Stuff for clinicals

[Dawn Vylet]

I will be starting clinicals in January. I know that I will need to order a stethoscope. Does anyone have any recommendations? What else might I need/be helpful for clinicals? Thanks in advance.

[soon2bRN516]

A pocket pal always comes in handy, I ordered mine from allheart.com.....that comes with a penlight and scissors...also some little note pads and a possible clipboard with a calculator...

[9livesRN, BSN, RN]

all heart.com is the cheapest place i found my stethoscope

litmann cardiology III was recommended to me

it cost me 144 bucks

[poohbearRN2b]

I start clinicals in January too! what school are you at? I agree with the other responder I got the cardiology III and its great and allheart.com is the best as far as prices! Don't forget you will need a water proof watch with 2nd hand! Oh and pen light. Good luck!

[the1anonlycarol]

Chances are you might lose your stethoscope in clinical, so I wouldn't recommend buying a really expensive one. Save that for when you graduate!

Scissors, the kind that cut through clothing, was really handy to have on hand.

I purchased RN Notes, a little tiny spiral bound pocket sized reference for nurses... had a TON of great stuff in it. You can get that at Borders, Barnes n Noble, or on Amazon.

I always brought my drug guide to clinicals with me, that ended up being super helpful.

Other than that, black permanent marker (to black out patient identifiers), post-it notes, red pens, black pens... those were all the essentials.

You'll do great! Good luck!

[Dawn Vylet]

I start clinicals in January too! what school are you at? I agree with the other responder I got the cardiology III and its great and allheart.com is the best as far as prices! Don't forget you will need a water proof watch with 2nd hand! Oh and pen light. Good luck!

I attend Edison State College in Ft myers Fl.

[shadownurse9]

I keep a plastic box in my car. It has

stethoscope

penlight

hemostat

scissors

extra AAA batteries for my penlight

clear plastic nursing ruler

alcohol wipes

pocket hand sanitizer

pen

pencil

highlighter

small notepad

breath mints/cough drops

pocket kleenex

blood pressure cuff (it was great to have this because at the nursing home they kept them locked up with the med cart and they were hard to get to when you needed them!)

I second the a good pair of nursing shoes.....and good support hose!

[bradons]

this year i learned the more you leave at home the better.

i have 2 black pens, 1 red, scissors, and my report sheet on me at all times. thats it. where i have clinical there are 20 stethoscopes that are on the floor at the same time. also all the med/surg books, drug guides, cps, etc... are at the desk and we are welcome to use them whenever. it helps a lot.

but get a good pair of shoes and get some good socks.

[RNKel, ASN, RN]

i love my littman classic ii se. more than my friend's littman cardiac.

i take that, my watch, a multi color pen (clicks to red/black/blue/green), a few black pens, a little notepad that fits in my pocket, my penlight, hemostat, scissors, breath mints and that's it.

in my bag in the locker room i keep my advil, bp cuff, drug guide.

[tj_Medic_RN]

We were required to have a b/p cuff, stethoscope, several black ink pens, pen light, clipboard, small notepad, a measuring tape ( the kind you would find in the sewing area, I bought the retractable one, easier to carry), bandage scissors, drug guide, highlighter and breath mints. We were not allowed to have hemostats. Hope this helps.

[poohbearRN2b]

Me too!! Are you in the night program or the day? I am in the night program and have my clinicals at Cape hospital on saturdays! That is funny, I had this feeling you might be at the same school! Where are you doing clinicals?

[tommsbomb]

Hello, I am going into 4th semester and have figured out a thing or two about clinicals. You have to be prepared. You cannot tell your instructor you don't know something, or hold on, the other nurse has the book. Because of this, I take my drug book, care plan book, lab book and my health assessment packets. I carry a small notebook that fits in my pocket, a stethoscope, a pen light, 3 alcohol wipes, 3- 2X2 gauze pads, a roll of medical tape, bandage scissors, and a clipboard. I know it seems like a lot, but you can keep your bag in the locker room. I don't know how your clinicals go, but we can get on the floor 30 minutes before the shift starts and look for new orders and new labs and look at the new notes. But our school is very hard and they prepare us for everything.