Nurses Going to Med School

Guest343211 · Dec 30, 2009

I don't know what kind of "RN for Dummies" school some of you attend/attended, but I feel like I've been ripped off:
http://www.uic.edu/nursing/prospectivestudents/bsn-admissions.shtml
Saw LOTS OF PRE MED students milling around in those classes, hmmmm. . .

LOL. . .

Guest343211 · Dec 30, 2009

When I meet a physician who can write a paragraph that I don't have to edit and rewrite for them, things will get REALLY interesting. . .

LOL. . .again. . .Seems this is reflected by those on SDN that are disappointed in the VR scores on the MCAT.

Guest343211 · Dec 30, 2009

This next semester will my last and final in nursing school. I'm also looking into medical school, but I have other options im looking into as well.

Good for you Minee. Go where you feel most led to go.

arikat90 · Dec 30, 2009

i am going into my second semester as a nursing major, and have also considered going to med school...my only qualm is do i really know the duty of a nurse? i love it so far, my classes and everything, but my uncle is in the hospital, and my mom has me asking the nurses at the nurses station for ice water for my uncle and evrything...is that the nurses job or the lpn/tech's job??

i guess i just feel like why am i struggling so hard at a competitive university only to be wiping the patients butt or fetching someone a glass of ice water ( not putting nursing down in the least, i love my major)...i just want reassurance....

thanks!

kwantiko · Dec 30, 2009

I would like the answer to this as well!

allnurses Guide · Dec 30, 2009

As a nurse, you direct the care and manage all the patients' needs. If that involves needing a drink of water, of course you get it. That doesn't mean you don't also use all the training from your competitive uni.

PS: If you are struggling at nursing classes, don't go to med school.

SCSTxRN · Dec 30, 2009

i guess i just feel like why am i struggling so hard at a competitive university only to be wiping the patients butt or fetching someone a glass of ice water ( not putting nursing down in the least, i love my major)...i just want reassurance....

I have a cousin who graduated BSN school a year ago - she hates the job because, "all I do is wipe butt or empty pee".

I'm busting my butt in nursing school too - and used to think I was 'above menial tasks' for lack of a better word... after all, as a teacher I was to the point where I could design my classes and write my curriculum.

Some of the best advice that I got was my first semester, from an ICU nurse who told me, "Nurses are caregivers... like parents. Sometimes the job is recognizing shock and treating infection and administering blood, starting iv's, the nursing ninja works. Sometimes the job is to be there to give comfort.. wiping a rear, emptying a catheter bag, those are part of the job sometimes too - and can be very valuable moments for assessment."

So my answer, based on what I have observed the nurses I precept with at our local hospital, is that patient care is EVERYONE'S job and you're in the program to get the R.N. behind your name.

I am proud of the fact that if it pees, I can cath it - and I hit most of my sticks on the first try, but I think I felt the most nurse like on the day that a brain cancer patient, typically too terrified for bed baths and resistant to 'pad changes' to the point that the nurses aid didn't want to fight him for it - I could give him a bath and clean him up without igniting his terror, and without him fighting... and I pray that no matter how long I am in nursing, unless I am attending to the acute nursing needs of another patient, I will never consider it "someone else's problem - I mean job-" to make my patient feel better, by hanging their medicine, wiping their butt, or getting them a drink of water.

kayskate · Dec 30, 2009

There are a few comments I want to add to this thread.

First about wiping butts, etc.

I just finished my 2nd semester. IMO, some of these tasks are very important assessment oppys. Does your pt have PUs? Is your pt thirsty? How much output does your pt have? What color is it? Etc. I really like being able to help my pt in anyway I can. Pts have told me I am the only one in the hospital who asks if they need something and then make sure it is w/in reach. Now this is sad. Getting a pt a glass of water and placing it w/in reach may be the highlight of that pt's day b/c he feels someone really cares for his needs. You can also talk to your pt when you are performing these tasks and obtain important info. You can also provide psych/emotional support for your pt. Yes, RN is very technical, but these small elements of care are very important. They provide a foundation of trust in your relationship w your pt and his family. I can't say enough about how important acts of caring are for pt's overall well-being.

