ajulian87

Or maybe leave the book out in the sun for a few hours..although this may cause sun-damage so proceed with caution..i know the sun method works with smelly shoes, so maybe itll work with a smelly book?

It definately can be tough to have a patient call and ask to have another pillow put behind their back, or to wipe their nose and not be able to just get up and do it (due to legality issues), or when a nurse asks for a boost and there is no one to be found at the nurses station and you know you are very qualified to help and have clinical experience but theres nothing you can do except page someone else to help. If offered 2 jobs, a secretary and a CNA position, I would obviously say go with the CNA position:coollook:, as it'll get you more experience and patient face-time; but if you can't find a CNA job and the prospects aren't looking good, don't discount trying your hand at hospital unit secrtary--any exposure to the medical field/terms is better than nothing! Good luck!

I too am starting med-surg in the fall (sept 7). I'm super nervous. My book is Medical-Surgical Nursing, 8th Edition, by Black. It too is over 2000 pages and weighs a ton! Not looking forward to lugging it around with me! I loved my Fundamentals course last year and was able to get a lot of great experience with catheters, Hoyer's, etc. We haven't gotten our clinical assignments yet, I think we get them in Mid-August on where and what day our clinicals are on, so that's been kind of stressful, not knowing where we r gonna be and what day im looking forward to being in a hospital this semester vs LTC facility like last semester (I LOVED our clinical site, but I think being in a hospital is more my speed). I know our days will be 8-12hrs, depending on the site and day we have clinicals. I like that, with med-surg, we will have a whole bevy of pathologies that we'll be seeing, its gonna be a good experience working with different Dx and what not. Good luck to everyone this coming semester! it should be a wild ride!

As a former cheerleader, I know how passionate we can get about cheering. However, I think it's a matter of priortizing what u have on your plate. I'm in the same boat and have to work and go to school and have a boyfriend (of over 4 years!). It's very tough for me to think about throwing another huge time commitment in there. What aspect of cheerleading/being on the squad are you seeking? By that I mean, is it the commaradery (sp?)? If so, gather a group of friends and dedicate even 1 hour per week to do nothing but gab, gossip, and hang out and be goofy. Is it the exercise/physical fitness? incorporate working out and studying, if possible (record lectures and run on treadmill for example). Or look at your school's gym/athletic center or community centers for weekly group dance classes. Many of these are weekly and if you have a test coming up or a busy week on week, there's no solid commitment to HAVE to be there. Finally, if it's the competition aspect that draws u to cheerleading, I'm sure you will find that nursing school will have plenty of that;) THREE CHEERS FOR NURSING SCHOOL!

Anything is possible!!! That said, getting all A's in nursing school is a challenge. But again, it's doable. I was able to maintain my 4.0 from my prereqs through my first semester of nursing school (Fundamentals, Health Assessment, Patho and Research--all A's, wooho!) and work part-time but it wasn't without lots of sacrifices (I missed alot of my fave shows/movies, family shindigs, date nights with my boyfriend) but it's definately doable! That said, I think its a completely different universe between pre-reqs and nursing and if you go in with your same study skills and habits, I think you'll do great. I find when I am more concerned with learning the material (vs studying to get an A) I actually do better bc I'm able to go about questions from a more well-rounded and critcial thinking point of view. Keep studying hard and you will do great, regardless of the grade!

I work as a unit secretary at MGH and have worked there for over 1.5 years. I'm not sure about how hard it is per-say to get a job as a unit secretary, but I do know that in general alot of places (hospitals, Dunkin Donuts, just about everywhere) are going to be selective because of the economy. That said, my time at MGH working as a secretary has been AMAZING experience and help in learning the ropes and terminology of a hospital. It's been so helpful in my nursing classes because I already have some knowledge of medical terms/abbreviations/supplies. I would keep looking every day at hospital career listings (don't limit yourself just to hospitals, LTC, family practice or community centers utilize secrtaries too and can offer great healthcare-setting experience). Keep trying! It's tough to get a job anywhere now-a-days. GOOD LUCK!

