care that those entail. Foundations really is the backbone of med-surg just like med-surg is the backbone of nursing.

My instructor didn't ask questions about the patho, but it is helpful to have a brief overview of what the process is to help you understand the why portion. If you've done well in nursing school so far, study like you have always been and you should be fine. Honestly, it wasn't as hard and scary as people made me believe with their tales of woe. The thing that sucked most about med-surg was my clinical placement.

ImThatGuy, BSN, RN · May 2, 2012

so recently fought out...my adn program starts with the wonderful world of medical-surgical. what is all the hype about pertaining to this area? what are some of the obstacles i will be faced with this upcoming fall? any advice, tips or books i need to purchase?
thanks in advance

there's no hype. medical-surgical is merely a hodge podge of sick and surgically-oriented patients. the book chapters will be stuff like preop, intraop, postop, respiratory, cardiac, endocrine, and on and on with each body system. it seems to typically be a two course sequence, and as "in depth" as some suggest that it is - i find it's not. i was kind of disheartened that nursing school wasn't as detailed as i'd been given the impression it was. in the hospital the patients will be waiting to go to surgery, those back from surger, sick people just laying in bed waiting to heal or die, and even some undergoing rehab. everyone in my class hated working on med-surg units which the vast majority of our clinical experiences were.

RNnme3j · May 2, 2012

Med-Surg seems to be the area where you learn the most!! So its just the workload that people grope about lol!! I start volunteering in the ED next week but I will be in the HOLDING area-where people have been admitted but just waiting on their room. I'll make sure to ask as many questions as possible...thanks guys

RLtinker, LPN · May 3, 2012

Medsurg class is basically a Pathology class. You learn about the different conditions that affect the body, and their signs and symptoms, and test used to diagnose them. This class also requires some basic knowledge of A&P. My Med surge 1 class didn't focus much on the treatments, but I believe that comes about in later med surg classes (we have 3). How hard or easily it is will depend on you and what teacher you have. Some people find the class easy, while others have difficulty passing. Its a lot of information to absorb on a subject that you may not have encountered before. To put this in perspective, in my medsurg class I had three books, an Atlas of Pathophysiology, and a Medsurg text book split in to two volumes. Reading 4 or 5 chapters a week wasn't uncommon.

What you need to focus on will depend on what you are studying. For an example lab values are important in the fluid,electrolyte and acid/base balance chapters, but rarely come up any where else, The renal chapters are an exception. But its a good idea to master lab values early. When learning signs and symptoms (s/s) try not to get bogged down in learning every S/S, some diseases have as many as 10 or 15 of them. You need to focus on the key signs associated the illness. If I tell you a patent (pt.) has tachycardia this is not going to help much since it is a common symptom in both pulmonary and cardiac issues. It also usually shows up any time there is pain or oxygen depletion. However if i mentioned an elevated T wave, this may point you to Hyperkalemia.

As imthatguy has already mentioned, there is also a medsurg floor which is a bit harder to explain, but basically its general patient care that is not specialized. The pt themselves can be there for just about any reason, from needing an appendectomy to pneumonia.

yooper13 · May 3, 2012

I just did med/surge II this past semester, and really, it's not as bad as everyone says. You learn to go with it, and as you are a student, learn from the nurse/interventions/S/Sx, etc.

I recently took a job as a sitter...the pt. in bed 1 (not my pt.) seemed to be in a bad condition....sleeping in a weird position, drooling, non-responsive...turns out she had a blood glucose of 18...they came in, gave dextrose, and revived her. Now, I know I learned at some point the interventions for hypoglycemia, but seeing that, I will now NEVER forget...she came back, answered questions quite drunkenly (slurring), and within 20 minutes was fine. THAT is med/surge..."life is like a box of chocolates...you never know what you're gonna get"!!!

alannah_smth · May 3, 2012

Always, ALWAYS know 'normal.' know all your labs. Also, if your teachers are like mine, your questions will be scenario type questions and all about critical thinking. Don't read the answers, answer the questions on your own first. When you have to do prioritization questions, remember to put patient safety first. Always check the patient first, forget the monitors and remembers your ABC's.

And really try to learn the material and own it. don't try to just pass the tests. this information will be helpful later!

DLS_PMHNP, MSN, RN, NP · May 4, 2012

Several nursing specialties require 1-2 years of Med/Surg. I work in hospice, but had to "do my time" in med-surg for one year before I was eligible to bid on a hospice position. For the record, I HATED med/surg. I really love my hospice job now.

Best

Diane

latebloomrn · May 4, 2012

As a student on a med/surg floor, you are going to be faced with a lot of different situations that you cant or won't learn about from a text book. I feel like this rotation forces you to hone your critical thinking skills because every patient has so many different issues to focus on yet you still must know how to separate critically important information from not important. Employers like med/surg nurses because among other things, they have been doing complete assessments as opposed to very scaled down, focused assessments like in the ICU or ED. Knowing a med/surg nurse can spot problems with any body system is a plus. This is truly the time to go in with both eyes and ears open and soak it all up. I've done both CCU/ICU and med/surg work and there is a difference. I'd suggest you also look into getting a tutor/mentor now to help clarify and support you thru it all.

momtojosh · May 4, 2012

med-surge is where i want to work......while doing our clinicals in LPN school I LOVED the med-surge rotation....after being a LPN for 5 yrs i feel somewhat stuck...i want to do MORE!...this is why i am starting the RN program in the fall....that is where i want to work.....i pray i get a great clinical instructor...

i will be 50 in october!! :nurse: