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Difficult to read and follow, especially theory sections Sep 21, 2009 I am using this book for my nursing program as a required text. During and after reading each chapter, I find myself not being able to completely understand many of the distinctions between various ideas or functions, and so I am left without a comfortable grasp of some (not all) of the information. Subsequent re-readings of the material often results in minor improvement as expected, but the way the book is written makes it difficult to glean some (not all) of the important concepts, and there are multiple statements and ideas that re-readings ad nauseum cannot clarify adequately.
The text has a massive quantity of filler (more than any other textbook I have come across thus far), and it is very challenging to sift through it and find what's valuable (the who, what, when, where, why, how, what is it for and what does it do). The large amount of filler - including but not limited to extremely redundant or "duh" statements such as, "Critical thinking is involved with evidence-based practice," and, "Evidenced-based practice requires critical thinking" - also makes each chapter take much longer to read through. Even when you wade through the massive slough of filler and find the valuable information, it is often incomplete, improperly explained, or too ambiguous to completely grasp without divine intervention.
Some sentences have far too much data or too many listed items to comfortably read. There are many sentences that are hard to read and derive anything from simply because they are poorly written. The book has many complex or vague ideas and statements (sometimes using jargon, other times using a poor choice of words or unclear idea expression) and does not adequately clarify or explain what is meant, leaving the reader with an inadequate or incorrect understanding of whatever the book is attempting to convey.
I am disappointed that the answers section for the nclex questions do not have any rationale included, nor do the critical thinking questions have any answers available for review. The lack of thorough feedback does not facilitate learning.
Overall, I feel that the material does not give the reader an adequate or clear understanding of many concepts necessary to answer critical thinking questions like those used by my instructors. The main problem is that the important information is often written poorly, and the secondary problem is the excess filler doubles or triples the time it takes to read, without giving any more useful information than would be present without the filler.
I have several other books I am currently reading for nursing coursework, including Ackley's nursing diagnosis, Jarvis' health assessment, and Kee's phamacology, and they are all much more succinct and clear. They are easier and more enjoyable (or tolerable, whichever you prefer) to read. It is far easier to gather information from them, and it takes less time to get it. These other books are being used for the nursing coursework as well, so I don't believe I can attribute the difficulty of reading Fundamentals of Nursing to a "higher level of reading" like my lecture instructor says. It's not more advanced, it's just harder and less productive. If any of the authors of those other books took a stab at a nursing fundamentals book, it would be half the size, contain much more useful information, and be infinitely easier and more productive to read.
The companion CD is of limited value and only serves benefit for the mentioned info such as electrolyte information. It does not provide a computer-based version of the book, and most of the learning aids for specific chapter information are very truncated and almost useless. The online resource, however, is generally useful, but does not adequately make up for the book's flaws.
I don't care about typos as long as I can interpret the idea of the statement clearly. The book has plenty of typos (more than usual), but that is insignificant compared to how poorly the chapters are written.
Is the book the worst book in the world? No. Is it impossible to read? No. Is it bad for a textbook? I think so. Is it worse than any other textbook I have read in the past 2.5 years of college? Yes. Do I have a choice in what material I am assigned for the program? If I did, I wouldn't choose this book.
Can it get worse? Aug 13, 2009 I just finished my first semester of nursing school and I was required to purchase this book. There were so many typos that even a layman can find that it scared me to take any information at face value. If I was Potter or Perry I would hate to have my name attached to such a terrible text. There were a large group of us that purchased another Fundementals text book (by Harkreader) and got the information from that book instead and our test avereage went up. Please do yourself a favor and beg your instructor to choose a book by someone who can at least spell and edit.
Mosby should take no pride in this work......... May 12, 2009 This edition has a gross amount of errors, they really should be embarrassed. even the cd has an large amount of errors. i Question if someone even bothered to go through this and check for errors. .................
Typos, errors, verbal mush... Feb 16, 2009 Potter and Perry's 7th edition is chock-full of errors in the following areas (and I have only been reading it for a month):
1) minor typos throughout the book
2) incorrect answers to the NCLEX-style questions at the ends of the chapters and on the included CD ROM.
3) errors mentioned by other critics, e.g., regarding insulin action time, are still present in this printing that is copyrighted 2009. (I waited to buy this new printing of the 7th edition as I had hoped the errors other critics had noted would be corrected.
Additionally, the writing is verbose, disorganized, and lacking in important details. In the month I have been reading this book, I have found myself turning to other sources for more concise information, e.g., Lehne for drug metabolism, Saunder's NCLEX Review for acid-base and electrolyte coverage (I also like Lewis better for that, too), etc.
I just posted a negative review for Lewis' Medical Surgical Nursing, in which I just found a content error. What is the deal with these nursing textbooks having so many errors? Hmm...one connection is Mosby Elsevier - the publishers...
0 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Excellent Product - Just as Described Feb 10, 2009 This book was brand-new, just as described. Correct edition and publisher. Also arrived on time.
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