Nursing school beholds you with a plethora of medical information that will be extremely useful. But when you finally get in the field, you might come to find there is quite a learning curve! Whether you’re still in school or just graduated, here are some realities they didn’t teach you in nursing school.

It’s Not Grey’s Anatomy

When you were searching for AHA ACLS certification classes, you might have thought you would be flexing those skills more often. While the class is undoubtedly helpful, codes do not happen nearly as often as they do on medical TV shows, nor are they portrayed accurately. Of course, codes still occur, and their likeliness is dependent on where you work in the hospital. Nonetheless, Hollywood does not portray an accurate hospital workplace.

You’ll Have Many Patients Simultaneously

As a nurse, you always want to provide the most attentive care to your patients, and ideally, you want to take care of two patients at a time, possibly three. The reality is that, depending on the day, sometimes you might be responsible for upward of five patients. Being responsible for five patients can be overwhelming; if you feel this workload is too much, make sure to have a conversation with your charge nurse.

Time Management Is Hard

The truth is that patient care is always unpredictable, which means finding the time to take a break can become next to impossible. You won’t be able to have your break when you please. As a nurse, you must learn excellent time management skills to provide yourself with proper care.

Nursing Is Different in Real Life Than in Practice

Nursing in practice is vastly different than nursing in real life—this is one of the realities they didn’t teach you in nursing school. To further expand on this, you will not be doing things exactly as you did in school; this is where real-world experience as a nurse will benefit you greatly. Make sure to observe other nurses so you can pick up on valuable tips and tricks.