New LWW Medical-Surgical Nursing Textbook Prepares Students to Think Like a Nurse

Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, part of Wolters Kluwer Health, has launched an innovative learning solution for nursing students, anchored with a comprehensive medical-surgical textbook and supported by interactive learning tools.  The new textbook, Focus on Adult Health: Medical Surgical Nursing, is uniquely designed to prepare today’s students to succeed as practicing nurses by focusing on the most important medical disorders and key nursing responsibilities. The book is supported by interactive learning tools including an adaptive quizzing program and a simulated electronic health record (EHR).

“As the demand for nurses continues to grow, new nurses are entering a dynamic and challenging work environment, and many feel unprepared,” said Linda H. Pellico, RN, PhD, the lead author and editor of the textbook. “We developed this textbook and related tools to prepare students for the reality of medical-surgical nursing.  We need to teach students how to think like a nurse, and how to focus quickly on the most critical aspects. Beyond taking care of what you see, nursing is about predicting and preventing risks, so this book details risk factors, clinical presentation, and treatment.”

The textbook prepares students for both the NCLEX exam and for daily nursing practice by focusing on the need-to-know content. The text includes 56 chapters, 46 of which have been written by a practicing clinician who distilled the content using their real world experience.  Both the text and the supporting tools included features designed to reinforce the student understanding, such as:

  • Focused Assessment Guides, which summarize key content for quick reference and review,
  • Guidelines for Nursing Care:  Clear, step-by-step “how to” procedures are paired with action rationales to explain why actions are important,
  • Innovative Art Program:  Connects text-based concepts with real-life patient scenarios,
  • Nursing alerts, evidence-based practice boxes, and risk factor boxes, to keep students engaged and increase their comprehension.

“I wrote this book because my teaching experience showed me that we need a new type of textbook, grounded in science, connected to clinical application, and full of the essential information students need to become great nurses,” said Pellico, who is an Associate Professor in Nursing at Yale University and director of the school’s Graduate Entry Prespecialty in Nursing (GEPN) program.  “As more students are participating in accelerated degree programs with compressed learning timeframes, a book that focuses on the essentials — with rigor —  is a welcome addition.”

The textbook is sold with access to LWW’s PrepU premium adaptive quizzing program, which offers personalized quizzes, highlights student’s strengths and weaknesses, and directs students to the text for further study.  In addition, students have access to DocuCare, LWW’s educational EHR software. DocuCare’s content aligns with the textbook material and commonly used simulation models, creating a cohesive learning experience from classroom to simulation lab.  DocuCare is linked to systems used in over 1200 hospitals nationwide providing a true-to-life student experience.  To learn more about Focus on Adult Health: Medical Surgical Nursing, go to thePoint.lww.com/Pellico1e.