Getting Ready For Finals

        Now as the semester is beginning to role down, books are starting to settle and grades begin to close as we take our final exam, I am now left with preparing for finals, and securing my position into the next semester.

         What are some thing I have began to do to prepare for the unwind?
                                   1) making sure all of my study guides are finished
                                   2) condensing my study guides
                                   3) putting exam dates into my calendar
                                   4) setting aside specific times in which i will study after class
                                   5) STUDY!

         these steps may seem quite simple in retrospect to taking the actual exam, but they have helped me tremendously in saving time so that now all i can do is focus on studying. Now that I know that classes are over, i have made all of my study guides and condensed them to I can have a focused studying.  I know the dates and I am studying according to which exams are coming up and if I have extra time I will begin studying for the next few exams. All I can say is get all of your assignments done, and any  busy work done so that you can focus on the exams and finish the final strong usually because it is comprehensive and it will have things you have seen before. with that being said all you have to do is now put all of  the study guides together.

Where should I study?

        Something that I am learning as time is going on is that where I study has a big effect on how long, and how hard I study. As a commuter, my options seemed really limited in the beginning of the semester. I thought my only options were either in the middle of the night or early morning at home when my family wasn't being too loud, or on the 4th floor fo the library, with hopes that people would actually follow the strict quiet rule.

         This really sucked because I wouldn't want to study really long in the library because people usually talked to too much, and I hated having to stay up too late or get up early when at home in order to study in quiet. I mentioned  to my advisor one day my dillema and she told me i was allow to ask the secretary for a room in the nursing building. From then on I would come in everyday and get a room, and would use the room even after class. I have seen a dramatic change in how I study. i study longer and I am more focused because there is little to no noise. I study at a good time and i am able to go home and do whatever I need to do and sleep on time because i didn't-have to study at odd hours of the day. I am less groggy during the day, and have a set schedule of when to study now which helps alot.

Week by Week

I know many people wonder how it is that you can work, have clinical twice a week, and go to all of your classes and still find the time to study for your exams and get assignments done. Well procrastination has to be the first things that absolutely has to go out the window. I learned that I have to prioritize my time with everything, and here are a few things that I do that help keep me organized and making it through each week.

First, get a planner! In my planner at the beginning of each semester I look at all of my syllabi and I write all of my assignments and exams in my planner, both in the calendar portion, and on the individual day. This helps so that I don’t have to keep looking for my syllabus to figure out when my next assignment is due or when my exam is.

Next, I do all of my written assignment’s weeks in advance and have them checked at the writing center. Getting as much written assignment out of the way allows you to not only stay on top of your work but gives you more time to focus on studying.

Then we have working. I work only once a week, but I work on Saturdays, one of my only days off, and I work a double as a server. This allows me to get off early and still have the means to pay my bills and serving jobs, or restaurant industry jobs are usually very flexible.

Then we have clinical, I make sure I study the morning of clinical, sometimes I get to the site early so that I can study. I never plan anything else on the day of clinical so that I am not late, and I am also often tired from the day. If a care plan is due from clinical, I write down all of my data and get it started that same night or day so that all is left to do is references. If you see the pattern, submitting assignments early helps save you a lot of extra time to study.

Finally, I plan events weeks in advance. I put them in my calendar in my phone to remind me.  I study for my exams usually before class, and right after class since I don’t work. It allows me to be prepared for the exam, get enough sleep at night and not feeling like I have to cram.

So far, these methods are helping me get through each week of nursing school. Of course, it’s not fool proof, but it works for me, and I’m hoping some of it will work for you as well.

Clinical To- Do List

First Few Weeks of Clinical's, What Can I do to prepare?

Although from my first post you were all able to tell that I have now been in nursing school for one full semester, I wasn't until this semester that I have begun clinicals. Now it is time for me to apply all of the assessment skills I learned in both my assessment and pharmacology labs, and apply it to real patients. Although my abilities are limited due to my current year in nursing school, I still am responsible for my patient, and expected to know about their health status as well at their vitals just as their assigned nurse and the rest of the healthcare team. In this post, I would like to both share my experience during my first few weeks of clinical, how you can prepare, and some things you may expect.

