jcaron

Definitely keep going with your plans to work with the EMT and most certainly the nurses aid thing. It will give you a definite idea of whether nursing is for you. I worked as a cna for 3 years before I became an RN and the experience is invaluable. I will warn you however, that there is an adjustment period of at least 6 months as you acclimate to the culture of healthcare and build a knowledge/skill base. You will find the learning curve is steep and pretty much never ends, but that's one reason to get into nursing as a profession. Don't let the setbacks discourage you. I think many people give up in their 1st year or 2 thinking "this isn't for me" but I would encourage you to stick it out through these kind of Feelings as they do pass as you become more competent and confident.

Yeah I have pretty much wanted to ignore every assignment so far. I haven't but I definitely keep wanting too.

A&O x 4 means alert and oriented to person, place, time, and situation - sometimes it is assessed by asking whether the patient knows the reason they are there. Situation is important because someone could be alert and fully oriented to person, place, and time, but not truly oriented to their own abilities or could be hallucinating/etc, and that puts them at a safety risk.

I totally understand where you are coming from. In my opinion, as a male nursing student, I think that people should be able to voice their preference when it comes to personal care or examinations such as you described. However, I think it is odd when patients request a female caregiver in general, unless there is some clear reason, such as religious/cultural preference. Are females more appropriate for managing your IV, giving your medications, or changing a dressing (excepting for location)? I don't see what argument could be made for that. I feel like there is some sort of line that needs to be drawn, but it really can't be universal because that would infringe on the rights of some. So ultimately I think it comes down to nursing judgement to determine whether a patients request is reasonable, or for valid reasons, or simply an attempt to manipulate the staff. I think most cases are the former, and we all can identify when it is the latter.

As one of Jehovah's Witnesses, I want to correct something here. The official stand of JW's is that Whole Blood, Plasma, Platelets, Red Cells and White Cells, even autologous forms are prohibited. Beyond whole blood and these main components, there is room for individual decision. Procedures where autologous blood remains in constant circulation (e.g. hemodialysis) are also up to the individual.

The most important, and perhaps the most difficult, part of studying for nursing school is identifying the important information. It took me almost a whole year to get used to what exactly I need to look for in the textbook and other resources. It basically boils down to the nursing process, pathophysiology, and health promotion. Now you're probably saying "what the heck does that even mean, that doesn't help me at all" and you're right, it is a very general place to start, but the specifics take a little explaining. What you're expected to know for any given test should be stated clearly somewhere in a unit outline or something along those lines. So find it, and refer to it. This will tell you the topics you should look for in your book. Next, find those topics and mark them. For med/surg, often your topics focus around diseases/conditions or procedures. So what I do to organize the massive amount of information in any unit is make tables. Attractive, clean tables that organize information in an easy to read way. This takes some MS word skills and time, but the initial investment is worth it. I make one, one-page table for each condition/procedure/etc. In my table I include a brief blurb in my own words describing the Pathophys of the condition. Then in a separate box, I list risk factors. I have another box for Assessment data expected with that condition - divided into objective and subjective data. Another box houses interventions, divided into pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic. Another box for Nursing Diagnosis and evaluation - most of which I try to do without a book, as sort of a critical thinking exercise - ask yourself "what sort of nursing problems does this problem create". Then when you are complete, print your table out so you can refer to it without your book and you have made yourself a neat reference for review before the test. It takes a lot of time, but just the act of finding the information and sorting it out this way impresses it onto your memory. Also, the table is a much easier place to find the info when reviewing for your exam. If I could attach a file, I would give you an example so you can see how I format it to fit onto one page for each topic. This is a great way to gather, organize, and review information. I originally started doing this in my Pharmacology class, which was online, and it made a world of difference once I started. Try it. See if it helps.

Hello, I am a senior nursing student in my final semester of an ADN program. I am wondering if it is a good idea to distribute my resume and start tilling the soil for a productive job hunt now, or if I should wait until I have my degree in hand and license attained. Would sending resumes now be a bit premature?