Second about difficulty of RN programs.

I have taken all of the "science major courses" b/c I have a doctorate in polymer science, which is a field of applied chem. I was a plastics and textile chemist. It was very difficult. I am not a genius and had to work hard for that degree and to pass those classes. I did not get straight As. Anyway, I did not take the RN-specific courses that have been discussed in this thread. I cannot compare them.

My RN program is very rigorous. Thought the first semester was not too bad. However, there was plenty of work. The second semester was much more difficult. I studied like crazy for a mediocre grade. I don't think I worked that hard at any point in my previous ed exp. That kind of study in any of the classes I took in the past would have resulted in an A. Not RN102.

My sister is an MD. based on what we have discussed, RN school is comparable in terms of intensity of study to MD school. Sis graduated w a BS in bio w 3.8 GPA. She had a tough time getting into med school and took the only option she was offered. She grad w $100K+ debt.

I can tell you, having a PhD has not been an advantage for me in RN school. Maybe I know how to study. Maybe I had the pre-reqs. I got right in. That was probably my advantage. They saw the PhD and decided I could succeed as an RN. Still, I work very hard and study at least 20-30 hrs for tests. I am lucky to get a B. Our passing total is 75%. I earned 82% in 2nd sem.

Just my :twocents:

Kay

SCSTxRN · Dec 30, 2009

I'm with Kay... although I did get into medical school at 20... it was just too much for me at the time. I think it is more my ability to put things in perspective now than any huge decrease in the intellectual skills required for nursing school.

It may be the school I go to, too though - my sciences (from a major state college) the first time around were for science majors - if B.S. was involved, whether you were going to school for Biology / Premed / Nursing - those were the only classes your program / major took. They were hard.

My sciences were too old (>5 years) for the nursing program at the local CC though, so I took their A&P, Micro, and Nutrition the summer before classes started. 16 hours in a summer. I didn't break the plastic wrap on my books and made four A's. High school science was more difficult.

If it's sufficient to give students a background for nursing school - who am I to argue?

I'm not convinced that it is, though - because I entered with a starting class of 90, less than 50% were left at the end of the first year. We took on enough LVN transitions at August to bring us back up over 90. We're back down to 60, I think... that being said, some of the people in my class are struggling incredibly hard, and will make - IMO - excellent nurses.

Those of us who did our prereqs elsewhere though - science major courses - either as career transitions or people who needed to grow up a little before finishing, as a general rule have had an easier time.

SingDanceRunLife · Jan 5, 2010

Just want to throw in that being a nurse actually puts you at a disadvantage for medical school because they don't want to take away the much needed workers.

guiltysins · Jan 5, 2010

I think everyone needs to calm down. To the person that said nursing is considered an easy major, I'd hate to tell you this but they are right. On the outside looking in a lot of people consider nursing school an easy major. See it's easy for us to say it's not easy but for people who haven't gone through it and are just looking at the program from the outside, they consider it easy. I've heard plenty of pre-med and pre-pharm majors saying "Oh you went for the easy major".

Also, every school varies in pre-reqs. Some schools have classes set aside just for certain professions. And even though the class has the same title doesn't mean it covers the same material. We also have a pharmacy school at our university and we have different chemistry classes. We have Orgo and Biochem but it's different from the kind of Organic chemistry they take.

So I just wanted to add that little tidbit. I don't think the person was trying to say they thought it was easy, just that there are A LOT of ignorant med students, physical therapy students and pharmacy students who think nursing is a cake walk. The difficulty of school depends on a person so you CANNOT say it is not easy. What you can say is "to me it was not easy" There are people that have said nursing school was easy. There are people on this very board that have said that. I can say I thought A&P was an easy class, more than half of pre-nursing students would not agree with me. You can't attack people's opinions, but that poster already stated it wasn't their opinion, it's the vibe they got from people that work at medical schools and I get that same vibe.