If you have ever thought about becoming a nurse, then this article is for you. You will learn a lot of things about this career, and you will then decide if you would like to do this job or not.
Being a nurse is very gratifying since you help people who are sick to heal or to be sicker. You also help people who are injured. In general, you assist and help the doctors with the patients. If you have enough knowledge, you can even give medication and take blood tests.
There are a lot of types of nurses. You can be a general nurse and help doctors by doing secretarial duties. You can be a surgical nurse and make sure everything is sterile and assist the surgeon. There are obstetric-gynecological nurses who are there when a baby is delivered. The neonatal nurses work with newborns and guide new moms to know how to feed their baby. The nurses who help to give the good sedation to the patient is called a nurse anesthetist. Also, there are psychiatric nurses who take the care of patients with mental disease. Occupational health nurses do preventive education. You may also be a community or public health nurse and where you will have to educate some groups of people on diverse health-related subjects. You can also become a private duty nurse where you take care of only one patient in their home or even in the hospital.
Of course, it depends on the type of nurse you are. For example, if you are a surgical nurse, you will not do the same thing as a neonatal nurse. In general, you work an eight-hour shift, but you may work 10 to 12 hours. In that case, you will work 3 or 4 days per week. No matter in which specialty you are, you need to have great communication skills to be able to listen to your patients to help them well. You also need to make sure that you are clear to a patient. For example, you must make sure that a patient does not eat before surgery.
Nurses can work in hospitals, long-term care facilities, clinics, schools, corporations, or they can have a business of their own. Because of budget cutbacks and the quality of work, a lot of nurses decide to leave working in hospitals to go mostly in private care.
No matter which qualification and the type of education you get, you will have to pass The National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX). It is an exam that every nurse must pass to be able to do their profession. First, you can have a bachelor's degree in nursing. This program takes four years to complete, and you will learn more about theories and clinical instructions. You will then be able to specialize in a specific health problem. You can also have an associate degree in nursing which takes two to three years. You will learn about nursing, microbiology, psychology and Social Science. The last qualification you can get is a diploma in nursing. It also takes two to three years, but it is less common than the two others. Big hospitals related to universities or college can give you this diploma.
Of course, the higher a nurse's education, the higher is her salary. However, the average salary is $61 503 per year in Canada.
In Quebec, a nurse can retire if he or she got at least 60 years old or have done at least 35 years of service.
For now, I am still in college in Natural Science. In two years, I am going to go to university to get a bachelor's degree in nursing. After that, I will be able to do the job of my dreams and help sick people.
Rationale: to inform or educate
Date: recently published
Accuracy: probably true
Rationale: to inform or educate
Date: recently published
Accuracy: probably true
Relevance: relevant for this document
Sources: cites sources
Rationale: to inform or educate
Authority: government
Date: recently published
Accuracy: probably true
Relevance: relevant for this document
Sources: cites sources