Eatabrog

How long is your program? We do semesters. My program only runs in Fall and Spring and doesn't allow us to take nursing classes during the summer.

Anyone else here doing some summer studying? I'll be going into my last year of my BSN program. So far I've gotten away with just studying for tests and not really retaining anything. I want to be a great nurse, so I'm buckling down and have been studying the past week or two. I'm trying to prepare myself not only for the exit HESI and NCLEX in spring, but also so I'm as prepared as possible for role transition in the spring and eventually when I start working. Anyone else doing some summer studying? What are you working on? Or why not? Just looking to chat. :)

I recommend focusing on your nursing classes. I got straight A's in all my pre-reqs and have gotten a couple B's in nursing school. Nursing classes are harder in my opinion and very different. You'll want to focus on them as much as you can. Plus it would suck if you retook A&P to replace your grades, only to get some B's in your nursing classes.

Depends on what the schools you are applying for are looking for. I had a 3.8 and didn't get into my first choice because they were mainly looking at an essay about why you wanted to be a nurse. I'm not a good writer. I'm happy I'm in the program I'm in though. They looked primarily at your GPA from your first year taking pre-reqs (not direct admittance) and you had to have at least a 3.6. So your GPA is fine, but colleges look at a lot of different things.

I seriously recommend learning these very slowly. I'm talking a day or two just focusing on one electrolyte. Not meaning you have to spend the whole day learning about it, but I don't recommend trying to learn multiple in one day. A lot of the S/S cross over and can get very confusing. Focus on one for a couple days and make sure you really know it before moving onto the next one. That's the best advice I can give. Like others said, I also recommend understanding opposed to memorizing. If you learn a list of S/S, you are not going to retain it as well as if you can actually imagine what a patient with hypokalemia looks like. Instead of looking at it as "Muscle weakness, leg cramps, paresthesias, shallow/ineffective breaths, dysrhythmias, orthostatic hypotension, constipation, paralytic ileus, hypoactive bowel sounds, diminished DTR's, etc." imagine what the actual person looks like and what that means. Pay attention to what is going to be most important when caring for that client. They may have some painful leg cramps, but that's not necessarily what's going to be most important. So they should definitely be on a cardiac monitor because of the effects of potassium imbalances have on the heart. They will have muscle weakness causing resp. distress so make sure they can breathe. Also make sure proper safety measures are taken because of the muscle weakness. Monitor their GI system as well because of the constipation. They may have abdominal distention. They should probably have some laxatives ordered. What else might be ordered for them? Probably some potassium supplements. If IV, how should you be giving it? What precautions need to be taken. Etc.