Nurses are special professionals whom most people consider to be pillars of society, having the strength, compassion and skills to care for hundreds of sick or injured people everyday. Nurses come from all walks of life and there has always been a great deal of demand for them. If you are considering becoming a nurse, you may have many questions; most importantly, “Do I have what it takes to be a nurse?” Read on to see what it takes to be a nurse in today’s world to see if you do.
The Different Levels of Nursing and Education
If you are considering nursing school, you may have already realized that there is a good deal of competition to get into the best programs. However, there is such a need for qualified nurses that you can get into a program and learn the skills you need to succeed. Before you do, one thing you may want to consider is what level of nursing you want to go for. Nursing care starts with a basic level (Certified Nurses Aid) to the more advanced nursing levels (Registered Nurses and onward), each taking a required amount of time in coursework, clinicals, and testing. What kind of patient population you want to work with will determine the level of schooling you will need. So you must be able to commit to at least one to six years of education and costs. You will also be required to maintain any licenses you earn through continual training and courses, if needed, to keep up with advances and changes in medicine—can you do it?
Physical and Emotional Strength
If you are considering nursing as a career, at any age or skill level, you will need to be aware that nursing is a very physically and emotionally demanding RN job. You can expect to be standing, lifting and on your feet for up to sixteen hours at a time. You also will be exposed not only to many illnesses, body fluids, and different procedures, but you will also be dealing with patient families. There may be times when you will have to make decisions in a matter of seconds in order to provide life-saving treatment to a patient. You may be asked to tell a patient or family member bad news and then have to stay focused to offer support to them while maintaining a high level of care regardless of the outcome. You may have to deal with very uncooperative patients or aggressive or dangerous people. Nursing is a demanding career both physically and emotionally and it’s up to you to stay strong and handle these roles—can you do it?
Nurses Don’t Expect Thanks
If you are a nurse, you will probably encounter many times when you will not feel appreciated. You may be dealing with difficult patients all day, then a doctor who wants to remind you that you are not a doctor, or worse yet, another nurse with more experience or rank than you—who makes sure you know that. Caring for patients can become a chore if you expect a thank you from them. Nurses are required to fulfill so many roles within the healthcare system that they often feel taken for granted or unrecognized. If you want to be a nurse, you will need to be able to deal with these things and rise above in order to be a great nurse. Can you?
If you read the above and you still think you would like to be a nurse, then by all means, check out the many wonderful nursing programs available today. There are many opportunities awaiting you in nursing.
