Top Smartphone Apps for Nursing Students
Nursing school will challenge you, and it definitely helps to stay organized and use all the resources available to you. Fortunately, there are smartphone applications to help you stay on task and create a structured workflow.
Smartphone applications are incredible resources to support your learning, test prep and patient care. There are numerous smartphone and tablet apps that help students going to nursing school work more efficiently and study on the go. Smartphones and tablets have become pocket-sized libraries, organizers and exam preparation resources.
Regularly using an app for even a few minutes a day, can help you gather and retain information. Apps will also help you stay on top of new and emerging knowledge. While preparing for clinicals, there are numerous apps that allow you to easily and quickly determine a pediatric-sized dose or check symptoms.
Here are some of the most popular, highly-rated smartphone apps for nursing students.
Knowledge and Reference
There’s a reason this is called the “premier, all-in-one nursing app.” Nursing Central offers detailed information about drugs, procedures, diseases and tests. There is a free version of the app, but if you decide to invest in the subscription service, you will have access to five must-have nursing app in one: Davis’ Drug Guide, Taber’s Medical Dictionary, Davis’ Laboratory and Diagnostic Tests, Diseases and Disorders and Prime PubMed. (IOS and Android).
You will find yourself referencing this well-trusted, comprehensive medical dictionary in the classroom and during clinicals. The app costs $14.99, but with that you’re getting the best-selling medical dictionary for over 100 years. You will find yourself referencing this tool during clinicals and in the classroom. (IOS and Android)
Nursing students have to learn and memorize a great deal of information in the classroom and during clinicals. This unique learning tool can help students take in and retain crucial knowledge about diseases, medical terminology, pharmacology and more. The Med Mnemonics app is $1.99. (IOS and Android)
This application is as beautiful as it is functional. Nursing students and medical professionals use the models and lessons in the Human Anatomy Atlas app to better understand and memorize the inner structure and workings of the human body. The application costs $24.99, but it is truly worth every penny. (IOS and Android)
This application is a useful resource for the latest medical news, facts about diseases and ongoing education for medical professionals. Plus, the app is free and can be personalized for a better user experience. This app will serve you well during clinicals because there is a lot of information about prescription dosages, medication interactions and symptom checkers.
Patient Care and Diagnosis
This professional-grade language app helps you communicate with non-English speaking patients. The app is free, has strong reviews and supports medical translation in seven languages: English, Spanish, Cantonese, Mandarin, Russian and Hatian Creole. (IOS)
This app is highly-rated as a care-plan resource and diagnosis handbook. The Nurse’s Pocket Guide app is free, but additional features and assessment tools are available with in-app purchases. (IOS and Android)
This app is considered one of the most valuable smartphone apps for nursing students. It’s free to download but in-app purchases are required to access all the material. Epocrates provides laboratory guides, articles on diseases, medication information and pill identification. This app will help you make important clinical decisions in a timely way. (IOS and Android)
This smartphone app comes with high ratings and positive reviews. Nursing students find the customizable care plans useful, helping them get through clinicals and patient care more efficiently. The Nursing Care Plans app is not available in the Apple store, but it is available and free for Android users. (Android)
NCLEX Preparation
The free version features a limited number of practice questions and basic progress metrics. However, the highly-rated subscription gives you access to thousands of NCLEX-type questions and quizzes, customizable features, and exam prep and study strategies. (IOS and Android)
UWorld goes beyond practice questions for the NCLEX. The app evaluates your practice tests and provides explanations for incorrect answers. Students benefit from in-depth statistics generated as the app evaluates your progress, so that you can hone in on your weaker areas and study more. Using this app will help you feel confident as you go into the exam day, and will increase the chances that you will walk out of the NCLEX successful. UWorld NCLEX is free to download, but does contain some in-app purchases. (IOS and Android)
Davis Mobile NCLEX-RN
This app is priced at $19.99, but it is considered one of the preeminent NCLEX preparation apps for nursing students. The app allows you to work on flashcards at your own pace and also functions offline. The questions are written to challenge you to use critical thinking and go beyond rote memory. (IOS and Android. But currently not available on either of the app store.)
There’s an App for That!
It is truly an incredible time to be a nursing student with so many resources right at your fingertips! Smartphone apps aren’t just for those pursuing their bachelor’s degree. If you are a graduate student in nursing, be sure to check out more app recommendations from nursing school graduates.