tabby99

I used ccm secrets, prime essentials course online and bought 2 sets of extra questions for ccm exam on amazon (via kindle- 150 questions for 9.99 each)

I just took it today and got a preliminary pass. I have to say that studying for This exam was pure torture. I think it was worse to study for than the nclex because at least with the nclex you had two years of school drilling the stuff into your head beforehand. Here's the scoop: in my opinion, it was not too hard- There are different versions of the test however. Basically it is sort of like preparing for the nclex in that you are never going to know all the information and you're never really going to feel prepared but if you put in some decent time studying you will be fine. I used CCM secrets book and Prime Essentials. I also got extra test Questions on Amazon - there are two sets of them -150 questions each and those were helpful because they had rationales. Only 9.99 each for kindle download. I thought the exam would be more detailed than it was. The questions were mostly pretty straightforward aside from a few poorly worded ones. Among the answer choices there are usually two that are just really dumb that you can eliminate right away. FYI I am a June 2011 grad RN with a yr and a half work comp CM experience. I started studying for this exam in June and basically went through all of the prime essentials material twice and took the post test and study guide questions included and went through the CCM secrets material once and took the practice test at the end of that book . In addition , I bought two additional sets of questions as discussed on Amazon and do those the week before the exam.

how soon after the test does this work?

Thanks hiddencatRN...that's a good point!

How much do nurses who work in Dr's offices make anyway? I wouldn't mind making less to have lower stress and more pt. contact.

I just got the white Keen professionals...they are awesome and i got them for like 45 bucks or something recently at Sierra Trading Post. I was wearing New Balance wide white shoes....but they were sooooo ugly and reminded me of grandma shoes...haha. you could barely tell the diff btwn right and left! So, for my final 108 hours of preceptorship I could NOT face those shoes and got the Keens. They are not that ugly and have been very comfy.

Haha...yeah....it makes me cringe already. I am probably the most interested in behavioral health nursing but even they require you to put in your time on med surg. I think I might try to work at a doctor's office for less money. I'm not sure the crazy hospital setting is for me anyway....I need something calmer bc there is no way I will be ready to take on five patients upon graduating. I am doing my preceptorship in the ICU this month and I am so clueless.

Yeah, I almost feel like this degree is kind of useless these days bc you can't even get your foot in the door. Without a new grad program I am not going to get very good training, which I feel I need to be successful...but there are hardly any new grad spots at all.

I live in N. Arizona....bad around here. The hospital is planning to either cut the new grad program out or else cut it to 10 positions only with 200 applicants expected. I will probably have to drive 1 to 2 hours out to the boon docks to get a job There are still grads from 12/10 who don't have work yet. Don't know how it is anywhere else...would be interested to know.

I ran antibiotics in below the pump once...and they were a type that was not supposed to run in fast.....I almost had a heart attack. My preceptor watched me and didn't catch it either. It was awful awful awful...I don't think I will ever ever repeat that mistake, however...I also don't know if Im cut out for this career.

I have never heard of psychology on the Hesi. It wasn't on mine, and I have never even seen it on any Hesi list.

I would recommend the HESI study guide. I used that one, and just got a 97 on my HESI. The math is easy but you can easily screw it up if you are not a math person and you don't memorize how to do all that stuff (that you never have to use in everyday life!) Just memorize all the math, and go over all the sections in the book and do the things they recommend in the HESI HINT sections and I think you will be fine. GOod Luck!! I spent about 15-20 hours total brushing up for the HESI. It is worth it!!

Hey- Has anyone taken nutrition online at Rio? I have to take it, and I'm not sure whether to do it at CCC or online. Haven't heard great things about the nutrition classes from anyone. Thanks

I took the 16 week. There is no way I would recommend the 8 wk. unless you are really familiar w/ the material already. It's a crazy amt of work! As I recall, we started with the ecosystem, organ systems , cells, atoms, etc then onto the organelles next. I don't have the books anymore, but you do go through like 1/2 of one and 1/2 of the other.

The book is called "Biology for Dummies" and I recommend it even though it does not cover everything in the bio book, it does talk about a lot of it. To get an A in the class, I read every chapter, spent a lot of time on the SYL essays and made them long, detailed, and made sure I followed all the requirements. For the quizzes, they are online so you can use your book, but they take a while to do b/c some questions are tricky. I used the internet a LOT, both the sites given for the online lessons and other sites that I found on my own to help with my understanding. The midterm and final have essays, and the best thing is to answer all the questions with the lessons that they give you, including all the SYL essay questions you did not have to turn in b/c those are what you have to know for the midterm/final. Also, for the SYL essays, you have to do research to find out how you would use your knowledge from the essay in your future healthcare career, and for that I usually looked up something such as a disease relating to the topic and said I would use my knowledge to counsel people with such and such disease blah blah. Since I was so thorough, it is hard to know if I went way overboard for the SYL's b/c I didn't get feedback from my instructor but I do know that one week I decided to do just a little less, and I lost some points This will all make a little more sense once you start the class. Above all, KEEP UP with the work every week b/c there is so much that you won't recover if you get behind!! Good luck!

