goemom

Yes with active bleed.

Our instructor said she would give us a set of VS on a pt with PUD and an active bleed then we would have to determine our first intervention. In class we talked about making the patient NPO, checking CBC, type & crossmatch blood, NG tube to prevent coughing up of blood, use ice lavage to cause vasoconstriction, IV fluids and prepare for possible blood transfusion. But can I do any of these without a DO? If not what else? High fowlers?

I'm so sorry that this happened to you, but you shouldn't question your ability to become a nurse. NONE of us can judge you for your performance this semester. I'm in a two-year program. Last semester, only 60% of the 1st semester students made it through. Many have repeated this semester and are passing with flying colors. I'm actually quite shocked that some of them didn't make it through because of how well they are doing now. Maybe it just wasn't their time or things were happening in their personal life that they weren't expecting or they were just overwhelmed and not prepared with the life change that occurs when you start nursing school. You need to ask yourself why you didn't make it: Was the material too hard? did you not manage your time well? were their extenuating circumstances going on in your personal life? Were you not able to juggle other things outside of school? (Assessment). When you determine what hasn't gone right (Dx), you can determine if it's worth and decide to go for it again (outcome) and come up with a new plan (intervention). Good thing the skills you have learned so far, can so easily be incorporated into your daily living. Just because you didn't pass, doesn't mean you aren't cut out to do this. Don't let anyone criticize your ability. What part of the program did you do well and how did you fall short? I have seen people that are getting A's and understanding the material, yet are so judgmental and condescending that I would NEVER want them as my nurse. And I've seen some people that understand the material yet struggle with the exam structure, but they are such loving and and caring people. I would pick them for my nurse in a heartbeat, which is why it breaks my heart when they question whether or not this is for them. See what camp you fall in and make the determination from there. Whatever you decide, life will take you where you are intended to be. It just may not be on the route that you expected. It may seem bleak right now, but it everything happens for a reason. Cliche, I know, but it is true. Good luck!!!

I would try and get your score a little higher. It really wouldn't take much effort. Get the ATI book at least and understand the English and math sections. If you improve on those sections, your overall score will improve. As for full-time and the program: if you are single and without kids then I suppose it would be possible, but even then you would have to give up pretty much everything else (social life, cleaning your house, time for yourself and more). I know several super-bright and dedicated people that are struggling working only 20 hours a week. And just to put it into perspective so you know where I'm coming from, I had a 4.0 on my prereqs, a 93% overall and a 92% on the reading. I don't work, but I'm married and have two kids. The grading scale is much more difficult and I find the workload overwhelming at times. However much time you think you would spend outside of classroom time probably pales into comparison to what you would actually put into it. EVERY WEEK you are studying for something or working on a project or both. I would suggest cutting back on your hours and applying for financial aid. But it is worth it, as I before, it is an amazing program and you will learn a lot!!! Good luck!!!

Congrats on this awesome adventure that you are about to begin! I'm a 1st semester days student and have found the program to be rewarding and crazy and overwhelming and more. JJC has been amazing at providing support services for the students, but it's up to the students to take advantage of them. The first thing that you have to realize is that some things in your life have got to give, whether work, time with your family, housework, your social life, your expectation to get most if not all A's (now 93%) or a little of each. It's best to realize that right off the back. You can have it all, you just can't have it all at once. I'm not working and have two kids and have found myself tremendously overwhelmed at times (ex. I had over half of my process paper completed the weekend before it was do and still spent every time that I wasn't eating or sleeping working on it from Fri-Sun). So far, though, it has been a great experience. We have learned so much in such a short period of time, it's AMAZING!!! Just take the advice that has been given to you and take advantage of the resources. Use the ATI books and tutorials, go to guided skills, schedule time with the retention specialist/tutors and open lab even if you aren't in jeopardy of getting that 80%. It will pay off when it comes to writing your process paper or during skills testing. On top of your regular class times, I would expect to spend an equal amount of time doing just these things, then add in your study & homework time. That's the best advice I could give you. I don't know what the evening schedule is like, but I know they spend an equal amount in class and clinicals as the day people. NURS 150 is divided into theory & topics/clinical. Theory (larger lecture group) meets 2x week for 2hrs each time. Topics (your clinical group) for the first six weeks meets at JJC for 4hrs, then you are six weeks at clinicals (nursing home) for a 6 hr shift, then back at JJC for 6hrs until the end of the semester. Topics also meets once a week for 2hrs for to go over whatever that week's topic is. If you are not a CNA, you have to take NURS 140 for two 2 1/2 hr sessions a week for the first six weeks. And finally, you take pharmacology online. So basically, your schedule can be: MF - Theory 4-5:50, 140 6-8:30, T- Topics/Clinical 4-10, Th Topics 4-5:50. Again, I'm in the days program, so I'm not sure the exact times of classes, but the amount of time in classes is the same. Hope that helps. Good luck!!!

