I start this fall in my nursing program and Im extremely anxious!!! Im looking for any advice that will help me in school. Whats the thing you can NOT live w/o during nursing school? What was the best study method for you? Index cards, recorders, palm pilots? What should I take to clinicals? I know you all were anxious when u started!!!
thanks guys
p.s. ....im hoping this will end up being a HUGE thread that other anxious students can read
Don't cram the night before a test. It will be hard to concentrate if you are dead tired. Coffee will only help so much, so try not to rely on it. Anyhow best of luck to you all. I am currently in the nursing program myself.
Lol ya sorry its 27 til my orientation looking at the countdown on my phone! lol crack myself up thats what i get for staying up so late! thx for the correction!
From my own experience, I found that I wasted a lot of money in trying different things when the simplest things worked the best.
I wouldn't waste money on a PDA. I bought the one my school offered with the Pepid program. I found the Davis Drug guide and a lab manual had more information and I didn't have to remember to charge them before clinical...I had enough to remember already.
Get a carry-on style bookbag or just use a carry-on for a book bag (the ones with wheels). Yes, you'll look like a dork. BUT, you will save your much needed back from carrying pounds and pounds of nursing books!
Invest in comfy clinical shoes. You will be so glad you did, even if your uniform is ugly to begin with and wearing goofy-looking shoes only adds insult to injury. lol
Get a stethescope you can really hear out of. I went so long listening through the bell because I had a cheap-o stethescope with a crumby diaphram. It really hinders the learning process.
Get one of those clip boards that have conversion data (like pounds to kilos) and scales (like Glasgow Coma scale or Morse Fall scale). They are a quick reference sometimes that can help you in a pinch.
Most importantly, HAVE FAITH IN YOURSELF!! You will likely come to a point where you think about quitting because you're not sure if you will pass or not. At that moment, don't go to the director's office and withdraw! Dig deep and remember who is counting on your success and that you can do anything you put your mind to. You never succeed unless you take a risk and try.
I start this fall in my nursing program and Im extremely anxious!!! Im looking for any advice that will help me in school. Whats the thing you can NOT live w/o during nursing school? What was the best study method for you? Index cards, recorders, palm pilots? What should I take to clinicals? I know you all were anxious when u started!!!
thanks guys
p.s. ....im hoping this will end up being a HUGE thread that other anxious students can read
To the person who posted about a rolling crate: You go, girl! My classmates call it "my luggage", but I'm the one with all the reference texts and sheet protectors.
Glue sticks are a good idea.
In addition to your loose-leaf paper, get a ream of multi-colored paper. When you draw something out yourself - charts, graphics, etc - put it on there. Then you can find YOUR reference, done the way YOU understand it, at your fingertips. I did it just tonight for my "Heart-Man" - learning the leads for a 12-lead and how to read one. (Another story all together...may God have mercy on our souls tomorrow for the test!)
Apps for the Blackberry Curve: Epocrates. It does math, calculations, gives diagnoses synopsis, differential possibilities for various symptoms and has drugs, to boot. You may want to find a nursing care plan one, as well...I know they make them, but I don't have to deal with them anymore (neener! ) so I don't know what the name of the program is. Look at the Merck Medicus website, too, and go to www.crackberry.com to browse what all is available.
I have Epocrates and Merck on mine, and those two cover anything I've needed.
Additionally, many of your textbooks will have a place you can register them online, and if you have internet capabilities (phone, netbook, etc) you can access the full-text of the book online as opposed to having to haul it around.
To the person who has such expensive books - do NOT buy from the school's bookstore!!! Amazon.com, and buy used! You can often get BRAND NEW BOOKS for 1/4 of the cost. Many of mine were still in the shrink-wrap when I got them. Be careful to buy from people with a high feedback rating, and you should be fine. Don't spend more than you have to!
According to the "Donut of Misery, I have 16.96 months to go, and am 39% done. Onward, Anesthesia Soldiers!
) so I don't know what the name of the program is. Look at the Merck Medicus website, too, and go to 
calledtodo
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Don't cram the night before a test. It will be hard to concentrate if you are dead tired. Coffee will only help so much, so try not to rely on it. Anyhow best of luck to you all. I am currently in the nursing program myself.