Need help with Renal system

GeminiTwinRN, BSN · Sep 15, 2006

Does you course have specific objectives for each lecture? The amount of reading is definitely doable, we sometimes have double that amount between lectures, or 7 days apart. I would read the material, with an eye on the objectives, and in particular study your class powerpoints or handouts very thoroughly. If you taped the lectures, it will be helpful to listen to them at least once more, and then again while you are re-reading your notes that you took during the original lecture.

You say you aced the first test? If that's the case, then do all the same things you did then for this test. You have time to do it, just study smart. If there are review questions in your textbook or study guide, do those, and also go online to the textbook's website, and take those review questions as well. If you have a HESI review book or NCLEX review book, you can do all the renal questions there too.

Your 110 questions are going to all be renal? I think that's great, it's tougher to study 5 big systems and try to figure out what 50 or 60 questions they can narrow it down to, IMO. That's what our tests are like.

Good luck, you've already proven you can do it! :)

leslasic

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Sep 15, 2006

aacurtis72. . .first off, go back to your a&p textbook and review the anatomy and particularly the physiology of the kidney and it's structures. you have to know the normal working of the kidneys down flat or you will never understand the various types of renal failure and the renal diseases. many of them involve the breakdown or damage in the physiological processes.

here are some of the links i have on renal failure. i've been waiting to post them. i used to work on a medical renal unit and saw a lot.

http://www.kidneyschool.org/splash/toc.shtml -- kidney school! this is an online resource for patients to learn everything they ever wanted to know about kidney disease. each link goes to a self-learning module explaining such things as how the kidneys work, how they fail, treatment options and much much more. there are 16 modules you can access.

http://www.renalinfo.com/us/en/display/how-kidneys-work-and-fail -- what is kidney failure? a online informational resource from baxter. it is written for patient education, but has nice explanations of what is happening when the kidneys fail. has some animated pictures with sound on how the kidneys work.

http://www.ccmtutorials.com/renal/index.htm - critical care medicine tutorials on renal diseases (medical school)

family practice notebook http://www.fpnotebook.com/index.htm - use the search box at the top left of this website to find diseases. you will get a return of link(s). these links will take you to a page of an outline of the disease that will include concisely presented information such as the etiology, pathophysiology, signs and symptoms, diagnostic tests usually ordered and treatment modalities. this is all from the doctor's perspective, but helpful for nursing students in understanding the medical treatment of diseases.

KellieNurse06 · Sep 15, 2006

I go onto http://www.howstuffworks.com and that has animated stuff on it to show you how to understand things better........hope that helps! Good luck on your test...

leslie :-D · Sep 16, 2006

i'm trying to remember SOME of what we needed to know when i was a student. off the top of my head:

- the structure and function of the kidneys

- how they work, i.e., the blood's journey through bowman's capsule, tubules, etc. and what is absorbed, reabsorbed.

- common diseases: crf and effects of, htn (know renin-angiotensin-aldosterone-adh), arf (pre, intra and post renal)..

- dialysis, transplants

i'm sure there was much more-giving you basic guidelines.

best of luck.

leslie

augigi, CNS · Sep 17, 2006

- Remembering what they do will help you remember adverse signs etc

- Fluid overload is usually a risk of renal impairement

- Learn what makes urine output go up/down

- As to the anatomy, you just gotta learn it from the readings, there isn't a way around that.