Nursing Diagnosis on CEN?

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Specializes in Adult and Peds ED, Forensic Nursing.

Hey there,

Been lurking a bit lately, but not posting (I've been too busy with the first year of nursing thing!) I have a CEN question.

I did the online MedEd review class by Jeff Solheim to study, and have loved it (I loved his classes at ENA conference in San Antonio too). I recently started doing questions from Lipincott's Q&A review. Here's my dilemma... Jeff Solheim says clearly that there are no nursing diagnoses on the exam, and that they won't give symptoms and ask you to name the sign (ie Cullen, Kehr, Murphy). They may give the symptoms and the sign and want you to identify what you are looking for, but it's not a vocab test. Lippincott's has lots of nursing diagnosis questions.

Anyone have personal experiences with this? I'm okay with signs, I've always been a little dorky with that. Seriously though, I have put nursing diagnoses pretty far out of my mind this past year and just don't feel like I think that way. I could get it back, but there is sooooo much else to study!

Thanks!

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Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.

Nope, no nursing diagnosis. The content outline is here: Content Outline

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Specializes in Adult and Peds ED, Forensic Nursing.

Thanks! Yes, I had read the outline (many many times) and didn't see anything about nursing diagnoses. It's just that Lipincott's has so many ND questions I got a little scared. I'm not to thrilled about lipincott's questions I must say.

thanks again

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Specializes in med/surg/tele/neuro/rehab/corrections.

Thank you for your input. :) THis really lets me know not to use Lippincott

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Specializes in Adult and Peds ED, Forensic Nursing.

i've done bot the med ed and mc strategies reviews. I think they complimented each other nicely. I also have been reading one of the ENA books. I just wish I had more access to practice questions. I did the ones on the CEN website, and did well, so I am feeling a little better. I'm really glad I get a differential for passing the CEN because studying has been expensive!

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Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.

I did the 150-question exam a couple of days before I took the CEN, and did well on it. I felt like it was about the same level/flavor as the real exam. Good luck!! :)

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Specializes in Adult and Peds ED, Forensic Nursing.

And.... I passed!

Yup, no nursing diagnoses (more peds than I would have liked though ;-)

I really feel like the practice exam from the CEN website, and of Solheim's material (the little flip book or the med ed site) and the questions on the MC Strategies review were most useful.

Ahh, now I can enjoy christmas!

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Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.

Wooo hoooooo! CPEN next? :D Congrats!!!

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Specializes in ER, Trauma, ICU/CCU/NICU, EMS, Transport.

Yep, the previous posters have been correct there are NO Nursing Diagnosis questions on the current exam...

The reason Lippincott has them is because it was published in 2004 and the most recent exam revision which dropped the Nursing Diagnosis questions was in 2008. So Lippincott still has "outdated" material.

It's not really outdated per se, just that it still has stuff that isn't on the exam.

That being said, you also need to be careful on any review book that was published before our last AHA guideline revisions also. (Those were in 2005). You'll have to read carefully any cardiac/cardiovascular/ACLS type questions, and realize that the CEN exam is going to ask questions based on the 2005 AHA guidelines and that your review books may have been written before then.

As far as the "SIGNS" question. No, you won't specifically see a question like this:

"You patient has tenderness to palpation in the right upper abdomen, just under the costal margin. And when eliciting this tenderness, it causes them to 'catch their breath'. Which of the following best describes this?"

A) McBurney's Sign

B) Murphy's Sign

C) Chadwick's Sign

D) Levine's Sign

What you "might" see is a question like this:

"On physical exam your patient has a positive Murphy's Sign. You recognize that this most specifically relates to which of the following:"

A) Appendicitis

B) Choleycystitis

C) Pregnancy

D) Angina Pectoris

As far as the different review books go, I've done a comparison table between 8 of the major/contemporary ones out there and contrasted the differences and positives/limitations of each. I'm attaching it as a .pdf file to this thread.

Good Luck!

CEN review book comparisons 110909.pdf

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