Pathophysiology

[2bmalenurse007]

I'm a BSN student taking pathophysiology. My question is , how will pathophysiology help me in the near future? Sorry if the question sounds stupid.

Thanks

[al7139, ASN, RN]

To elaborate on what someone else posted, pathophys is the knowlede of the disease process. You learn what happens when the body is ill.

As a nurse it is important for several reasons:

Firstly, you cannot be an effective nurse if you do not have an understanding of the disease the pt has.

We need to be aware of the signs that the pt is improving, and more importantly, the signs the pt is getting worse, and what can happen. We are the eyes and ears of the pt, and it is our responsibility to know if our patients are in trouble and notify the MD (we spend WAY more time with the pt than they do and the docs rely on us to be alert to a pt who is geting ready to code or stroking out (for example).

Also, nurses are responsible to educate the patient and the families on the disease, the symptoms, the meds they are on, and any necessary lifestyle changes needed, etc. A nurse cannot do this if they do not have a knowledge of the disease.

It is important in your care of the patient, to be able to assess if they are stable, have special needs, and to think critically about the proper treatment. An example would be a diabetic patient who is not eating, or has a history of hypoglycemic episodes after insulin is given...in which case we would notify the doc that they may want to change the med regimen to avoid this problem in the future (docs do not always read every single nursing note so we need to alert them to potential issues).

Finally, it is necessary to know the disease process, so you can question orders from docs that may not make sense or could harm the patient (you would be surprised at how often this happens, not that the docs are incompetent, they just don't always see the whole picture, or could be thinking about another pt, etc.), esp if there is more than one doc writing orders for the pt.

Hope this gives you a better understanding on why pathophys is so very essential!

One more note...you learn the basics in school...once you are in the field you find that there is way more to learn about each disease, and that not every case is "textbook"...I have been very lucky to work in a hospital with nurses and doctors who are willing and eager to teach and don't mind when I ask lots of questions to enhance my knowledge.

Amy

[husker_rn, RN]

I remember taking A&P and wondering how I was going to use ALL that I learned; same with patho. But....I'm glad I had a whole year of patho. I keep my book handy still and have been out of school a long time.

[Daytonite, BSN, RN]

As a nursing student, pathophysiology is going to help clarify how specific symptoms manifest themselves when disease occurs. Knowledge of the pathophysiology of many different diseases is a group of the tools you need in your toolbox as a working RN to be able to think critically and problem solve. You also need to know the pathophysiology of medical diseases and conditions when you get around to determining the related factors of the nursing diagnoses of those nursing care plans you will be writing if you haven't done them already which I suspect you haven't or you wouldn't be asking this question.

Now, my question is, why aren't you hanging out on the student forums more? We have a thread there on pathophysiology. . .

• https://allnurses.com/forums/f205/pathophysiology-p-microbiology-fluid-electrolyte-resources-145201.html - Pathophysiology/ A & P/ Microbiology/ Fluid & Electrolyte Resources
  • https://allnurses.com/forums/2634117-post49.html - Pathophysiology of Disease/Medical conditions/body processes

[jjjoy, LPN]

I'm a BSN student taking pathophysiology. My question is , how will pathophysiology help me in the near future? Sorry if the question sounds stupid.

More info, please! Where in your course of study are you? Is your pathophys course a stand-alone course or is it integrated with nursing content? What do you mean by "help you in the near future"? (eg on writing a care plan? as a student nurse on the floor? on the NCLEX? as a new grad nurse?).

I'm kinda curious how pathophys would NOT be helpful to a nursing student and future nurse.

[stacey10]

you have to be familiar with patho for the nclex exam.

[titan0208]

I'm signed up to take Pathophysiology this fall at Baptist. Since I won't begin clinicals unitl SP '10, should I wait and take "Patho" later? Or should I get all of my sciences out the way, as suggested by my advisor? "Patho" is my last science course that I have to take. All suggestions, comments are welcomed. Thanks in advance!

[cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN]

Ehh...I'm not impressed with it's content.

It was not required for my ADN program. I'm taking it now for my ADN-BSN and find myself bored with it. It covers all the diseases and all, but honestly, knowing which Philadelphia gene causes what disease, or what tumor necrosis factor has to do with each disease impacts my nursing life in no way, shape, or form.

And that's the difference between A/P and patho. I found A/P very interesting, but with patho it seems rehashed. (maybe because so much of it was covered in my basic nursing classes?)

I'm getting a very easy A with very little studying. I'd say my nursing knowledge helped my patho more than my patho helped my nursing.

And I'm not taking it through a on-line degree mill either. I'm taking it through a very respected university.

[Vito Andolini]

You should also consider yourself lucky that your BSN program offers it.

Ours does not

Best,

Diane

Interesting. One says it's the whole basis of Nursing, yet another says her school doesn't even offer, let alone require, it. So it's not such a bad question after all, nor should the OP feel stupid for asking it or be told she should be able to answer it herself. Since professors can't even agree on its vital or non-vital nature, that is.

For OP: anatomy is how we're built, physiology is how we function, pathophys tells how the body's functioning goes awry. Understanding the effects of disease on various organs and functions will make you a professional nurse. That is, you will know the reason for jaundice, swelling, pain, manifestations of allergic reaction, inflammation, and many other bodily actions and reactions. The aide, the lay person, the practical nurse - these do not have the in-depth understanding that you will have. You will know why we elevate for swelling, why we treat a given condition a certain way, how labs help us, why the surgeon does certain procedures. And you will apply this knowledge in your nursing care and teach others how to deal with various problems, based on your knowledge of what has gone wrong in a given illness/injury.

Keep asking questions. Not everyone will tell you you should be able to answer them yourself or give you a vague, castigating response.

Sorry if I seem sharp - I just don't like it when people respond with superiority and never really do answer the question and try to put down the one asking.

[crunchymomx3]

We didn't have to take a specific pathophys class but we needed to write out the pathophys for all of our patients with our care plans. You have to understand how the disease relate to the patient to effectively care for them.

[angel337, MSN, RN]

i took patho in my BSN program and i found it extremely helpful. it explains more in depth than regular A&P classes and even to this day i feel like i know my disease processes pretty well. it makes you more confident in your knowldege and when you tie it in with pharmacology, it all just makes sense.