NCLEX and Laboratory Values – What You Need to Know

Stressing over the NCLEX test and its preparation is common among nursing students, as there is much to learn and cover. From a variety of topics (including fundamentals, diseases, maternity topics, and more) and learning materials, students prepare for the test after completing their nursing study program. However, there is one thing in this process that most students detest – the laboratory values.

Success in NCLEX and laboratory values often go hand in hand. These values usually need to be memorized, which is why many students dread it. Lab values are included in NCLEX to test the student’s knowledge and analysis/application skills. It shows that you can  

• Examine lab values
• Distinguish nonstandard values
• Identify abnormal results
• Act according to the results

Regardless of how much students dislike it, it is a part of the exam and needs to be learned to achieve success in NCLEX. Here are some of the important laboratory values that you need to know.

ABG Lab Values
•    pH 7.35 – 7.45
•    pCO2 35 – 45
•    HCO3 22 – 26

Renal Lab Values
•    BUN 5 – 20
•    Creatinine 0.6 – 1.2

Cholesterol Lab Value
•    Cholesterol <200

CBC Lab Values
•    HCT F:36 – 46 M:42 – 52
•    HgB F:12 – 15 M:14 – 17
•    Platelets 200,000 – 450,000 <20,000 be very concerned!
•    WBC 5,000 – 10,000

Electrolyte Lab Values
•    Potassium 3.5 – 5
•    Sodium 135 – 145

Glucose Lab Values
•    Glucose 70 – 100
•    HgBA1C 4 – 6% >7 is diabetic

Bleeding Time Lab Values
•    PT 11 – 13
•    PTT not on therapy 25 – 35 on therapy –> 2x normal
•    INR on coumadin 2-3 w/o coumadin 0.8 – 1.2

How can you make learning lab values easier?  

Sort out the important ones – It may not be possible for you to learn every lab value there is, so filter out the rest and find the important ones. Sort them out according to your skills, interests, and specialty. Focus on the most important values that you need to know to pass the test. Once you have mastered them, move on to the others.

Focus on numbers – It is important that you focus on the number or normal ranges for a lab value, instead of its measurement unit. Once you have memorized the range, the measurement unit will be easier to fit in.

Get to know what it means – Find out the real meaning and use behind lab values. Understand what an out of range value means and how it can affect the patient. Then, it will be easier for you to make a connection and commit it to memory.

Writing down lab values repeatedly or using flash cards are some other techniques that work for some students. If you find it difficult to learn and memorize the lab values, follow the above mentioned tips.

Good Luck!

If you are an internationally educated nurse and want to make a career in the nursing specialty of your choice, INSCOL offers various specialized nursing courses in Canada from top colleges. To learn more about the available graduate nursing programs, visit the website at www.inscol.com

How Google Glass Could Be a Boon for Nurses?

The moment you step in to a medical facility for treatment, a nurse wearing Google Glass will have all your information right in front of her eyes, from your personal medical history to current health issues, name of the doctor you are consulting, treatment & medication, real-time stats of blood pressure, heart beat, blood sugar and more such related information.

Easy access to patient information is considered as the biggest benefit a nurse could have from Google Glass. A nurse can quickly locate and see health history of a patient without having to take her hands off a patient or excuse herself from a procedure.

Think about if all the nurses are wearing Google Glass and is integrated with the hospital's database system, communication and interaction among them will be done in the blink of an eye. If the nurse's hands are gloved and dirty, it’s not a good idea to pick up and answer the phone. However,with the help of Google Glass, nurses could easily interact and complete the conversation without leaving the work they are doing. Google Glass can also show text messages and updates via the screen.

Since the introduction, Google Glass works best for information purposes. With continuous development, other medical procedures could be integrated so long as there was a perfected way to make sure that patient information goes to the right place on the hands of right person.

On the other hand, when new technology is introduced into patient care, there is always a concern of HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) because Google Glass are devices for personal use primarily. However, such concern could be resolved if these are owned by the healthcare organization and are encrypted on the hospital network.

As technology leaps ahead in future, it will become increasingly available to the mass and technologies like Google Glass won’t be a peculiarity at the bedside, but rather the anticipation. If you are a nurse practicing in a healthcare facility, let us know what your thoughts on Google Glass are.