Sorry- Just wanted to say, you CAN do it!! It is a lot of work and you really have to be dedicated. If you can, I would highly recommend taking it in person with someone. The problem with the class is that you have to figure it all out yourself and that takes forever. If someone is up there teaching it to you it will still be challenging but much easier than figuring it all out yourself. I was a stressed out freak b/c I was working full time and taking one other class (math, in person, easy class). It seems I spent every hour I wasn't working on my ass in front of the computer for Bio. That said, I did learn a lot :).... but it sucked.

Hey Guys- Just wanted to say, I took Bio 156 at Rio a year ago.... I got an A, but it is a HARD class. I am an excellent student and think I'm pretty smart, but it took seriously 20 hours a week for me b/c I had not had Bio since high school, and didn't really learn it then, so everything was new, and there was SOOOO much info. I think bio for dummies is good. Mainly, it was good for all the SYL essays you have to do. It was a great resource for different explanations besides the book which you can use in your essays, also on the essays you have to say how the topic you are writing about relates to your future career in health care (blah blah... jeez, sooo dumb!!!) and the bio for dummies was a good ref. for that too. Any questions you can email me!

I know! It is awful. I took Bio 156 and I don't think I have ever had to do so much work for a class in my life- and I have a bachelors degree from Univ. of Illinois!

That Bio 156 at Rio was a nightmare!! I hated it- soooooo much work and I agree with you. I felt like I was barely keeping my head above water all the time between the book reading, essays, links, labs etc. Ridiculous. I learned quite a bit but it was about 20 hrs a week. I did get an A but man..... I don't care for online.

I'm 43 and I used to be able to function on little sleep but now I can't think at all if I am sleep deprived so I can't even study!!!

UGH! How is 156 going? I took it(the 16 week) this spring and it was SOOOO much frigging work! I could not believe it! All the essays and stuff took me about 20 hours a week. I did get an A but it was so hard teaching all that stuff to myself and not having a prof. to guide me on what is important to know etc. I did do the quizzes online and they were helpful for the midterm but not so helpful for the final. On the final there were a lot of really different multiple choice questions but the essays were easier than on the midterm. I hope it is going ok for you. You are brave taking it on an accelerated schedule!

Man that class was HARD! I don't know... maybe it's just me but I hadn't taken bio since sophomore year in High School and that was in 1980. It was probably more work than I have ever had to do for a class and I have a degree in psychology and child development from University of Illinois!! Maybe it's because it was all so new to me and unfamiliar. There is soooo much writing- I spent 20 hours a week on that class approximately. I did get an A, but it was a HUGE amt. of work!! Teaching myself science does not work well for me- I need a professor right there. I will not take any more online science classes. I did learn a lot though. I just don't think it fits my learning style. Anyone taking Chem 130 this summer? I start July 1....

Thanks so much for the info! I think math 142 looks really easy too. I am planning to apply to Coconino Community College up here in Flagstaff in Fall of '09. At this rate, I need to take 2 classes a semester to reach my goal. I think it's do-able, but I'm nervous about taking A and P while working full time , along with developmental psych. Maybe I'll go to part time next fall. I am taking Chem 130 and my CNA class this summer. Sounds like you are doing great! Congratulations on all your a's. Have you heard anything about the hesi test? Up here, you have to get 85% or better to get an interview for nursing.

thanks so much for responding! Wow, sounds like you have a really hard course load this semester! So, overall, would you say bio 156 had difficult material, or was it mainly just a lot of writing that made it hard? I haven't had biology since, seriously, 1979. Ugh! I'm thinking I can do it if it is 10 hours a week or less. I think the math will be about 6-7 hrs a week. I think that if it is as hard as you say, I will not do the accelerated 8 wk. version! Yikes. Thanks so much for your input!!

Help!! Has anyone taken this class (4 hrs) and did you do the 8 wk or 16 wk? I work full time,have two kids (13, 16) and I'm taking a pretty easy looking math 142 at ccc(3 hrs) and want to take Bio 156 online as well but I would love some feedback ahead of time on how much work this class is--- approx. how many hours a week, and is the material hard??? Thanks soooo much for any help you can offer.