There are a lot of apps out there that can help you with nursing school. But which ones are best? Which ones will help you get through your day with the most efficiency, so you can spend as much time as possible studying? Which ones will give you the best ratios of utility to price?
Well, we’ve done all the research for you, and have come up with the ten best apps for nursing students in 2020. They range from efficient scheduling to comprehensive medical databases, and everything in between. Whether you’re looking for something to help you study or need something to help you juggle your many responsibilities, the tools below will help!
Table of Contents
Best Apps For Nursing Students 2020
Students and professionals in the nursing field today depend on technology and digital resources to manage aspects of their busy working and personal lives. Finding the best apps to help in studying and organizing patient care tasks can ease the challenges of school and the stress of healthcare workplaces.
We’ve compiled a list of our top 25 best nursing apps, sorted into the following categories:
Best Apps for Nursing Students
Scheduling and Organizational Apps for Students
Medical Information Apps
Medication Identification Apps
Apps for Nursing Specialties
Best Apps for Nursing Students
Graphic with details about Medscape app
- Medscape
Features: This free app from WebMD provides up-to-date medical news on a variety of specialties, an in-depth clinical reference library, resources for earning continuing education units (CEUs), and a medical directory. It’s a must-have for nursing students and professionals alike.
Cost: Free
Available on: iPhone or Android
- Saunders Comprehensive Review for NCLEX-RN
Features: Designed for future nurses preparing for the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN), this app provides intensive study materials and over 6,000 NCLEX-specific examination questions.
Cost: Free trial; subscription required for full access
Available on: iPhone or Android
- Picmonic
Features: Change up your study habits with thousands of quizzes and 1- to 3-minute mnemonic videos, using techniques proven to improve memory retention.
Cost: Free; offers in-app purchases
Available on: iPhone and Android
- Med Mnemonics
Features: This app simplifies the memorization process for complex medical terminology through rhymes and acronyms. It even allows you to create and save your own mnemonics.
Cost: $1.99
Available on: iPhone and Android
- PEPID
Features: With versions for students and various healthcare professionals, this app provides comprehensive information about a range of patient care topics.
Cost: Free
Available on: iPhone and Android
Scheduling and Organizational Apps for Students
Graphic with details about Nurse Grid app
- NurseGrid Scheduling
Features: Developed by RNs for RNs, this app allows nurses to keep track of customized work schedules, manage shift changes and multiple worksites, and sync information with popular calendar apps.
Cost: Free
Available on: iPhone and Android
- My Shift Planner
Features: Helping nurses and other shift workers with time management, this app is designed to easily schedule complicated shift patterns and synchronize with common calendar apps. The user can record daily notes about shifts and hours worked for better tracking.
Cost: Free; offers in-app purchases
Available on: iPhone and Android
- JobsDocs
Features: Created by a nurse for nurses, this app helps organize the documentation required to maintain licensures and certifications.
Cost: Free with in-app purchases
Available on: iPhone and Android
- MediBabble Translator
Features: Communication with non-English-speaking patients is critical for delivering quality care. This app creates a bridge, with interpretation of key medical vocabulary in seven languages.
Cost: Free
Available on: iPhone
- Nursing Procedure Checklist
Features: When you need a reminder, this app offers both written checklists and visual images of setting out instruments for common nursing procedures.
Cost: Free
Available on: Android
Medical Information Apps
Graphic with details about Nursing Central app
- Nursing Central
Features: To create a comprehensive repository of nursing information, this app combines five popular apps in one: Davis’s Drug Guide, Taber’s Medical Dictionary, Davis’s Laboratory and Diagnostic Tests, Diseases & Disorders, and Prime PubMed.
Cost: Free trial; subscription required for full access
Available on: iPhone and Android
- DynaMed
Features: This app provides evidence-based clinical information for healthcare professionals, including point-of-care recommendations and objective analysis.
Cost: Free limited use; subscription required for full access
Available on: iPhone and Android
- Full Code Pro
Features: From the American Heart Association, this app, popular in ERs, allows for quick official documentation of critical medical interventions during cardiac arrest resuscitation situations.
Cost: Free
Available on: iPhone
- Journal of Nursing Scholarship (JNS)
Features: This app gives you a top nursing journal at your fingertips: Journal of Nursing Scholarship, published by The Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau. And some schools, like the University of St. Augustine, offer access by logging in through their university network.
Cost: Subscription required
Available on: iPhone and Android
- Diseases Dictionary
Features: Medical professionals can explore a wide variety of symptoms and descriptions of major medical diseases and disorders, prescription drug information, and treatment protocols in this medical reference app.
Cost: Free; offers in-app purchases
Available on: iPhone and Android
Medication Identification Apps
Graphic with details about Epocrates app
- Epocrates
Features: Users can easily research prescription and OTC drug information and interactions, use a variety of dosing calculators, and examine insurance coverage formularies for thousands of medications.
Cost: Free; offers in-app purchases
Available on: iPhone and Android
- Pill Identifier by Drugs.com
Features: This app enables users to quickly search for medications by drug shape, color, name, and imprint within a database of over 24,000 prescription and OTC meds.
Cost: $0.99
Available on: iPhone
- Lexicomp
Features: Nurses can access more than 20 databases of medication details, including information other apps don’t have, such as IV compatibility, patient education pamphlets, and drug shortage data.
Cost: Free trial period, followed by subscription
Available on: iPhone and Android
- CredibleMeds
Features: This app, designed for use in ICUs, details drug interactions that have the potential to impact the heart by prolonging the QT interval on the electrocardiogram and/or cause dangerous arrhythmia torsades de pointes.
Cost: Free
Available on: iPhone and Android
- Nursing Drug Handbook
Features: This resource app provides in-depth background on a variety of name-brand and generic prescription medications, including effects on lab results and pregnancies. It features a strong focus on safety considerations during drug administration.
Cost: Free; offers in-app purchases
Available on: iPhone and Android
Apps for Nursing Specialties
Graphic with details about Pedi STAT app
- Pedi STAT
Features: Caring for children requires tailored dosages, equipment sizes, and treatments, all of which can be accessed on-the-go in this reference app.
Cost: $4.99 in App Store, $5.49 in Google Play
Available on: iPhone and Android
- Palliative Care Fast Facts
Features: Practitioners can use this app as a quick reference guide for diagnoses, treatments, and protocols related to palliative care.
Cost: Free
Available on: iPhone and Android
- Oncology Nursing Drug Handbook
Features: Focusing on the unique needs of patients with cancer, this annually updated app offers the most current treatment and medication details for navigating chemotherapy, symptom management, and patient education.
Cost: Free; offers in-app purchases
Available on: iPhone and Android
- Perfect OB Wheel
Features: This app digitally replicates the traditional gestational calendar using an intuitive interface. Nurses can track multiple pregnancies while remaining HIPAA compliant.
Cost: $1.99; offers in-app purchases
Available on: iPhone
- Geriatrics at Your Fingertips
Features: Healthcare providers specializing in the care of older adults can benefit from this app, a guide for current strategies, evaluations, and treatment plans for common geriatric conditions and disorders.
Cost: Free; offers in-app purchases
Available on: iPhone and Android
Your phone or tablet can be an invaluable patient care tool when it’s loaded with any of these apps. Take advantage of the many free, low-cost, and valuable subscription options to discover which apps can serve you best.
The University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences (USAHS) offers Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP), and Post-Graduate Nursing Certificates designed for working nurses. Our degrees are offered online, with optional on-campus immersions.* Role specialties include Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP), Nurse Educator,** and Nurse Executive. The MSN has several options to accelerate your time to degree completion. Earn your advanced nursing degree while keeping your work and life in balance.
*The FNP role specialty includes two required hands-on clinical intensives as part of the curriculum.
**The Nurse Educator role specialty is not available for the DNP program.
best drug app for nurses
ncreasingly we’re living in a mobile world. The Pew Research Center reported that 95% of Americans own a cellphone of some kind – compared to 35% in 2011. With that, the dependency on smartphones has increased. One-in-five American adults rely solely on their smartphone for internet and do not have a traditional home broadband service.
With this rise in dependence on our smartphones has also come a rise in smartphone apps. But of the 2 million apps in the Apple Store and 3.8 million in the Android Google Play Store, how can you be sure you’re downloading the right apps for what you need?
We’ve pulled together a list of the 10 smartphone apps that every nurse needs to help you narrow your search. We’ve included five medical apps, but also five non-medical apps focused on making your life easier. All apps are available for both iPhone and Android so regardless of your device, you can download whichever (or all!) apps that speak to you.
Let’s start with the five medical apps every nurse needs:
- NCSBN: Medication Flashcards
This app provides thousands of flashcards to help nurses master drug information when preparing for their NCLEX exam. While it is intended to help students study for the qualifying exam, it’s a great tool to have in your pocket throughout your nursing career for easy reference and review.
The app provides common examples of drugs along with basic descriptions and uses. It groups them into categories and includes common effects of each drug on patients. Having a full medication library on your phone is a great resource that can help nurses at any stage of their career.
Download here: Apple Store | Android Google Play Store
- NurseGrid: Manage Your Schedule
Developed by nurses to help manage the scheduling process, NurseGrid allows you to manage your schedule across multiple worksites and communicate with other nurses in your units. With options to swap or give away shifts, you can coordinate your schedule without any back-and-forth over text or calls.
Nursing Managers can also use the app to manage the nurses in their unit and oversee all scheduling that happens. By keeping all of the scheduling in one place, the app helps make sure nothing gets lost in communication and everyone can see what shifts they are scheduled to work and plan ahead for their week.
Download here: Apple Store | Android Google Play Store
- Epocrates: Point Of Care Medical Applications
Epocrates is a drug referencing app that streamlines searches for any information on prescription drugs, drug interactions, or physicians who can prescribe those drugs. Its extensive drug database allows you to search by generic name, brand name or a list of more specific conditions. For specific drugs, you can find treatment options and how the drug may interact with different diagnosis.
The app also contains information on specific diseases including lab guides coding, clinical practice guidelines and alternative medications. This is helpful for nursing students studying for exams as well as to help nurses ensure they are providing proper treatment during practice.
Download here: Apple Store | Android Google Play Store
- Nursing Central: Reference A Collection Of Resources
Nursing Central combines five different reference resources with a number of valuable tools to provide a comprehensive location for nurses to find answers for any question they may have. They provide access to drug guides, disease and disorder descriptions, medical dictionaries, lab and diagnostic test information, and medical calculators.
The app has a function that allows you to input symptoms and provides a list of possible conditions. Having a mobile resource like this with you on the job can help make sure that you can get any question answered on the fly.
Download here: Apple Store | Android Google Play Store
- Medscape: Point-Of-Care Decision Making
Medscape, while primarily a news site online, has a medical reference app that provides drug information and a disease reference tool, while also providing access to medical news.
One of the most well known functions is the Drug Interaction Checker, which allows up to 30 inputs and will check interactions between them.
Download here: Apple Store | Android Google Play Store
Moving onto the non-medical apps, we’ve found apps that are focused on helping you in your busy day. Whether it’s for task tracking, meditation or even investing (passive income!) these apps don’t have to be medical-specific to make a difference in your life.
- Todoist: To-Do List And Task Manager
Nurses are always constantly in “go mode” and it’s sometimes hard to keep track of all the things you need to do in a day. One minute you remember but when you actually have time to get to that task, you’ve forgotten what it was you needed to do.
Having a task manager app is a great way to keep a running list of everything so that you can easily reference it when needed. Building a habit of making sure to jot down a task when you think of it will make sure you have a running list and never forget to do something important!
Download here: Apple Store | Android Google Play Store
- Headspace: Meditation And Mindfulness
Nurses are always working and thinking about their patients and often have a hard time finding a minute for themselves. Using an app like Headspace which has tailored meditations and mindfulness exercises helps you build a habit that will give you time to focus on your most important patient: yourself.
Headspace coaches you to improve on specific needs and while it may take a few days to get into the habit of it, once you get in the rhythm you’ll find that every day is made better by a few minutes of meditation.
Download here: Apple Store | Android Google Play Store
- Pocket: Manage Reading Lists
As a nurse, you’re constantly reading and learning new information – whether it’s a scientific article, a news piece, or a blog post with interesting content. But you’re so busy throughout your day that you may not have enough time to read as much as you want.
Pocket allows you to save any article that catches your eye in one place so that when you do have time to do a bit of reading, all of your articles are stored in one place. You can even read your articles offline, so no need to worry about being connected to the network if you decide to read during a wifi-less commute.
Download here: Apple Store | Android Google Play Store
- HabitBull: Daily Goal Tracker
We’re always in the habit of wanting to break or build up a habit. Whether you want to start sleeping earlier every day or want to build a 30 minute workout in your schedule, a habit tracking app is one of the best ways to get yourself on track.
HabitBull encourages you to achieve your daily goals by allowing you to mark off successful days and showing you trends of days you’ve achieved your goals. You can visibly see the amount of progress you’ve made and where you can continue to improve. There are also graphs to help you visualize your progress so that you can strive for a constantly upward trend.
Download here: Apple Store | Android Google Play Store
- Robinhood: Invest For Free.
For nurses interested in exploring avenues for passive income, one of the best methods of is investing. Whether it’s stocks, ETFs, or cryptocurrencies, Robinhood allows you to choose what you want to buy and charges no fee.
The easy-to-use interface shows the overall trend of the stock and the current buying price to give you a general sense for whether or not it’s a good stock to buy. It will also help you keep track of how much you’re gaining or losing on each stock to help inform when it’s time to sell.
Download here: Apple Store | Android Google Play Store
There you have it! We’ve listed 10 of the best medical and non-medical smartphone apps for nurses to help you decide what apps you should use your highly coveted storage space on.
We hope that you find some of these apps useful or have gotten inspired to search for other apps in the app store that fit your needs!
And while you’re in the mood for searching, click here to start another job search on Nomad! We’re constantly updating the search function on the platform and adding new jobs every day – so check back to see if there are new jobs that fit your preferences!
Happy searching!
The Nomad Team
nomadhealth.com
Looking for travel nursing jobs? Wish you could skip recruiters and chat directly with employers? Join Nomad for free here!
Already on Nomad? View your new jobs here!
Conclusion
Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
Check out other publications to gain access to more digital resources if you are just starting out with Flux Resource.
Also contact us today to optimize your business(s)/Brand(s) for Search Engines