What are some resources you can use to gain more information and learn about nursing implications?

Education doesn’t end after nurses graduate and become licensed RNs. Instead, they start on a path of lifelong learning that goes on throughout their nursing careers. It’s critical that they continue gathering information to keep abreast of changes in nursing.

What Is Lifelong Learning?

Nurses continue to learn throughout their careers to gain knowledge so they can competently fulfill their scope of practice and standards of care. It may include formal or informal educational opportunities such as:

• Enrolling in traditional or online degree programs.
• Watching online webinars and videos.
• Attending conferences.
• Joining nursing associations.
• Obtaining specialty certification.
• Receiving on-the-job training.
• Researching and reading nursing journals, articles and evidence-based literature.
• Collaborating with other healthcare professionals.
• Volunteering on committees.

Why Is Lifelong Learning Important in Nursing?

Healthcare is complex and practices are always evolving. A large segment of the patient population is over the age of 65, and older patients tend to suffer from one or more chronic health conditions. Nurses must have the necessary expertise to treat elderly patients and help them manage illnesses such as heart or kidney disease, diabetes, arthritis, cancer, dementia, Alzheimer’s and obesity.

Lifelong learning gives nurses the critical-thinking and problem-solving skills needed to resolve issues they may encounter while taking care of patients. When nurses are up to date on new techniques, policies and procedures, they may influence healthcare in these ways:

• Build strong collaborative relationships with patients and coworkers.
• Improve patient outcomes.
• Decrease mortality rates.
• Reduce the chance of errors.

Why Should Nurses Consider Continuing Their Nursing Education?

Nurses should pursue lifelong learning for a variety of reasons:

• Today, most patients and their family members demand exceptional care. Even though many patients educate themselves about their conditions, they expect their nurses to know more than they do about diagnoses, procedures and treatment options.
• Effective leadership in nursing requires nurses to possess not only management and interpersonal skills but also knowledge of current trends in healthcare and innovative technology.
• As a nurse’s career progresses over the years, some of what they learned in nursing school may become obsolete. While nurses accumulate on-the-job experience, it may not be enough to keep up with the rapid transformations in healthcare.

Well-informed nurses may be happier and more confident in their nursing role, which helps with job satisfaction and employee retention. Lifelong learning may also help nurses advance in their careers and earn a higher salary.

Kim Sikorski, a clinical documentation specialist at Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center in Mattoon, Illinois, and a graduate of Eastern Illinois University’s (EIU) online RN to BSN program, is an advocate of lifelong learning. “Nursing is a profession that requires a commitment to lifelong learning in order to be successful,” Sikorski says.

Learn more about the EIU online RN to BSN program.

Sources:

EBSCO Health Notes: The Increasing Importance of Lifelong Learning in Healthcare, and Especially Nursing

HealthStream: Five Reasons Why Lifelong Learning is Essential in Healthcare

EP Lab Digest: Differentiating Between Nursing Scope of Practice and Standards of Care

Nurse.com: IOM Halftime Report: Learning for Life

HealthStream: Lifelong Learning Is a Vital Effort for Nurses

While a good memory is essential to excelling as a nurse, there are mobile apps that can help with health care knowledge recall and expediting communications.

For students in online nursing programs, nursing apps can help make you more effective and confident in your coursework and on the job.

Below are 10 great apps for nurses and nursing students.

1. NCSBN Learning Extension – Medication Flashcards

What it offers: This simple app downloads a medication library to your phone. Great for students preparing for exams or nurses who need a quick reference point.
Availability: iOS and Android; free

2. NCLEX RN Mastery – Study Aid

What it offers: Prepare for the NCLEX RN exam with hundreds of practice questions and sample quizzes. When you give a wrong answer, the app gives you a detailed reason why (which helps you ace it next time).

Availability: iOS and Android; free download with in-app purchases: otherwise monthly fees

3. PEPID – Drug and Clinical Resource

What it offers: With versions for different professions, including nurses, EMTs, physicians, students, and more, this app provides detailed information for all elements of patient care. Students gain a credible and complete resource guide for coursework, lab exercises, and clinical practice.

Availability: iOS, Android, BlackBerry, and mobile browser compatible; subscription fee

4. Epocrates – Clinical Care Assistant

What it offers: This app streamlines searches for information on prescription drugs, drug interactions, and pill identification. As a nursing student, you can prevent mistakes on exams and, most importantly, provide proper treatment when providing patient care.

Availability: iOS and Android; free, with an upgrade for disease and diagnostic access, or enterprise subscription

5. Medscape – Informational Resource

What it offers: Published by WebMD, this free app provides access to a medical directory, continuing education, medical news tailored to your specialty, and a clinical reference library. The news aspect of this app helps students stay up to date in the industry.

Availability: iOS and Android; free

6. WebMD – Access full WebMD Resources

What it offers: This is the app version of the WebMD website. Because Web MD’s primary audience is the general public, nursing students can use the available resources on the app to practice describing care to patients with non-medical terminology.
Availability: iOS, Android, and Amazon; free

7. Med Mnemonics – Nursing/Nursing Student Support

What it offers: This app provides over 1,500 acronyms, rhymes, and memory tricks to help nurses quickly learn numerous medical conditions, symptoms, and other medical terminology.
Availability: iOS and Android; nominal fee

8. Taber’s Medical Dictionary – Comprehensive Medical Dictionary

What it offers: This is a mobile version of one of the best medical dictionaries on the market. The app includes photos, videos, audio pronunciations, and functionality to save favorite entries. This dictionary has more than 65,000 definitions to help nursing students study for tests.
Availability: iOS, Android, and mobile browser compatible; annual subscription fee

9. Nursing Central – Comprehensive Reference Resource

What it offers: Nursing Central offers information and reference for diseases, drugs, and tests for nurses, as well as a literature search function. The app includes access to Davis’s Drug Guide, Taber’s Medical Dictionary, Diseases and Disorders, and MEDLINE Search and Journals, among other databases.
Availability: iOS and Android; annual subscription fee

10. NurseGrid – Scheduling and Communication

What it offers: NurseGrid was developed by nurses to help manage the scheduling process. The app lets you schedule across all worksites, view who’s on your shift, message other nurses, and much more. A manager version is also available.

Availability: iOS and web portal; free

Discover Capella University’s online nursing degree programs.

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