Cha Cha’s Uni journey : “Fake It Till You Make It” Edition

2023 - Recap

so 2023 was a pretty daunting year for me initially because it was the year i would start uni for the first time since graduating high school the previous year, I used to ask myself questions of how it would be and friends, the difficulty of the degree and the class scheduling. However, after a while i realised it wasn’t that bad. After getting into the groove of things for a while it was like “this isn’t all mushy as i thought it would be”, and maybe that was a good thing??!! What i didn’t realise for pursuing the nursing degree at western sydney was the amount of forms we have to submit which included all our vaccinations till date, mask fit testings as well as getting complaint for clinical placements. The process of getting all this info to the school took a really long time to gather.

year 1 sem 1

the first semester wasn’t actually that bad. It did take some getting used to. I was on campus two days a week and worked on my other days off. My clinical class which was and still is called PPE (professional practise experience) run for four hours weekly and my other three subjects were theory based subjects which were tutorials run for 2 hours each. I had no lectures that semester. Most of my hardest obstacles was learning the referencing and how to correctly cite sources using APA 7. But as time went on i got a hang of it kinda .

Subjects and Reviews

Professional Practise Experience 1
This class was my clinical stimulations class. So basically, it was where I had my clinical stimulations and we would be practising our clinical skills on the mannequins. The skills we practised were numerous however the main key ones were our vital signs (called orb for short - manual bp , temperature, respiratory rates etc etc), falls risk assessments, neurological assessments, activities of daily living (ADLs), DVT’s etc. I was very new to all of this because i have never had any clinical experience of any sort in my life so it was really interesting and intriguing. For this subject we had to purchase our western sydney nursing uniform as well as fob watch, manual bp with the cuff and stethoscope (i barely used my stethoscope cuz our clinical labs had some which were attached to our practise bp machine). i am not gonna lie, the manual bp was the hardest thing i had to do in that class cuz half of the time the pulses were hard to find and it was pretty confusing. It took me until the 7th week of the semester to finally get a hang of it. This class was fun, the classmates were God sent and so was our instructor , she was kind and understanding and taught us how to properly conduct assessments and do our nursing skills. I loved it and would rate the class a 5/5. For assessments, there were usually 3 and all were exams however the biggest exam that needed a lot of preparation for was the OSCE. Palms were all sweaty the day of this exam:
Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE): Now this was the biggest exam of this subject and for all future ppe subjects. You only have two attempts and it is on campus. So usually osces are clinical exams where you are given a scenario, your marker (the one who is supervising you during the exam) acts as the patient in the scenario and you have to treat them and do what ever clinical skills that is to be assessed on that day on the patient/marker. In the end you get a pass or fail. And this exam would be stuck onto you for first, second and third year. Mostly each year a different skill would be accessed as you progress through the ppe subjects so thats that. For all ppe subjects for nursing at wsu, if you fail unfortunately on the amount attempts given for each assignment, you fail the subject and you would have to repeat it again the following year. Unfortunately the ppe subjects are prerequisites. For example ppe 1 is a pre req for ppe 2 and so is ppe 2 for ppe 3 and so on. But the good aspect is that you get the chance to practise all the clinical skills in your class numerous times before the actual osce examination so it is important to pay attention and keep your head up.

The next two : Primary Healthcare in Action and Becoming a Professional Nurse subjects were all theory based and at times pretty boring. They just taught the fundamentals of nursing and the history of nursing. Topics like Florence Nightingale get introduced as well as professional communication and the code of ethics, conducts and registered nurse standard for practise all get introduced. The last one was Bioscience 1 which is more anatomy subject and it teaches all the body systems and introduces medical/anatomical positioning . At least bio 1 was very enjoyable and i learnt heaps but at times the class felt like it was dragging on forever even though it was only running for 2 hours haha.

Overall sem 1 was very enjoyable. Most of the theory assignments were in essay form or quizzes. Thankfully i didn’t purchase any textbooks because the uni library offers the hard copy for borrowing and also there are free pdf chapters to download on the uni library website. They cost so much $$$$$ and it wasn’t really worth it.

Year 1 Sem 2
This semester started to get more serious for me as more assignments became thresholds so it was important that I had to buckle down and study lots. (threshold basically means, if you fail an assignment you fail the entire subject regardless of whether you passed other assignments which weren’t threshold capped).

