Recommended stethescopes/Nursing Central for UH?

[jujubees1]

Does anyone have any recommendations for a reasonably priced stethescopes for clinicals? I know that UH recommends the Littman Cardiology III but I don't want to spend that much at least for now. I currently have a Prestige Medical that I got when I took my CNA class. Do you think that would be sufficient?

Also has anyone used Nursing Central? If you have, did you find it helpful? It is also another big cost but I have heard that it is good but I would prefer to hear from those that have actually used it while in the program.

Thank you so much for your help!

:)

[going2BaNurse2014]

thats the app right? I don't recommend buying it since you cannot use your ohone or ipod or ipad at clinicals. I have a cardiology III but the littman classic II will work fine, I love my cardio III though. It all depends on your level of hearing. the III is really good for breath sounds.

[mcubed45]

thats the app right? I don't recommend buying it since you cannot use your ohone or ipod or ipad at clinicals.

This is incorrect.

Usage depends entirely on your facility/instructor. Because some facilities have a strict no cellphone policy, I opted for an iPod touch with Unbound's Nursing Central. I have used it at HPH, QMC, Tripler, and HMC without any issue. Many of my instructors and staff RN's have been thoroughly impressed with the amount of information it provides. Having your drug book, encyclopedia, Rn DX, labs, etc. in your pocket is amazing. It may take awhile for some of the dinosaurs to warm up to eBooks, but this is really the future. With such a wealth of information readily available, why not keep it handy in your pocket?

BTW it's also an awesome reference to have for all your projects/papers. Lookin up a reference to cite in Nursing Central takes seconds and is much easier than digging through all your textbooks.

[SNSWTR]

Stethoscope: A good one will be helpful for first semester, but is not required. You probably won't be able to hear subtle heart or lung sounds. However, it's not that big of a deal if you can't. They didn't really emphasize distinguishing sounds, so you probably won't need it just yet. I'm not sure about later semesters, though.

Nursing Central: I made it through the first semester without it. I can see its use, but am not sure if I could justify the price. The school gave us access to Micromedex (for drugs). However, we didn't really use a handheld on the floor, as it wasn't necessary. We didn't really do the stuff that Nursing Central could be useful for (labs, drugs, etc.). If you come to a point at which you feel it can be of use to you on the floor, purchase it then. However, you don't need it for the first semester.

They should also give your class access to Kaplan, which is a great resource for NCLEX preparation and studying for exams. There's a lot of helpful info on the website and in a review book that accompanies the website, if you can find the time to use it. Congrats. Enjoy your first semester!

[mcubed45]

Nursing Central: I made it through the first semester without it. I can see its use, but am not sure if I could justify the price. The school gave us access to Micromedex (for drugs). However, we didn't really use a handheld on the floor, as it wasn't necessary. We didn't really do the stuff that Nursing Central could be useful for (labs, drugs, etc.). If you come to a point at which you feel it can be of use to you on the floor, purchase it then. However, you don't need it for the first semester.

Once you start having to look up every single med each of your 4 patients are taking (med type, dosing, method of action, duration, side effects), you'll see the usefulness of an electronic version of davis's drug guide. Also once you start having to know what every condition you see listed in your patient's chart actually is and what nursing care it entails. Lugging a bagful of books to clinicals everyday gets old real fast.

But ya I definitely wouldn't have used it much in first or second semester (traditional curriculum). Once you get into the real nursing stuff, it makes a big difference. Might be worth holding off so you're only paying for updates when you're really making use of the app.