Taking pharm. next sem.......any tips???

blue heron · Dec 22, 2005

it might be useful to learn the main drug families, and the proto-typical drug for each one, as well as the effects and side-effects. The effects and side-effects of drugs in each group are very similar, and also directly relate to the system they are meant to effect. This will also give you some idea of what assessmants to do before and after administration.

ie anti hypertensives---andrenergic inhibitors

clonidine

effect--lower BP

side effects--flushing, lightheadedness, dizzyness, depression, impotence

can you figure out the reason for the side effects listed?

our program did a lousy job of pharmacology for us and are we ever paying for it in clinical placements. :stone:angryfire The RNs are NOT happy:o :uhoh21: , nor can I blame them. As a result, we are having to play catch up-- so good luck to you in getting this down.

Hope this is some help, let me know.

:Melody: :Melody:

VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN · Dec 22, 2005

I'll be taking pharmacology next semester and I wanted to get a little head start with the reading. The instructor doesn't know if we'll still be using the same books so they won't tell us what book is required yet.
Do any of you guys have a recommended book that was helpful to you??
Also, I'll be taking OB next sem. I'm a male student nurse and a little intimidated. What can I expect this coming semester??
Thanks in advance,
Chris

This is a wonderful resource:

http://www.drugguide.com/

http://www.drugguide.com/classifProfilesNew.asp

http://www.drugguide.com/herbalsNew.asp?view=curr

http://www.drugguide.com/drugOweek.asp?show=dowDetail

These are the top 200 prescription medications for 2004 (so you may want to concentrate on knowing these, not only for this course, but also for the NCLEX-RN):

http://www.rxlist.com/top200.htm

This product may be of assistance to you:

http://www.icanpublishing.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=2

As for OB and male students, there is no standard experience. I have had some male students who hated the OB rotation, and some who loved it. Try to keep a positive attitude, and you may find you really like some aspects of OB. In fact, I had one male student who chose to make up his clinical absence with my rotation on the postpartum floor. Not one patient refused him. But this student also had a disarming, positive, cheerful attitude.

stressgal, RN · Dec 22, 2005

I really reccommend the HESI NCLEX RN review book for both. It can be purchased at hesitest.com. I finishied tutoring Pharm last quarter and found that the students liked the way this book has the drugs laid out in chart form. It also assisted me greatly during OB as I could study the portion we were covering in class. It's just another way of looking at things aside from your textbook. More concise.

Another good resource is the Nursing Pharmacology made incredibly easy.

Good luck!

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Dec 22, 2005

here are a couple of links for you. the first is for the family practice notebook. i've linked you into the section on obstetrics, although by using links at the left you can access other parts of this site. the nice thing i like about this site is when you link into information, you are often given lists of symptoms and treatments which is what nursing students need to know. and, because it is presented from the view of the physician, you are going to get a good idea of what the physician is likely to order for patients. it is a very nicely organized site. i noticed there were some color pictures in the section on pelvimetry when i was making a brief check of the site.

the second link is a page of ob med calculation questions with answers. don't lose it. it's the only on line source of ob medication questions for nurses that i have ever found.

http://www.fpnotebook.com/ob.htm - use the links at this site to get information on obstetrics. although this is a physician source, there is still a lot of clearly presented information that will help nurses with learning ob. always keep on eye on the links presented at the left side of each page.

http://go.dbcc.edu/hhps/nursing/nur2310l_matermal_health.html - obstetrical meds and answers

these are some of the links i have for pharmacology:

http://home.sc.rr.com/nurdosagecal/ - med calc for nurses from central carolina technical college. explanations and quizzes (with answers) on the following subjects: measurements, conversions, oral dosages, parenteral dosages, iv flow rates, dose by weight, iv push meds, critical care iv's and tube feeding.

http://www.accd.edu/sac/nursing/math/mathindex2.html - this is a basic pharmacology tutorial for nursing to get you started on calculations

http://www.kumc.edu/research/medicine/pharmacology/cai/menu1.htm - online tutorial on pharmacology from the university of kansas medical center. this is the page to link you into more links for specific information on the various classes of drugs presented as kind of slide shows. lots of information here. although it is designed for medical students it will be useful for nursing students as well.