This semester I took the following subjects:
Approaches to Professional Nursing Practise
I found this subject to be more of a build on knowledge subject from the previous semester. It was more of a continuation from the first semester becoming a professional nurse subject. Due to this, I found a lot of the concepts to be repetitive and that made it quite boring for me.
Some of the assignments I recall we had to do included 2 intra session examinations, portfolio and some essays. They were all moderate in difficulty but was doable. The tutors were good in articulating the information to the students and ill give it a ⅗ due to mostly the repetitive aspect.

Professional Practice Experience 2
For PPE 2, it was a continual learning process, building on from topics in PPE1. This time we were introduced to medication administration including tropical, subcutaneous, intramuscular etc and more importantly emotion provoking topics of preparing the dead patients and palliative side of nursing. For this semester, we had our OSCEs as well as other assessments but most importantly our clinical placement which was exciting, looking forward to that. Clinical placement run for two weeks (80 hours total) and students were put in either hospitals (rehab wards) and aged cares. A friend of mine was lucky enough to be put in surgical ward and another friend of mine was put in a psychiatric ward. It surprised me at first as i didn’t think that there was a huge variation in the wards for first year nursing students to be placed in since well we were first year students. But i guess it helps with our learning experience so thats a wonderful thing. I was put in a geriatric rehab ward at a hospital which i worked at for the next two weeks. It helped with shape my perspective on nursing being able to practice some of my skills effectively and seeing things from a patient’s perspectives. The nurses on the ward were really supportive and understanding. A con of my experience on the ward was that i allocated an afternoon shift for the entire two weeks which started at 1:30pm till 10pm and on afternoon shifts there was no major incidents or clinical interventions which were happening in the afternoon. Most of them would have happened in the morning shifts when we went for the afternoon handover. So it is a bummer for me as I wished i would have seen more if i was allocated a morning shift instead but unfortunately most of the actions had happened in the morning so the other students which were allocated morning shifts had a lot more practice and seen so many things but its fine. Hopefully for future placements i'll get the opportunity to see some more action. I rate this subject a ⅘.

Bioscience 2
This subject (you guessed it…) was a continuation of bioscience 1 from sem 1 and this time it introduced the concepts and topics of pathophysiology, microbiology as well as hints of pharmacology. It was really interesting because i found a huge correlation of a particular topic which was immunity and year 12 biology mostly module 7. Immunity (adaptive and humoral immunity) were the biggest main topics of this subject. So to whoever that is thinking of taking nursing at WSU, do biology because it helps heaps with the bioscience subjects that you would potentially take when you embark on this course. Bioscience 2 will receive a rating of 3.5/5 mostly because of the threshold final exam which give me the sweats but I passed so am really thankful .

Person Centred Care Across the Life Span
This subject just introduced the concept of providing nursing care towards different age groups. We took a look at case studies across the semester of different age groups and discussed in groups on what interventions would be best appropriate for them. It was in my opinion pretty basic and mostly common sense subject but its still important as nursing is a really diverse career in which you would be dealing with diverse people so it’s helpful. Assignments took mostly in the form of quizzes and essays/reflective writing. Ill give it a ⅗.

So for next semester, the subjects ill be taking are:

Professional Practise Experience 3 (PPE 3)
Pharmacology in Nursing
Health Variations 1 (HV1)- Introduction to Alterations in Health.
Evidenced Based Practise In Nursing
Knowledge Journeys—> (for the bachelor of creative leadership component)
So updates would be coming soon as I commence this subjects so have a great day… Until then ….

hey guys so it’s been a while since my last post haha.
uni started about three weeks ago and we are now entering our fourth week next week, time is flying by pretty quickly it feels surreal. So far content wise, its a lot to process, it seems like a huge jump from first year but am pretty sure that as the weeks head on ill ease into it better. Good thing is i got my placement allocations so ill be heading to the paediatrics and rehabilitation wards for five weeks by the end of this semester, super excited for paediatrics, not so much for rehabilitation because i have already been exposed to that ward from my last placement but still grateful i got allocated anyway.

Assessments:

PPE 3: same old maths exam we have to get a 100%. OSCE exams where we have to give IV medication, hand over and placement. I feel like the OSCE exams have been easier as we progress into the course, way better than PPE 1, although getting bubbles in the IV line seems to be the biggest obstacle for me, I am practising as much as i could, apart for that aspect the clinical prac classes have been enjoyable.

Evidence Based Practise for Nursing and Midwifery: so this subject is SUPER boringggggggggg. To be honest its just feels like a drag on extra subject for extra fees in my opinion. Portfolios, quizzes and reports take in the form of assignments. Can’t wait to be done with this subject tbh.

