Getting into the Habit of Reviewing NCLEX Questions

I recently sat down and talked to one of my good friends who just graduated from my nursing school last semester. It was so helpful to get some of her tips on how to survive another year of nursing school and her advice for the NCLEX.
One of the things she reiterated that was really important was to study NCLEX questions now. Her entire class passed the NCLEX on their first try and she credited this to the fact that they all quizzed each other on NCLEX questions throughout their schooling.

When I first started nursing school I bought the NCLEX review book that was suggested but always had a hard time picking it up to study since there was no grade involved. But, after talking to my friend and several upper classmen they all said that professors generally like to take questions from these types of books for their exams anyway. This means that perhaps studying NCLEX questions now will actually affect my grades and that gives me more of an incentive for reviewing them.

I have noticed that the majority of my nursing school books do have review NCLEX questions after each chapter. I have found these to be very useful for tests as well as becoming familiar with the type of style that NCLEX questions usually have.

I think it is useful for all nursing students to get into the habit of reviewing these questions now rather than trying to cram all of the NCLEX information into your brain the last semester of school. Reviewing NCLEX questions that coincide with your current classes is a great way to help the current information sink in, as well as to prepare yourself for the inevitable NCLEX test at the end or your schooling.

Managing Your Student Nurse Assignments

When looking over my assignments for this current week, I noticed that I have been assigned to read 24 chapters spread between three classes. This is not an unusual amount of reading in my third semester of nursing school, but it can feel a little overwhelming in comparison to the caseload of other homework I could be doing.

So what can you do in this situation? One of the best things that I have found is to talk to the teacher directly. It is so easy to complain about the assignments and stress about finishing them, but it is so much easier to know first hand what the teachers are looking for. Most teachers will tell you honestly that, no, it is not vitally important to read every word assigned to you, but at least have a good idea of what the chapters are about and what the key terms mean. This can really help the material sink in when sitting in a lecture. Also, finding out what your teacher wants you to get out of the reading can sometimes cut your reading time in half and can enable you to retain it rather than suffer through it, forget it, and then have time wasted.

This is not to say, however, that all teachers are like this. There will be a few teachers that think that it is important to read all of the reading that they have assigned. In my case these are usually the ones who test more heavily on the reading material than on anything else. I have had quite a few classmates struggle in classes like this as they were used to only studying from the lecture and PowerPoint’s rather than from the reading material. So, again, get the information from the source instead of taking a risk with your grade.

In the long run I think that getting into the habit of reading and learning time management are some of the most important skills to be learned in nursing school. We are to be constantly updating our knowledge of nursing care throughout our careers and what better way to start than now?

Health Care Politics 101: Make Your Vote Count

As we near Election Day, it is impossible to avoid the news coverage on the presidential candidates, even in the midst of a busy semester. But don’t let the media hype or the stress of classes deter you from being involved; as future nurses in America it is vitally important to be aware of the candidates’ health care platforms, because they will someday affect not only the care that we will receive, but also the care we can provide to our patients.
When reading up on the candidates’ views, keep in mind the state of your future patients. Remember that they may be of every age, gender, race, religion, socio-economic status, disease state or ethnicity that is present in our country. Even though we are not yet nurses, it is important to be an advocate for the people that will one day be in our care. What will best suit their vast array of health care needs? How can our country and future president provide optimal access to care for them?
Please take some time out of your busy schedule and carefully read the presidential nominees’ views on health care through the eyes of your future patients.
Obama/Biden Health Care Plan
McCain/Palin Health Care Plan
Be sure that you are registered to vote at your address and you know the election date in your state. You can also cast your vote by absentee ballot, if necessary. The Web site Vote411 is a great resource for finding out voting information, including polling places, in your state. It also has some great information on local candidates and ballot measures in your area.
Remember that someday we, as nurses, will be responsible for the best care that we can provide to our patients. Try to be objective and educated when voting so that years from now you can look back and know that, even as a student nurse in 2008, you were looking out for the welfare of your patients.