Practice Makes Prepared

I know it has been a while, but I really don't have too much to write about until school starts offcially on August 23rd. I have a lot of stuff to do before then, but it's really just the boring stuff (ie. Physical Exams, online inservice things, paperwork, etc.) But I did have to take a little bit of a test last week. I didn't want to write about it until everyone had taken it. It wasn't too bad of a test. The weeks prior, I had to practice basic skills like Transfering a patient, Ambulating (walking)with a patient, oral care, height and weight of a patient, taking a patients vital signs (blood pressure, Temperature, pulse, respirations)and those other basics. I was really nervous about the test while I was practicing, but once I got in the room and performed my skills, I was feeling confident. Now, I don't believe that practice necessarily makes perfect, but I do believe it makes prepared. I know a few people who hadn't practiced before the test because they thought they already knew what they were doing. The test didn't very well for them. They recieved slips of paper that stated that they had to practice the skills more. even though my performance during the test wasn't great, the teacher smiled and told me that I passed. She had known that I had been preparing for weeks. Being a student means that we need to humble ourselves. We are not at the top of the mountain, we are probably much closer to the bottom than we think. Yes, I made it into the nursing program, la-ti-da, but I have two years of this terror to get through. For those nursing students who still have an attitude going into the program, I am sure they will learn in time that its not all about the brains, it has just as much to do with the outlook, the enthusiasm, and the curiosity. We can't go into a test like that, not having studied at all, thinking that we know all the answers. We need to realize, we may not know, we need to practice. Chances are, the teachers may give you a heads-up, they may tell you what is going to be on the test, or what to eliminate. Practicing before the test gave me a chance to prepare, but it also gave me a chance to get to know a few of my teachers. I am really glad that I had done that, otherwise I don't think I would have done too well. Being a little bit humble, and even a little bit nervous will do no harm. It will most likely make you a more practiced and skilled nursing student. Thanks for reading.