Wow! Do you come across this condescending and judgmental when you deal with your patients? "No, it doesn't kinda suck that you are obese and have diabetes, sir. What sucks is that you failed to remember what you were taught in your rudimentary high school health class to eat healthy and minimize the sweets!" It doesn't matter how well you do in school, if your bedside manner sucks. She asked for help with her med math preparation. She didn't ask for criticism of her past nor of her program. Right now, she's a student, not an RN and looking for some help. It doesn't matter that her ADN program doesn't require chemistry--with a 99% pass rate, they obviously teach what RN's need to know. If you don't know the answer or don't want to answer it, then don't. No need to criticize. If she doesn't have what it takes to be an RN, it's not for you to decide. With that said FDW630, I agree with Jill. But what do I know? My ADN only required that I take chemistry as a prerequisite, which I did - 25 years ago. ;-) Good luck!!!

I agree with rubato. It may take time, but he'll get it eventually. One thing you can do is print out a calendar and those days that you for sure do not want anyone over, make those squares red. Tell him those days are absolute 'NO' days, such as the night before an exam. Then do yellow days--days that you will need to get homework/projects done. Post the calendar on the fridge, then tell him that if he invites anyone over on those days, he's responsible for ALL of the cleaning and shopping, otherwise it's meeting at a restaurant and saying your good-byes from there. If they come on nights when you need to get stuff done, then excuse yourself by saying, "I'd love to stay and chat, but I really need to get some studying done." Do this even if it's at 7pm. Don't wait until 9 if that means you have to stay up later than you planned to. I've learned that to really get his attention, you have to approach it in a way that you normally don't so that he understands that this time it's different. If you are normally calm, then this is a time to throw a fit, "WHY DON"T YOU GET THIS?!?!?" If you normally are quick-tempered, then you need to sit him down and calmly say "Listen, I really need your support on this and don't feel like I'm getting it. So, I put together this calendar...". Good luck!

This isn't very high. The National mean is 64.3%, so that would be the 50th percentile. For reading the national mean is 70.5%, math 69%, science 53.6% and english 63.8%. If you score the average or higher, you will be well over the 40th percentile. Good luck!

Me too!!!

They won't be sufficient for the science section (should be sufficient for other sections), which can go into a lot of detail. While the McGraw Hill book is a better indicator of the science section than the ATI book, it still isn't enough. I would go to the library and borrow the books though. No sense in spending a lot of money on text books.

Unfortunately, those attitudes you will discover throughout your life. I'm in my forties and live in a community where sometimes I feel like we are in high school again. Initially, I tried so hard to be friends with everyone, but when I realized how easily people love to feed on gossip, I pulled away. My family is important and my closest friends. Don't fret it. Ignore the ignorant attitudes. Find a mantra, and say it to you over and over during those tough times (I've always liked: "Be who you want and say what you feel; the people that mind, don't matter and the people that matter, don't mind"). If the school or work is not getting to you, just focus on that and whatever else is important to you and you will get through it. I'm sorry that you are going through a difficult time. I hope you find the strength to do what's best for you. Good luck!

What book are you using? We used the Martino (Pearson) book. I used the masteringa&p website a lot. The animations helped clarify the lectures. And the quizzes helped me guage how well I knew a topic. Sometimes I had a hard time understanding what my prof was trying to get across. If you have this option, watch the animations first so that you have an understanding of the topic before lecture. Then when you hear your prof lecture, you can ask questions when things still aren't clear. If you don't have this option with your text, then use youtube the topic. A number of professors post their lectures. Some explain things better than others. Also, khanacademy.org has a number of lectures on video. Take advantage of your professor's office hours or any free tutoring that your school may offer. And ask your professor what you need to do to get an 'A'. Many times, if they know how badly you want it and are trying, they will give you the benefit of the doubt when you are on the border. And once you do talk to him/her, don't miss class and participate during the lecture. Good luck!

I'm in my early 40's, a mother of two boys ages 9 and 12 and just applied for JJC's program in the Fall. Any advice or anything you can say that'll help keep me motivated would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

Any advice for those of us applying for the Fall 2013? I finished everything and am now anxiously awaiting for a reply. Any advice you can give, i.e., ebooks vs physical books, supplies needed, how to stay organized, best apps for nursing students, best place to purchase scrubs/supplies or whatever else, would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I don't know about the PSB, but here are some study tips. Don't take the ATI practice exams right away. Study the material in the ATI book and do the practice problems. IMO, the material in the ATI book is pretty accurate, but the science material isn't detailed enough. The questions on the actual exam can be detailed and pretty much any topic in bio, A&P, chemistry & micro are up for grabs. I thought khanacademy.org and Chemistry for Dummies were pretty good resources. Also, borrow the McGraw Hill TEAS exam book from the library. When you feel you've had a pretty good understanding of the material, take the first MH exam, study your weak areas, take the next exam, etc... Save the ATI exams for last, because those are most like the actual exam, again, with the exception of the science section. The science sections on the MH books are more like the actual exam. If you do well on the MH exams and the ATI practice exams, then you will do well on the actual exam. If you do well on these exams, then you don't really need to purchase the online exams. They are quite a bit harder then the actual exam, and can be quite discouraging. Don't work yourself over it too much. Take a deep breath; know that you did everything that you have done to prepare yourself; and think through every question carefully. Make sure you understand what the question is asking. Finally, don't panic if you don't know the answer. On the science section, I had absolutely NO idea on the first four questions. Never saw the material in a practice exam and couldn't even narrow down the answer to three choices, let alone two. I thought I knew about 60-70% of that section with confidence, could narrow down about 10-15% to two answers, and not very confident with the rest. I scored 85% on the science, which I was very happy with considering how little confidence I had with that section. Good luck!