Health Variations 1: So this is the best one hands down, this subject kinda makes me feel like its now that am finally learning actual nursing compared to the bioscience subjects from year 1. I am finally learning about the specific different diseases and their effects on the body as well as treatments for each one. I find this subject so helpful and the fact that it goes hand in hand with PPE 3 makes the concepts easier to understand and kinda just creates a good flow of ideas. However, this subject is VERY content heavy so i just take it bits by bits at a time and break the concepts in smaller chunks. Again, i have to do quizzes, poster and case study for the assignments components of this subjects. Will be submitting my poster assignment next week and will have two more assignments to go.

Pharmacology In Nursing: Again, this subject is VERY content heavy but really insightful because medication is a huge part of nursing and familiarising myself with the medications that this subject teaches is gonna be so beneficial for placement and my HV1 class as well. This semester, i have to do a quiz (which i completed today so yayyyy), a portfolio and also a Viva Voce which is a bit stressful. Why? Because it is a threshold assignment however its not too bad if you do study for it which is what i am trying to get myself into the routine off since the holiday break is over.

Anyway, thats it for week 3 of second year nursing sem 1, more updates would come when i complete this semester and placements, wish me luck. Toodles

Hello guys,

So I have successfully finished the first semester of second year. It been a roller coaster . I think I spoke too soon about were I stand concerning how good the semester was going to be. It has been tough but now its over and done with.

PPE 3
This subject was full on, lots of new skills we learnt including but not limited to:

1. Giving IV medications
2. Stoma Care
3. PIVC and CVAD management
4. NGT insertion and enteral management
5. Neurovascular obs
6. Supplemental oxygen
7. Inserting male and female catheters

And MANY MORE!!! , but despite learning all of these exciting new skills , it was very mentally taxing considering balancing time management, the exams and the placement components. In fact, speaking of placement, it went really well, rehab was not bad, learnt heaps of medications and catheter management whereas for paediatrics, the strengths were documentation and being more confident in the progress notes, fluid balance charts and IVC hourly rounding. I took out lots of cannulas, did lots of frequent neurological obs and called my first MET call which was nerve wrecking but any signs of deterioration raised many alarm bells, it was necessary to do. Apart from some of the above mentioned, I realised that paeds may not be a speciality i am willing to work in because it can be very emotionally taxing , seeing the kids and families in distress and it’s not something i can see myself doing long term. But at least i know for now so that specialty is crossed off my list of “most likely to do specialties after graduation”. Not to say that adult nursing is not emotionally taxing as well, it is, however, with children i feel way worse seeing them in such a vulnerable state and i feel like it would be very depressing for me to stay in such environment. 3.5/5 i will give this subject.

Pharmacology In Nursing

Oh my gosh , dont get me started on this depressing ass subject bro, despite everything, i still managed to score a Distinction as my final grade but boy oh boy, the amount of studying and memorisation was beyond measures. So happy to see that i am not going to do this subject ever again. 3/5 i will give this subject

Evidence Based Practice for Nursing. and Midwifery
So so so so ……

a) boring
b) exciting
c) meh

Dear reader, i’ll give you 2 mins to think of what you think the answer will be:

5….4…..3…..2…1….

the answer is A. This subject was like a complete waste of time, not to talk about the fact that i completely distaste group assignments, and this marks the beginning of more to come in the future. . Everyone is either unavailable, sick or has work…. group assignments suck. Content wise, still very boring, it talks about research, methodologies, clinical appraisals which i think could be all taught within three days not three months and a hefty load of school fees to deduct. Honestly a rating of 2/5 for this subject and thats with me being generous enough lmao

Health Variations 1- Introduction to Alterations in Health

Okay so this subject was the actual best so ill give an 3.8/5. I actually learnt useful things and understood the pathophysiology of certain diseases that i believe will see more than once in the nursing field. However, the assignments were really like inconclusive and so incoherent. It was hard to understand and more importantly to do but oh well, it’s done and dusted .

So next semester subjects are as follows:

Promoting Mental Health and Wellbeing
Health Variations 2- Chronic Conditions and Disability
Health Variations 3- Acute Exacerbations of Chronic Conditions
Professional Practice Experience 4

So thats that for the whole first semester of year 2, for now am gonna enjoy the little glimpse of freedom i have before i go back to uni. Good bye guys…..

good evening guys, so now its the end of the semester and also not only that but the end of second year, whewww. It’s been very stressful, i know i heard many people say that second year is the hardest and that’s very true, but with determination and hard work, it def pays off. So now for my personal insights:

Professional Experience 4
Tbh, this subject was interesting. Went on placement to the renal and mental health wards for a month, two weeks in each specialty and whilst i might say it was insightful still pretty much mediocre.

