This article is for anyone who has ever considered becoming a nurse or simply wants to know about what it is like to be a nurse. This short article summarizes everything you need to know about nurses such as the typical day of a nurse, what they do, their salary, the dangers related to this profession and many other pieces of interesting information.
Nursing is a very versatile medical field. A nurse can choose to practice in many fields such as pediatrics, surgery or neonatal care. Depending on their specialization, nurses can treat a lot of patients and administer treatments to prevent getting sick or to treat illnesses and injuries.
Being a nurse means being ready to help a lot of patients mentally and physically. For the physical part, nurses administer treatments and medications and assist patients while they perform some therapeutic exercises. For the mental part of the job, a nurse makes sure to always be there to support emotionally the patient and tries to build some trust in between them and the patient. Also, a nurse needs to be able to summarize the procedures and the required treatment to the family while supporting them through this very difficult time.
There is no typical day for a nurse, because every patient is different and every procedure and treatment is different. Also, a nurse does not have a regular schedule, their shifts are various and require a lot of adaptability. In fact, many nurses work around 8 hours a day, but some exceed this time and work around 10 to 12 hours a day. Even if the schedule and tasks are far from being consistent, the job still remains the same: treating and helping patients.
Most of the nurses work in hospitals or clinics but there is a large variety of places where a nurse can work. In fact, places like schools, homes and pharmacies require the presence of a nurse almost all the time. Moreover, there are some nurses who travel all around the world to help treat international health crises.
To become a clinical nurse, there are two possible paths. First, you can study Nursing in cegep for three-year and complete your training at university with a two-year bachelor's degree. If this option doesn't seem like the best one for you, you can also choose to study in Life and Health Science for two-years in cegep and finish your training at university with a three-year bachelor's degree. After this, you can either choose to start working as a nurse or specialize in a more specific field.
In Canada, a registered nurse in the middle of their career makes about $43,27 per hour which is about $86 540 per year. At the beginning of their career, a nurse makes about $30 an hour of work and at the end of their career, they make about $54,37/hour. Moreover, nurses often have the possibility of working overtime to boost their salary. Also, some bonuses are often given in this profession which is very advantageous economically.
While studying, nurses need to do a lot of training courses to familiarize themselves with the job and the different types of treatments and therapies that they will need to administer.
Being a nurse means being exposed to various patients who sometimes have mental disorders, violent behavior or simply exhausted by the waiting in pain. Obviously, because of that, this profession includes risk of physical and verbal violence. For this reason, nurses should always be aware of their surrounding and ready to react to a risky behavior. Moreover, a nurse is often exposed to various contagious diseases which is a controlled risk but still a danger for the nurse.
Chances are low that nurses will be replaced by robots soon, because this profession is currently in high demand and requires some human's interaction and hand-on care. In fact, nurses need to provide a lot of emotional support and a great attention to detail which are not skills that a robot can possess.
In Canada, the median age of retirement after working as a nurse is around 63 years.
To conclude, being a nurse represents a very important and interesting goal for me. This career really interests me, and I would really like to become a nurse soon. This year, I will finish my Life and Health Science degree and next year, I will start studying Nursing at university for around three years. If everything goes well, I will be able to become a nurse in only a few years and pursue my dream job.
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Rationale: to inform or educate
Authority: government
Date: recently published
Accuracy: probably true
Relevance: relevant for this document
Sources: cites sources