First Experience

            On my first day of clinical I wasn’t early, nor late, but right on time. That was my first mistake, I wish I would have been at least fifteen minutes early so that I could find parking in enough time and get situated into where everyone was sitting in the cafeteria, and not having to rush in so quickly. Walking into the cafeteria, my peers and instructor were waiting for me. I got settled, we began pre conference where we were explained tasks for the day, and were assigned patients. After pre conference we were given a tour of our unit. This included bathrooms, where we could find everything we needed in supplies, as well as where to store our things and grab food during our break. At the conclusion of the tour, we stored our items and got ready to meet our nurses and patients. I introduced myself and got the patients narrative. I went in and immediately introduced myself to a patient, who was a child with sickle cell, and then did a head to toe assessment. During the assessment  I had my patient explain sickle cell to me so that not only did she feel like she was apart of the assessment, but so I could learn a bit more about her, her education level, as well as about the diagnosis. This consumed majority of my night. We ended with post op, and explaining what we learned. This was my first experience and although it sounds boring, it was intimidating and there were quite a few areas I wish I had prepared for and want to help you prepare for. Here are a list of things you can do before your first clinical.

1.    Learn the names of your unit staff members so you can greet them properly

2.    Be prepared for anything and everything

3.    Actively participate in pre- and post-conferences

4.    Show interest, eagerness, respect and appreciation in the clinical setting

5.    Communicate with your preceptor

6.    Get involved in other unit activities or help staff members or classmates

7.    There is no such thing as downtime

8.    Complete your day’s work

9.    Never do something if you are uncertain of your skills

    As a new semester begins to role in, books . begin to settle, and the realization that I am actually a

nursing student hits me, I can't help but wonder and think of everything I did to get here. Staring 

undergrad as a Nursing major, missing the Gpa, and finding myself switching to a new major with

 unfamiliar faces, yet still n the same building as my former nursing friends who did make it into the 

program. I remember feelings of being lost, and not really knowing how my life was going to play 

out since now I was forced to take on plan b. Plan b had an action, but I never really thought the 

outcome through. Plan b of course is switching to public health if nursing doesn't work out. Then I 

was forced to think and wonder, what am I actually going to do with this new and unfamiliar degree, 

and will I ever be able to be a nurse like everyone else I know?

     When senior year of Undegrad as a Public Health major rolled around, I had now been settled into

 the realization that I was no longer a nursing student, but now a public health student with new 

friends, new professors, and a new outcome in life. My goals have now changed, and I have now 

adapted to my new peers and my new career goals. I began to think of what I might now do with my 

degree after graduation. I began to take classes that I fell in love with and that started to address 

social and healthcare concerns I have always thought of, but never knew how to tackle. I had now 

become quite proficient at doing data analysis, as well as doing a needs assessment on a specific 

population and using the needs assessment to put a plan into action. I began to develop new ideas on 

what it might be to become a pubic health nurse. Could I possibly do both? I began to ask faculty 

about their careers in public health, look up accelerated programs, and think of how my new career 

goal could come into play with what I always wanted to do. 

      This is how I came to the realization that I wanted to work in the community eventually, not only 

doing the many things that people in public health do, but I wanted to clinically help my population 

as well. I decided that I would love to work with those in low income. Those not able to afford 

insurance, but still need the same healthcare as the rest of us. Now I was left with the task of finishing 

my nursing school applications, graduating, and going back home to my country Mali with my family

during the summer before I began nursing school.

    I applied and got into a few programs, but decided on where I am now. Not only was it close to home, 

but they offered me good financial aid , and their nursing program was accredited and well 

known. I took the steps to make sure I got enrolled. Including deposit, uniform ordering, orientation 

when I got back from africa, and getting all my health clearances done for castle branch so that I 

would be able to do clinical. Now here I am, an entire semester later, and more inspiring at that, my 

first semester fo nursing school is over. 

      From that short period of time I learned to find that one friend who you can count on to not only 

study with , but build a new friendship with, and go through both the highs and lows of nursing 

school. I learned that just like undergrad you will meet peers who do not like you, but your end goal 

of graduating is way too Big to let things like that take you off track. You meet new exams and 

assignment that were once foreign, but become all too familiar, and still manage to trip you up no 

matter how "hard" you think you study. Finally, you start to develop and give more reasoning to why

 you want to become a nurse. you learn more about the field, what it takes to be in the field, and what

 you might be able to do to help the field advance. it's just the beginning but I feel like I am strapped 

into the front of a never ending roller coaster.