Nurse Logic Module Reflection #1 – Test Taking & Remediation

Nurse Logic Module Reflection #1 – Test Taking & Remediation

I have always considered myself to be a strong test-taker, mostly because of my ability to memorize content quickly. In high school and my first years of college, I performed well on exams, relying solely on my study strategy of writing, rewriting, and reading a carefully developed notesheet. However, last semester in Nursing 202, things got a little more complicated. Suddenly, doing well on tests became less about cramming information into my brain and more about applying logic, thinking critically about situations, and learning to focus on key details and prioritize accordingly. It was a steep learning curve – on the first few practice tests leading up to the exam, I was frustrated to score poorly. I quickly learned that the best way to study and improve my scores was to not only do dozens upon dozens of practice questions, but also to become familiar with thinking like a nurse and treating test questions like real patient scenarios where critical decisions must be made.

As discussed in this module, the way that nurses actually make these critical decisions is through various priority setting frameworks. These include Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, where nurses learn to value physiological needs above any other concern, and the “ABCs,” in which problems related to airway, breathing, and circulation are prioritized, in that order. Understanding these frameworks is necessary for far more than just success on nursing exams. I am reminded of my summer job, where I worked as a CNA in an assisted living facility for people with dementia. Without realizing it, I applied priority-setting frameworks dozens of times each day while working on a busy and often understaffed floor. I also learned that prioritization isn’t something that nurses often have time to think deeply about. Instead, decisions about which tasks to complete first are often done instinctively. Yet it became clear to me that these instincts can be developed through education and experience. Though I was only a nurse’s aide, I too made decisions about prioritization that affected patient care. At any given moment, I might be responsible for a patient who had to use the bathroom, another who was upset and demanding to have her car keys so she could get to work, a family member asking about their loved one’s lost pair of shoes, and coworkers requesting my help transferring a patient into the bath. Each of these situations was like a multiple choice question: “What should the nurse (or CNA) do first?” As a future nurse, I will be faced with many more scenarios where I need to set priorities. Specifically, I hope to work as a school nurse, and I know from shadowing nurses in this setting that every day is a lesson in prioritization. With a constant stream of students in the office, the nurse must be skilled at determining which stomachache, playground injury, or swallowed lego (true story!) requires the most immediate attention. It will be crucial that I practice applying these priority setting frameworks so that they can become almost instinctive when I am faced with multiple patients competing for my attention. And, of course, it will come in handy on all those exams!