Don't let your scores discourage you. I read through a thread last semester - someone got in with a 79% in reading, 74% comp and 4.0 and someone else with a 79% reading, 72% comp and 4.0 GPA and lastly someone with a 74% reading, 75% comp and 4.0. All had prereqs complete. The science was the toughest. I thought the science section in the McGraw-Hill exam book prepared me the best. I only took the online A exam and it was really tough. I only got a 68% on the science section, but an 85% on the actual exam. I doubt you will have to take it again, but if you do, go through the McGraw-Hill exam book. Take an exam then study your weaknesses. Go to khanacademy.org and watch the lecture videos. He does a great job explaining a lot of bio & chemistry topics. I haven't had a chemistry class in over 20 years and this helped me a great deal. Good luck!!!

If you do well on those exams, you will do well on the actual exam. The science in the ATI book is much easier than the exam. The science in the McGraw-Hill book is more detailed and will better prepare you for the exam. However, I didn't have any earth science material on my exam. It was mostly chemistry, biology and anatomy. I did the ATI exams first then the McGraw-Hill. If you haven't taken any of the exams yet, I would start with the MH book. Take the first exam, review your weakness and keep going until you've completed all five exams. Don't take the ATI exams unless you really understand the material. If you take the ATI exams and do well, then you will be fine on the exam.

I think the sections in the ATI book are similar to the actual exam, with the exception of the science section. The ATI book doesn't go into the detail that you need for the science section so I would supplement your studying material. When I took the science sections in the ATI book, I scored around 90, then I checked out the McGraw-Hill TEAS Exam book (just 5 TEAS exams and brief descriptions of answers) from the library and scored 68% on the first two science sections. I started to get anxious, but I just reviewed my weaknesses like crazy, using Chemistry for Dummies, my biology & anatomy books, and khanacademy.org. On the last two exams I scored 95% and 80%, respectively, and ended up getting an 85% on the online science section. Honestly, it's a hit-or-miss unless you remember every detail of your chemistry, bio, A&P and microbiology classes. If you have the ATI manual memorized, I would say at best you would score an 85%. The exam goes into some details on some systems, photosynthesis/cellular respiration (what's oxidized &/or reduced, what's anabolic vs. catabolic), translation/transcription (where does each take place, the details of transription process within ribosomes, using condons/anti-codons to identify amino acid sequence), and chemistry. The online exam is harder than the actual exam, but it gives you a good idea on how to pace yourself. What I didn't like about the online exam though is that it reviews the answer after each question with only one question per page. On the actual exam, there are multiple questions per page. For the other sections, if you really understand what's in the ATI book, you will do well.

Looks like we have similar grades & scores. I had a 93% composite and a 95% in reading and a 3.84 GPA. Last semester, the avg was 78.6% comp, 85.6% reading and 3.6 GPA and the semester before, they were 80%, 86.7% & 3.6. The emails are supposed to go out in about 3 weeks after the last TEAS date (3/23). Good luck!!!

Great scores! Mine were strong as well so I'm alot less anxious. They look at heal 109, eng 101, psyc 101 & 215, and A&P I & II. Last semester's avg GPA in these classes was 3.6, avg TEAS comp score was 80 and avg reading score was 86.7. If you don't have all 6 courses complete, it's pretty tough to get in. Now we just wait for our emails. I think they said we should hear in about 3 weeks. Good luck!

how was your score compared to online test? I heard online was harder. Hoping that's the case. I took test A online and scored a 84.7 composite and 90.9 in reading. Two more days for me...

I studied the ATI manual and understood the science material. I checked out the McGraw Hill practice text book from the library and took the first two tests and only scored in the 70s on the science section. I went on the Amazon website and read the reviews for the McGraw book and many people commented on how the science section in the McGraw book were more like the TEAS V exam. The only problem with the McGraw book is that it only has tests with no detailed explanations if you don't understand a topic. khanacademy.org has a lot of great biology and chemistry videos.

Try khanacademy.org to brush up on your math and science. They have great videos on how to do certain math equations and science topics, such as mitosis/meiosis, cell parts, and chemistry (periodic table, gas laws, balancing equations, states of matter, etc...). I've been studying and am scheduled to take it on 3/23. Good luck!

Did you get your TEAS email? I scheduled mine for 3/23. Good luck!

Thanks! I appreciate the advice. I have been reading through the Study Guide and so far the material seems pretty straight forward. I took one of the exams and did very well overall, but I definitely have to brush up on my chemistry and biology. I figured that once I study those topics a little more, I will purchase take the 2nd exam, study my weaker areas, then purchase an online exam and see how well prepared I am.