Nursing Exam Cram Sheet for the NCLEX

The final mountain that nursing students must summit before becoming a registered nurse is the NCLEX. Preparing for the NCLEX can be stressful as
taking in colossal amounts of information has never been easy. This is where this cram sheet can help-- it contains condensed facts about the licensure
exam and key nursing information. When exam time comes, you can write and transfer these vital information from your head to a blank sheet of paper
provided by the testing center.
1. Test Information
 Six hours—the maximum time allotted
for the NCLEX is 6 hours. Take breaks if
you need a time out or need to move
around.
 75/265—the minimum number of
questions you can answer is 75 and a
maximum of 265.
 Read the question and answers
carefully—do not jump into conclusions
or make wild guesses.
 Look for keywords—Avoid answers with
absolutes like always, never, all, every,
only, must, except, none, or no.
 Don’t read into the question—Never
assume anything that has not been
specifically mentioned and don’t add
extra meaning to the question.
 Eliminate answers that are clearly wrong
or incorrect—to increase your probability
of selecting the correct answer!
 Watch for grammatical
inconsistencies—Subjects and verbs
should agree. If the question is an
incomplete sentence, the correct answer
should complete the question in a
grammatically correct manner.
 Rephrase the question—putting the
question into your own words can pluck
the unneeded info and reveal the core of
the stem.
 Make an educated guess—if you can’t
make the best answer for a question
after carefully reading it, choose the
answer with the most information.
2. Vital Signs
 Heart rate: 80—100 bpm
 Respiratory rate: 12-20 rpm
 Blood pressure: 110-120/60 mmHg
 Temperature: 37 °C (98.6 °F)
3. Hematology values
 RBCs: 4.5—5.0 million
 WBCs: 5,000—10,000
 Platelets: 200,000—400,000
 Hemoglobin (Hgb): 12—16 gm (female);
14—18 gm (male).
 Hematocrit (Hct): 37—47 (female); 40—
54 (male)
4. Serum electrolytes
 Sodium: 135—145 mEq/L
 Potassium: 3.5—5.5 mEq/L
 Calcium: 8.5—10.9 mEq/L
 Chloride: 95—105 mEq/L
 Magnesium: 1.5—2.5 mEq/L
 Phosphorus: 2.5—4.5 mEq/L
5. ABG Values
 pH: 7.36—7.45
 HCO3: 24—26 mEq/L
 CO2: 35—45 mEq/L
 PaO2: 80%—100%
 SaO2: >95%
6. Acid-Base Balance
 Remember ROME (respiratory
opposite/metabolic equal) to remember
that in respiratory acid/base disorders
the pH is opposite to the other
components.
 Use the Tic-Tac-Toe Method for
interpreting ABGs. Read more about it
here (http://bit.ly/abgtictactoe).
7. Chemistry Values
 Glucose: 70—110 mg/dL
 Specific Gravity: 1.010—1.030
 BUN: 7-22 mg/dL
 Serum creatinine: 0.6—1.35 mg/dL
 LDH: 100-190 U/L
 Protein: 6.2—8.1 g/dL
 Albumin: 3.4—5.0 g/dL
 Bilirubin: <1.0 mg/dL
 Total Cholesterol: 130—200 mg/dL
 Triglyceride: 40—50 mg/dL
 Uric acid: 3.5—7.5 mg/dL
 CPK: 21-232 U/L
Via: http://nurseslabs.com/nclex-cram-sheet/
8. Therapeutic Drug Levels
 Carbamazepine (Tegretol): 4—10
mcg/ml
 Digoxin (Lanoxin): 0.8—2.0 ng/ml
 Gentamycin (Garamycin): 5—10 mcg/ml
(peak), <2.0 mcg/ml (valley)
 Lithium (Eskalith): 0.8—1.5 mEq/L
 Phenobarbital (Solfoton): 15—40
mcg/mL
 Phenytoin (Dilantin): 10—20 mcg/dL
 Theophylline (Aminophylline): 10—20
mcg/dL
 Tobramycin (Tobrex): 5—10 mcg/mL
(peak), 0.5—2.0 mcg/mL (valley)
 Valproic Acid (Depakene): 50—100
mcg/ml
 Vancomycin (Vancocin): 20—40 mcg/ml
(peak), 5 to 15 mcg/ml (trough)
9. Anticoagulant therapy
 Sodium warfarin (Coumadin) PT: 10—12
seconds (control). The antidote is
Vitamin K.
 INR (Coumadin): 0.9—1.2
 Heparin PTT: 30—45 seconds (control).
The antidote is protamine sulfate.
 APTT: 23.3—31.9 seconds
 Fibrinogen level: 203—377 mg/dL
10. Conversions
 1 teaspoon (t) = 5 ml
 1 tablespoon (T) = 3 t = 15 ml
 1 oz = 30 ml
 1 cup = 8 oz
 1 quart = 2 pints
 1 pint = 2 cups
 1 grain (gr) = 60 mg
 1 gram (g) = 1,000 mg
 1 kilogram (kg) = 2.2 lbs
 1 lb = 16 oz
 Convert C to F: C+40 multiply by 9/5 and
subtract 40
 Convert F to C: F+40 multiply by 5/9 and
subtract 40
11. Maternity Normal Values
 Fetal Heart Rate: 120—160 bpm
 Variability: 6—10 bpm
 Amniotic fluid: 500—1200 ml
 Contractions: 2—5 minutes apart with
duration of < 90 seconds and intensity
of <100 mmHg.
 APGAR Scoring: Appearance, Pulses,
Grimace, Activity, Reflex Irritability. Done
at 1 and 5 minutes with a score of 0 for
absent, 1 for decreased, and 2 for
strongly positive. Scores 7 and above
are generally normal, 4 to 6 fairly low,
and 3 and below are generally regarded
as critically low.
 AVA: The umbilical cord has two arteries
and one vein.
12. STOP—Treatment for maternal hypotension
after an epidural anesthesia:
 Stop infusion of Pitocin.
 Turn the client on her left side.
 Administer oxygen.
 If hypovolemia is present, push IV fluids.
13. Pregnancy Category of Drugs
 Category A—No risk in controlled human
studies
 Category B—No risk in other studies.
Examples: Amoxicillin, Cefotaxime.
 Category C—Risk not ruled out.
Examples: Rifampicin (Rifampin),
Theophylline (Theolair).
 Category D—Positive evidence of risk.
Examples: Phenytoin, Tetracycline.
 Category X—Contraindicated in
Pregnancy. Examples: Isotretinoin
(Accutane), Thalidomide (Immunoprin),
etc.
 Pregnancy Category N—Not yet
classified
14. Drug Schedules
 Schedule I—no currently accepted
medical use and for research use only
(e.g., heroin, LSD, MDMA).
 Schedule II—drugs with high potential
for abuse and requires written
prescription (e.g., Ritalin,
hydromorphone (Dilaudid), meperidine
(Demerol), and fentanyl).
 Schedule III—requires new prescription
after six months or five refills (e.g.,
codeine, testosterone, ketamine).
 Schedule IV—requires new prescription
after six months (e.g., Darvon, Xanax,
Soma, and Valium).
 Schedule V—dispensed as any other
prescription or without prescription
(e.g., cough preparations, Lomotil,
Motofen).
15. Medication Classifications
 Antacids—reduces hydrochloric acid in
the stomach.
 Antianemics—increases blood cell
production.