Hey all, so I'm one week away from being done with my first semester of nursing school! Problem is, that one week standing in my way = FINALS WEEK! I've done outstanding so far on all of my tests but they've been chapter-based; 2 of my finals, Health Assessment and Fundamentals are cumulative. My question is, where the heck do I start?! It's basically like, "You will be tested on everything from Day 1. Know everything we've covered in class and everything in the books". We don't have our old tests to look back on, and I've already done all the practice questions in our textbook when preparing for the first 3 exams in each class. Finals are Monday and Tuesday and I've put off studying because I am so overhwlemed at the amount of material I don't even know where to start. Any advice on studying for cummulative final exams in nursing school? Anyone have any links or suggestions to helpful practice tests specifically for health assessment and/or fundamentals? Thanks!! -amy

Thanks again guys for all of your kind words and reassurance. I just have to put on my brave face and just go for it! In my prereqs I got straight A's and graduated with a 3.94 cumm GPA...but the expectation of getting straight A's and even B's is slowly creeping out the window and I'm alright with doing my best, working hard and so long as I am PASSING the courses (C or better) I am content!

Congrats to everyone!! I got my acceptance letter in December and start in less than 3 weeks (Jan 25!) at UMass Boston for my BSN! I couldnt imagine starting as soon as the 11th! I'm soooooooooooo nervous and no one truly understands how nerve wracking it is except other students and nurses who are going/have gone through this process too!! We can do this guys!!!!!! Good luck and let us all know how everything goes!

Since I already have my Bachelors degree in another field, my first semester nursing school is technically fourth semester of the program. My schedule for the spring is: -Pathophysiology (lecture) -Health Assessment (lecture + lab) -Intro to Nursing/Fundamentals (lecture, skills lab, clinicals) -Nursing Research (lecture) I tell people I'm taking 4 classes and they say "oh, that's not bad, youve taken 6 classes in your undergrad and got a 4.0 in 6 classes, this will be a piece of cake". ha! if they only knew--4 classes, with labs and clinicals is more like 7 or 8 classes! I'm SO NERVOUS! yet so excited!

Thanks guys! I actually already have a Bachelors degree and all my pre-reqs are done so I'll be starting right away with Fundamentals, Health Assessment, Patho and Nursing research. From the sounds of it, we are in the skills lab for 5-6 weeks and then start clinicals in February. I'm just so nervous about not being able to hear BP's, not being able to remember all the steps to things, etc etc. I guess I have to remind myself that if I was expected to KNOW all of the information in these books, I'd already be a nurse and they wouldnt have classes that teach it! Jeez, I can only imagine what I'm gonna be like once the semester actually STARTS! lol Thanks again! -Amy

I start nursing school in 3 weeks from today! I am just about ready, just wiating for the rest of my books and uniform to come in the mail. I decided it'd be a good idea to flip through all the books I just got in the mail today. BAD IDEA! I feel totally incompetent and lost at all of the information I'm going to have to learn. Any other students have this overwhelming flood of information anxiety? Any nursing students or NS vets have any advice? Is this anxiety and freaking out a sign that I wont be able to do it?? Thanks for any words of wisdom. -amy

Thanks guys! I can proudly say I just purchased my first stethoscope! I got the Littmann II Classic SE. and then if I feel taht I need a more powerful one or specialize in cardiac when I graduate THEN I'll get the Cadilac of stethoscopes! I feel like I'm a real nursing student now! :) Thanks again to everyone who helped! -Amy

Thanks guys for yoru speedy responses! And kayty2339 congrats on getting in! I'm so excited/nervous/worried/happy/________(insert emotion here)!

I just got accepted into nursing school to start in the spring 2010 :yeah:and I'm required to have a stethoscope. I'm wondering if anyone has any advice...I am very drawn to the Littmann Classic II SE. Is this a good, high-quality stethoscope or should astudent have a Littman Cardiology stethoscope (very expensive!) to give the best quality sounds? I want to make sure I am able to hear heart/lung/etc sounds clearly but also dont want to waste money on a really expensive 'scope if a Classic II SE is good. Thanks for any advice!