Tabitha's Nursing School Adventure

I've totally neglected this thing...

2010-02-04T10:20:00.000-08:00

...so I'm going to update everyone now. :)

I passed my first semester, yay! I'm a month into my second semester - Basic Nursing Concepts, better known as "med/surg" because we're going to be taking care of medical and surgical patients and learning all the fun stuff that goes along with that.

So far this semester has been very exciting. We have finally got into the real meat of the program now. We have learned about eye and ear disorders, musculoskeletal disorders (including fractures, amputations, infections, and total joint replacements), immune system, oncology, and tracheostomies. Speaking of trachs, we only have one check off this semester!! - trach care and suctioning. Sputum (mucus) is my weakness. I can deal with stool, urine, blood all day, but sputum makes my skin crawl!

Anyway, I'm doing well so far. I was very satisfied with my first unit test and I passed my med calc test the first try again - Thank God! It is always very helpful to get past things and move on - clears your head for things ahead.

I am very happy with everything right now - especially the set schedule - same days, same times, which is a huge change from Fundamentals.

Rocket's calling me...

First Pharmacology Test grade

2009-09-15T15:24:00.000-07:00

I got an 86 for this test, too! Jef said that it sounds like my lucky number. The first test was on neurological agents. It was pretty tough. But now I know what to study for the next one. I focused too much on the indication and action of the drug, and there was more on the nursing care, side effects/adverse reactions, and patient teaching. That makes sense, because that's what I'll be taking care of. The class average was 70%, so I feel pretty good about my grade. No one made over a 90, and most everyone fell between 70 and 80.

I'm feeling a little more confident about this now. I hope I keep this up! It sure is a lot to keep up with!

My grade...

2009-09-09T12:59:00.000-07:00

I got an 86/100 on my first NUR 101 unit test. Not so bad, I guess....a B...

I feel a little better, but wish I would've gotten an A now! Maybe next test!

whew

2009-09-09T12:06:00.000-07:00

I'm so exhausted...

I'm going to try my best to keep up with this blog, but there will probably be a lot of long time gaps between posts. Nursing school is very time consuming! I really have to study every day. And even when I do study every day, I still don't feel like I've studied enough. I have not even been able to finish all of the reading assignments.

....I abandoned this post two days ago, and I'm back today (9/9/09) to complete it.

I had my first NUR 101 lecture test today. They have not posted grades yet, but I did pass med calc the first try (you get three chances to get a 90 or above, then you're out of the program) with a 90. I also passed my first check off - vital signs. haha People were stressing so much over the blood pressure thing...I had to assure a lot of my classmates that there was probably no way they would fail vital signs check off. Oh, by the way, "check off" is where they watch us do a skill in lab and give us a grade of either pass or fail. Everything that we will be doing for our patients (dressing changes, Foley catheters, IVs, trach care, etc...), we will have to be "checked off" on first.

I'm a little worried about my grade for the test. There are so many "choose the best answer" questions. Those things are tricky, and for some of the situational things - like what you would actually say - are sometimes a matter of opinion. I'm just going to do my best....that's all I can do!

So far we have covered history, nursing roles, communication, documentation, medication calculation, health of the individual and family, -ethics, values, advocacy-, and legal (some scary stuff there!). That was all in the first two weeks, with two tests and one check off. I'm beat!

I'm beginning to think that two years is not nearly enough time to cram everything needed to be an RN. There is sooo much information!

....and our next test is two weeks from today...

Getting ready for my first day of class!

2009-08-23T07:46:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday I went to the optional "Success in Nursing School" day at the school. There was a lot of information on testing tips, ways to deal with anxiety, how much we're going to have to study (2 hours per week per credit hour....just to keep a C average), .....but there was not a lot of information for the things I have questions for. Things like schedule for class (I'm supposed to have Wednesdays off, but it might be Fridays, and a plus: clinicals for this semester are only until 11:45a!), test dates, teaching styles (I'm sooo auditory), among others. The pharmacology instructor assured us that we would have more of our questions answered the first day of class when we do our course overview. I hope so! I felt like my brain was going to explode from all the questions and concerns that I had.

I was able to get my huge to-do list out of the way. There were a lot of students asking about immunizations Thursday, questions about the PPDs....we're supposed to have all this stuff in no later than the first day off class, people! We're supposedly not eligible for class if we do not have this stuff in. There seemed to be quite a few people that had not started their PPD or started their Hep B or Varicella vaccines, which take several months. Hmmm....

Well, wish me luck on my first day tomorrow....my first week next week....my first semester!

Nursing School Orientation

2009-06-19T11:59:00.000-07:00

Last night I got to go to Nursing School Orientation. It was very exciting, and a bit overwhelming! I have so much to get done between now and the first day of class - August 24th. Here is my list:

CPR (Health care professional)

2 Step PPD (TB skin test, done twice)

Get titers drawn to check for my immunity against Rubella and Hep B, and get a Tetanus booster...bluh...

Physical

Criminal Background Check & Toxicology Screening

Buy Uniforms, Lab coat, and white shoes

Update my name (now HYATT!!) at school

Order name tags

Get new school photo ID badge

Update car sticker for parking on campus

Buy books (there are eight of them!) and supplies

Did I mention this all has to be done by August 24th?!

I am registered for my classes and they are:

FUNDAMENTALS OF NURSING - NUR 101 - 102 -
Class: Mondays 8:15 am - 11:45 am, Lab: Thursdays and Fridays 8:15 am - 11:45 am

Pharmacologic Basics in Nursing Practice - NUR 106 - 102 - Class: Tuesdays 8:15 am - 10:15 am.

About a month into classes we will start clinicals, which will be Thursdays and Fridays, 6:15a to 2:45p. Sometimes we might have to do clinicals during an evening or weekend shift, because of having to accommodate all of the students.

I can't express how excited I am. It is still a bit surreal for me. I am one of 50 people that were chosen to start the Associate Degree in Applied Science, Nursing at CCTC in the Fall of 2009. Expected graduation date is May of 2011. Then I will be ready to take the NCLEX, and once I pass that I will be a real Nurse! The Dean of Health Sciences at CCTC came in and introduced herself, and told everyone that we are all capable of passing academically. She said that there were hundreds of applications, and that the smartest were chosen. It was very encouraging. One of the Fundamentals instructors told us to go ahead and tell our significant others / family members that for the next two years not to expect any cooked meals, and that they will have to help out with the laundry and chores, because I will always have my head in a book.

I can't wait!!

This Summer

2009-04-30T07:35:00.000-07:00

I have turned in my confirmation letter, accepting my acceptance, and am looking forward to Nursing orientation on June 18th. I am so excited! I tell everyone about getting in!

This summer I'll be taking Microbiology with the best BIO teacher in the world - Mr. Weber. And that means I'll have NO general education courses to take while going through Nursing school. I'm so thankful that I will be able to focus exclusively on Nursing stuff! Wee!

Finally!

2009-04-23T19:11:00.000-07:00

After so long, I finally got into a nursing program. Orientation is June 18th and classes start at the end of August. I created this blog to keep a journal of my experiences throughout nursing school, as I'm sure it will be nice to be able to look back on them. It will also be a place for me to celebrate and vent.

Anyway - here we go!