Are you planning to opt for a career in nursing? Do you have all the requisite qualities to become a nurse? Being a nurse is not easy; one has to work with sick patients day in and out, and handle emergencies at any time of the day or the night. Read on to understand if you are meant to be a nurse.
Do you feel compassion for the sick?
Nurses have to feel great compassion for human suffering. This compassion translates into infinite patience while dealing with those that need to be treated gently. Sometimes nurses have to convey bad news to families and support them during their bereavement. At times, ailing patients require round-the-clock care and a nurse has to be on duty to ensure he or she takes care of the patient’s every little need. This takes a great deal of patience, true caring, compassion and empathy. Caring for patients tirelessly day in and day out can take a great emotional toll on the nurse.
Can you work long hours and double shifts?
Nurses are required to be on call whenever required. Sometimes sudden patient emergencies can occur and nurses have to leave their families and other tasks and rush to answer the summons. This is the same as it is for doctors. Sometimes when there’s staff shortage or when a staff member is sick, nurses have to work double shifts without complaining. Patients cannot be left without care at any time and all medical staff is expected to work overtime.
Can you handle pain and death?
As a nurse, you’ll be faced with pain and death more often than you might want. Sometimes, you’ll have to see small children die of cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Old people die regularly in hospitals over long care as well. Other than the pain of the patients themselves, there is a greater, more lasting pain with which you have to deal. This is the pain felt by bereaved family members. As a nurse, you’ll have to console family members and comfort them the best you can. You have to deal with death as a part of daily care and not allow this fact to interfere with your professionalism or your daily duties.
Can you communicate well?
When people fall ill they become scared and depressed. What they need at this time in is someone to talk to them and tell them that it’s going to be all right. Doctors need to know patient status in quick and simple terms. Families of patients need to hear patient status and also about the next treatment steps. Everywhere you go, you’ll have to communicate with someone or the other in a nursing job. All this requires excellent interpersonal and communication skills. To deliver the right amount of information, in the right way, at the right time to the right person is an art that all nurses should possess.
Do you have a mind for medical facts?
As a nurse, you’ll have to remember patient statistics, histories, medical treatments and diagnostic results. You should be able to talk intelligently to doctors and other health care professionals about medical facts, using the right terms and technological aspects. You must read from charts and know what needs to be done next, if a doctor is not present to advise you in cases of emergency. You should be able to understand diseases, symptoms, manifestations, progresses, cures and treatments. You should be able to remember, articulate, and write down medical instructions.
Can you work flexible hours?
Nurses are required to work in shifts, which can range from 4 to 12 hours a day. While nursing is a career that allows you to have weekdays off and work flexible hours so that you can continue education or care for your family, you’re also expected to be on call whenever required. During emergencies, nurses, doctors and other medical staff are required to work double shifts without complaint.
Can you work long hours on your feet?
When a hospital sees a sudden influx of patients, a single nurse might have to handle care for multiple patients, working all the time on their feet. You might not get the chance to sit down, and might have to run between patient to patient, providing first aid and alleviating distress. Nurses also have to stand for long hours while assisting with surgeries.
Are you stable and reliable during emergencies?
A nurse must be able to take quick decisions during emergencies. The ability to think quickly, act responsibly and be able to work well in a chaotic emergency situation is a huge plus for any nurse. The environment in a hospital can be noisy, chaotic and very confusing. A good nurse knows how to filter out the noise and focus only on what needs to be done without getting rattled and hyperactive.
