Skipping assigned reading?

[oldie]

Can you just skip assigned reading and go straight for the slides ? Because it’s Summer semester I have to read 18 chps in one week then have an exam on top of clinical and other homework it seems impossible do you think I can skip it and only study the slides? 

[DowntheRiver]

I would definitely skim the chapters for major points if you can related to study guides. Do your instructors give study guides? For my ASN program, we were often given 100 point study guides for a 50 question test. So you had to study a lot more but it was broken down a bit more. The study guides would still be around 20 pages, though.

Are you required to use Saunders or a similar book as well? I found that helpful in reviewing the major areas of nursing topics as well as good for practicing NCLEX style questions. 

[Tacocat, ADN, RN]

31 minutes ago, DowntheRiver said:

Are you required to use Saunders or a similar book as well? I found that helpful in reviewing the major areas of nursing topics as well as good for practicing NCLEX style questions. 

Seconding Saunders! It wasn't required for my program but the chapters highlighted the important stuff and the question banks were invaluable to study from.

[londonflo]

On 6/19/2021 at 2:48 AM, kubelkabondy said:

A textbook isn't really meant to be read cover to cover like a novel anyways.

 

On 6/17/2021 at 6:44 PM, Pednurse21 said:

18 chapters in a week does seem impossible.

 

On 6/17/2021 at 4:09 PM, Hannahbanana said:

Required reading for comprehension and depth starts with the first word, “required.”

When they say you’ll be tested on its contents, you can make a cynical decision based on how lucky you feel about being asked questions you have no clue about. Good luck with that. 

You should be spending at least 3 hours per hour of class reading, studying and completing other course assignments. If you only want to learn from aural lectures go to You Tube, Audible,  or your friend who is a nurse .........try those options to pass NCLEX. This is your future and more so your patient's future. Studying now will pay off when you need to assess a patient or understand their treatment, find satisfaction in your professional skills or move on to advanced education.

[Hannahbanana, BSN, MSN]

On 6/19/2021 at 3:48 AM, kubelkabondy said:

A textbook isn't really meant to be read cover to cover like a novel anyways. It's more something you refer to when you need to look up a specific piece of information or read a few paragraphs here and there to brush up on a concept. 

Useful concept:  INDEX. If you use the ones in your textbooks, you may find terms that apply to your assigned chapters in other contexts, which will broaden your understanding.

For example, if you look up dyspnea, you'll find it under cardiac, pulmonary, renal, neuromuscular, vascular, rehab, L&D, and perhaps others. The causes, effects, assessments, and nursing interventions for dyspnea will be different for each of these presentations.

So when your NCLEX questions mentions that the patient with femur fractures has dyspnea, you might remember that femur fx predisposes to DVT and pulmonary thromboemboli ... or marrow emboli.  A gravid uterus may predispose to DVT too; a laboring one might have an amniotic embolus. A cardiac patient may have overshot her Starling curve and slipped into congestive failure. A rehab patient may be deconditioned or need extra support for weakened muscles that are trying to compensate. A diabetic with ketoACIDOSIS may be trying to blow off CO2, an acid, and hyperventilate to do it.

See how this all fits together?

I love physiology...          

[oldie, CNA, LVN]

Welp failed it by one question no idea what I’ll do now I did all the reading notes index cards lectures ughhhhh 

[Tacocat, ADN, RN]

16 hours ago, oldie said:

Welp failed it by one question no idea what I’ll do now I did all the reading notes index cards lectures ughhhhh 

What course is this? Is it nursing Fundamentals? Med-Surg? 

Nursing isn't just about memorization of facts. It's about application as well. 

[Hannahbanana, BSN, MSN]

In my experience, students who have extensive CNA and/or LPN experience often have a harder time transitioning to the RN role that NCLEX looks for. 

Not slamming either one; it’s just an observation. Full disclosure, I was an aide for three years myself. 

I’d appreciate hearing from RNs who successfully made the transition, either seamlessly or with some difficulty.

What was your experience?

Did you have an “Aha!” moment that opened your eyes or mind to the difference in your practice? Or was it a slog? What is your perspective now? 

[oldie, CNA, LVN]

2 hours ago, Tacocat said:

What course is this? Is it nursing Fundamentals? Med-Surg? 

Nursing isn't just about memorization of facts. It's about application as well. 

It was Med surge everyone failed except one person so she all gave us ten points so most of us including me passed but I’m still not happy about that and now med surge is over on to something else it’s different every week 

[Tacocat, ADN, RN]

18 hours ago, oldie said:

It was Med surge everyone failed except one person so she all gave us ten points so most of us including me passed but I’m still not happy about that and now med surge is over on to something else it’s different every week 

Your entire med-surg course was only a few weeks? 

[Beldar_the_Cenobite, CNA]

23 hours ago, Tacocat said:

What course is this? Is it nursing Fundamentals? Med-Surg? 

Nursing isn't just about memorization of facts. It's about application as well. 

Yeah, med surg is difficult. I've been told fundamentals is med-surg. My program has fundamentals, then I think med surg 2 and med surg 3, so that would assume fundamentals is med surg 1. 

 

[oldie, CNA, LVN]

7 hours ago, Tacocat said:

Your entire med-surg course was only a few weeks? 

It was one week exactly we had to read 18 chapters in one week 

[FiremedicMike, RN, EMT-P]

12 hours ago, oldie said:

It was one week exactly we had to read 18 chapters in one week 

What kind of program are you in?