Nursing is a noble profession in the healthcare sector. It allows you to serve humanity from the frontlines. While you’re helping people, you also get a chance to learn about yourself and grow as a person. However, given how busy the healthcare sector is, numerous challenges await you if you opt for nursing as a career. But with the challenges, there are also opportunities on the horizon. Ultimately, get to decide whether the challenges or the opportunities take precedence for you. So to help you make a decision, here is what you need to know about Professional Issues In Nursing:
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What opportunities are there for you?
Before you join any career, you may want to know what you can achieve. There is much for you to explore, learn and enjoy as a nurse. You’re helping communities in more ways you can imagine through your hard work and knowledge alone. So for your understanding, the following section covers insufficient details what becoming a nurse will mean for you and about Professional Issues In Nursing:
1. Never-ending learning
As a nurse, you will be committing to a lifelong journey to learning. At no point in your career will you ever be stagnant. The more you learn and pursue accreditation, the more job opportunities you open up for yourself. Suppose you start paving a path towards specialization. In that case, you get to take up more senior roles and even practice with more autonomy. After you become a registered nurse, you can easily supplement your education online. Enrolling in a Master in Nursing online can help you get certified to occupy senior positions. This also means you can look towards mentorship programs and even train junior nurses.
2. High earning potential
Nurses have a high earning potential. The salary margin depends on your area of specialization and how senior your post is. However, it is safe to say you earn well even as a new RN. A good paycheque ensures stability. In a fleeting economy, it is good to have a steady cash flow. The more you become autonomous as a nurse, such as becoming a nurse practitioner or even doing a DNP, the more you’ll earn. So if you’re looking for a profession that appreciates you for the work you’ve put in, go for nursing.
3. A chance to help others
No other sector lets you work with people as closely as the healthcare sector. You get to work with people coming from different walks of life, all looking at you for help. Helping people is a wonderful feeling. You feel appreciated, valued, and even good about yourself. It is good to know you make a difference in a world where people give up on careers because of underappreciation.
What’s more, you’re not only helping adults but also infants as young as newborns. When you get to work with such vulnerable lives, it leaves an impact on you. Empathy, kindness, and respect may start kindling themselves deep inside you.
4. Opportunity to travel
Becoming a nurse doesn’t mean you can’t travel. Some people enjoy careers that allow them to move around with liberty. As a practicing nurse, you will get the chance to do that. Travel nurses not only go around the state but can also volunteer internationally. If the idea of unlocking your potential through constant traveling and learning appeals to you, consider becoming a travel nurse. The money you earn as a travel nurse is also quite attractive. So you’re not signing up for the shorter end of the deal if you choose to become a nurse and travel. A healthcare jobs recruitment agency can help you find the right job.
What challenges will you have to go through?- Professional Issues In Nursing
While the perks of becoming a nurse may leave you glistening, you need to know what challenges are in store for you. Nursing can be rewarding, but it can also be incredibly exhausting. The work hours are long, and the patients can be complex. It also doesn’t help that some doctors take advantage of the hierarchy and you. The section below will better inform you what becoming a nurse can also lead to:
1. Long hours
You may need to put in long hours at work almost every day. If an emergency case comes in, you may need to stay longer. Extended hours are tiring. It also requires immense commitment on your part to stay back. You may have to sacrifice a large chunk of your personal life for work. So you may miss out on family moments and even hanging out with friends. If you have an active social life, it can get challenging to balance work and life.
2. Inflexible schedules
Nurses are not known to have good schedules. You may get assigned over the weekends or too many night shifts. This means if you have plans outside of the hospital, they have to wait. It also entails finding ways to build your stamina and curb your anxiety if you’re working round the clock. Inflexible schedules are also frustrating because you can’t expect the hospital to accommodate you if you need time off. When you feel sleepy at work, it can become a significant source of demotivation for you to return to work.
3. Professional burnout
Long hours and bad schedules can easily translate into burnout. When burnout kicks in, it takes a toll on your health. You may feel irritable, depressed, and even stressed. In extreme cases, you may even collapse at work and may need to hit the ER. Burnout also hinders other aspects of your life. You may lose your appetite and drive to exercise. In addition, your work suffers. You may start neglecting patients, make mistakes and even mess up the necessary paperwork.
Wrap up
Nursing is one of the top fields in the healthcare sector. However, like most professions, it has both its upsides and downsides. But, since it is a prestigious career, it depends on you what aspect you want to give power to. If you enjoy taking care of others, get paid a handsome salary, and make opportunities for yourself, you’ll fit right in. But, if you’re a social bug and like a fixed schedule that also gives you weekends off, this field may not be for you. So choose wisely.
