Today is a prime example of the repercussions from my self sabotaging. I had time to study this week for my state board exam. Did I use that time wisely? Of course not. Why? I'm not quite sure. When I had anatomy and physiology tests I studied my rear off (not literally, unfortunately). The stuff being tested today isn't nearly as difficult as that stuff was but does require knowing the material, step by step. My alarm went off at 6:30 a.m. this morning so I could get up and be at the testing site by 7:30 a.m. I got there and sat through boring instructions and procedures for the written exam. We were allotted 2 hours for the written exam. It started around 8:20 a.m. or so. I was the second person done and in my car by 8:45 a.m. This, in no way, shows a superior knowledge of the information. Instead, it is all too normal for me to not look over my answers and double check things. Everything about this class/program (NAC) has been awful to me. I didn't like the class, the clinicals and the testing is a last hurdle in the agonizing journey of getting my certification which is merely a prerequisite to my program destination. I really have no idea how the test went. Mostly the questions were incredibly simple using just a little common sense. But, some questions totally threw me and I guessed. I wasn't exactly sure what the typical rectal temperature of an elderly adult was supposed to be. I just googled it to find out it is typically 0.5-1.0 degree higher than an oral reading would be. We never covered this but this is an example of questions I guessed on (I think I guessed wrong on that one). I'm not sure how many you can miss to still pass.
This afternoon comes the part I have been dreading. The clinical exam. I will have some partner I don't know and be required to perform 5 skills in 25 minutes. I don't know what the skills are and won't know until I get there. I will also be required to be the "patient" for my partner while he performs his skills on me. One skill will be hand washing, everyone has to do that one. That is the only good news of the whole thing. Each skill has a set of procedures that must be done in order and they must all be completed. One little flick of the fingers and the slightest shake to get water off your hands is a no-no. One other skill will be a measuring skill. It will be pulse, BP, respirations or weight. I'm fine with any of them other than BP. For some reason I have a hard time with this one but, because of that, I'm sure that is the one I will get. Worse, weight might be my partners skill.....yikes!
The other three could be any of the other skills in our handbook. There are lots of none of them are difficult, it's just the little steps that must be done that are easy to mix up for forget. Things like checking to make sure beds are locked, patient is appropriately covered, when to put gloves on, when to introduce yourself, etc. It's just one of those things that requires going over and over the material and guess what....I haven't. I went through the material once over the past couple of days and now have a few hours and am blogging instead. I want this to be over once and for all but may end up having to take this test again. The exams will be sent away for grading so I won't know for a while. It will serve me right if I don't pass (although I hope I do) and maybe give me a kick in the pants to put more effort into things even if I don't feel like it.
Hopefully all will work out okay and this chapter will finally be closed.
Either way I am going to celebrate getting this over with by going to Boundary Bay tonight with friends and discussing details of girls weekend over a Bellingham Blonde. Nice!
No comments:
Post a Comment