dorselm · Dec 22, 2005

Hello all, I JUST finished Pharm last week! I got an "A" THANK YOU JESUS!!!!! It was so interesting but hard because there's soooooo much to learn in such a short time. The main thing to do is STUDY! I can't stress that enough. Our pharmacology instructor was awesome. She presented all notes on powerpoint slides and then she discussed them and added additional information. We went from the brain to the feet and everywhere in between. Of the millions of drugs out there, she only focused on the ones that would be used most often. Like the previous person said, you need to know the prototype drug- the drug that is the representative for a class of drugs. You have to know A D M E for each drug that you will be discussing in class.

A-absorption (whether it absorbed in the GI tract, in the lungs or directly into the bloodstream)

Distribution-what part(s) of the body does the drug effect

Metabolism-how is the drug broken down in the body

Excretion-the ways in which drugs are excreted from the body

Make alot of index cards. They will help you like you wouldn't believe.

Also, have a binder just for pharm. Make a tab for each system of the body. After you write your notes, either rewrite them or type them and put them in your binder and also keep test and pop quizzes in your binder so that you can refer to them for the final.

Good Luck!

RNin2007 · Dec 22, 2005

It would be a good idea to review in your A&P book the Nervous System (Sympathetic & Parasympathetic) and the Cardiac chapter (p, qrs, t waves, etc.) SA, AV nodes, purkinje fibers, etc. MANY meds you will see in the hospital will relate to these systems, and you can be you will be going over it again in Pharmacology. If you private message me with your email, I can send you the study guides that I made for this class in word document format...I even put some graphics in them...(I got an A in the class last term, lol...so they helped). G'luck to ya.

~J

AtlantaRN, RN · Dec 22, 2005

eat,sleep,and breathe pharmacology...even if you don't know what text you'll be using, drug classes and subclasses are the same...learn trade/generic names...

it was by far the hardest class I had in nursing program...happy tojust pass

good luck and you are ahead of the game if you have already started studying...

linda

InmyblooD · Dec 31, 2005

VickyRN,

Just a quick question, I have all this information about pharmacology but don't know where to start.

Should I start to try and memorize each drug along with the side effects?

I just don't know where to start........With you being an instructor, where do you get your class of on the start??

Thanks again,

Chris

VickyRN, MSN, DNP, RN · Dec 31, 2005

VickyRN,
Just a quick question, I have all this information about pharmacology but don't know where to start.
Should I start to try and memorize each drug along with the side effects?
I just don't know where to start........With you being an instructor, where do you get your class of on the start??
Thanks again,
Chris

My advice: Follow blue heron's suggestions and familiarize yourself with the characteristics of the drug classifications first. http://www.drugguide.com/classifProfilesNew.asp is a great resource.

RNin2007 has posted some excellent study guides in which this material is broken down: https://allnurses.com/forums/f205/pharmacology-study-guides-here-sorry-134961.html#post1447886

As you learn each drug classification, review the top 200 prescription drug list and see which medications are in that particular classification http://www.rxlist.com/top200.htm These are the medications which you will most frequently encounter during your clinical rotations and therefore will be most emphasized in your class and on the NCLEX.

No matter how you cut it, pharmacology is a lot of work, but hopefully this will give you a good frame of reference to begin. Best wishes to you :)

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Jan 5, 2006

found this little gem of a website during my jaunt through the internet tonight and thought i would share it with all you pharmacology students. i think you will find it very helpful is doing your conversions within the metric system and from the metric to the apothecary system and vice versa.

http://www.convert-me.com/en/ - convert me.com. you can get your answers to all kinds of measurement conversions at this site! it is a conversion machine. you can convert weight and mass (great for nursing pharmacology!!!!) and temperature (for nursing), plus many other categories. you need only fill in one measurement, but the machine will return the conversion of the measurement back to you in a score of different measures. bookmark this one! clicking on the various units of measurement themselves will take you to a page with a table of standard conversions for those who want to work the conversions on their own. the links to get into the conversion machines is down at the middle section of the opening page.

dreamBIG · Jan 5, 2006

Thanks, Daytonite! I will be sure to use this one!!!:rotfl: