Hello,

There is not a 'specific time' needed to use a stethoscope.Most probably you will need it during practical,training sessions but I recommend you to buy it during the first year itself.During the first year many colleges teach intoduction to medical equipments or working of body systems like circulatory system etc,although these would be taught in theory ,you can try using stethoscope like try listening to the heartbeats,counting the number of beats in a minute,listening to the change in heart beat when it pumps blood faster after exercise versus normal heart beat rate in short you can get familiar with using stethoscope as it will help you in your couse.

All the best!

In the 1930s, nurses began to routinely use the stethoscope to measure blood pressure. A student nurse at a bedside taking a patient's blood pressure while Instructor Sarah P. White looks on, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

If we talk about the best type of sthethescope, One of the recommended stethoscopes for nursing students is undoubtedly the Liberty Classic Tuneable Stethoscope and is also highly used by doctors too.