Mental health—> so this ward was really chill. I was in Older persons mental health and it was really quiet most of the shift. Learnt to conduct MSE’s and interact with the consumers . When i first heard i was going to the mental health wards, i was a bit worried because i wasn’t sure what to expect with unpredictable behaviours but i adjusted really well and it wasn’t that scary. It was important to maintain a judge free attitude and mindset when going into this environment and interacting with the consumers. But more importantly to be cautious as well because things can happen and can be violent so what i was introduced to on the ward was to carry a duress alarm at all times with me but tbh I really enjoyed it so much. It was such an insightful and great placement.

Renal/ Haemodialysis—> This was pretty much the same just with medical specialties, saw a mix of rheumatology, immunology and neurology as well which i didn’t expect to see in a renal ward because all i thought bout renal was kidneys but the ward i was on tied all specialties together. It was such a great placement because I was still taking patient loads and managing them, handling new admissions and paging doctors to chase up with meds, ordering new meds, making IVBAX, giving handover to night staff and just doing overall nursing duties that a normal RN would do on a daily shift. However didn’t see any wounds so minimal practice on wound dressings but thats okay. Personally when it comes to wounds I feel like it is so under looked in nursing school because apart from the mannequin practice that I had in our CPU’s at uni in first year, there has been minimal exposure to it and even in placements i expected to at least see many but have only come across three cases since starting this degree and i feel like thats not good. Wound management in nursing is big and it should be prominent in practice class. It is important just as we highly regard our vital signs. Bed sores , pressure injuries and IAD are more common than we think but maybe it might be the wards i have been exposed to thats why i think i have less experience in that field. OTHER specialties definitely have more exposures.

anyway apart from placement, finished all my osces and the threshold exams and done finally so now i can breathe. PPE4 is okay just a continuation of PPE3

Health Variations 2
so this subject was more about chronic conditions such as parkinson's disease or disability’s and was just tedious to study for because of the amount content to study. Studying all the pathophysiology if different diseases is tiring. Assessments : in class exam and two written assessments. overall 4/5 , it was a breeze to cruise through

Health Variations 3
One word to describe this subject: HARD so much study involved, had a threshold final exam, results still pending but sure I passed, anyway learnt about COPD, stroke, O2 therapy, CKD, ACS and many more, too much to remember for the final exam and having assessments too submit during placement did not help but all the same its finally completed. Overall 3/5

Promoting mental health and wellbeing
This was the best subject this semester hands down, really enjoyed it, tutor had interesting stories to tell us and the mental health placement i had helped consolidate my understanding in this subject. Loved it 5/5. Had group assignment to present, quiz and a written assignment.

so now that second year is finished, its a bit scary how fast time is flying by, because i literally remember starting this bachelor like it was yesterday and now here we are moving into our final year. It feels so surreal, and definitely comes by quick. The responsibility grows bigger as we progress through the PPE courses like PPE1, PPE 2 and so on,

in first year placement: minimal requirement is to take at least 1 patient load

second year placements: minimum is 2-3 patients per shift

Third year is: minimum 3-4 patients per shift

Taking a patient load basically means doing all cares for the patient under supervision of RN, doing notes,, showers ADL’s meds, etc etc. I think one thing that people may not know is that when going to placement at the hospitals, 1. the group you are in is appointed a clinical facilitator (usually someone who has 5 yrs+ experience as an RN to supervise you) and 2. you are examined on not like a written exam style but on certain things like giving medications, how you interact with patients, sometimes if you are lucky and have a great facilitator they a lenient and let go of small mistakes like handovers and stuff cuz for example we are supposed to follow an ISBAR style and when thats not done accordingly they can let you go , thats just an example of a small part of many things that we are tested on, if unlucky and have a bad facilitator they can make your placement a living hell, kinda like what i went through on my 1st sem 2nd yr placement but prefer to not put a lot of insight into it and just focus on the positive side of what i got out of that placement, another thing to consider is 3. the culture of the ward, not all nurses are nice, lots a mean and will test you but it is patience and resilience that help and if it becomes overbearing best thing would be to report. So these are certain insights that i personally didn’t realise before going into nursing and two years into it wanna lay some info for future people who might wanna pursue to consider these. Okay now done with my TED talk lmao

Next semester subjects are as follows

Professional Practice Experience 5
Indigenous Australian Health, Wellness and Culture
Health Variations 4- Acute Life Threatening Conditions
Health Variations 5- Palliative and End of Life Care

for now going to enjoy my holidays hahahah byeee , will update as usual