If you have ever thought about becoming a nurse, then this article is for you. You will learn everything you ever wanted to know about becoming nurse, where nurses work, how much they get paid, what kind of additional in-service training they need, how you can become nurse and how you can make difference in the lives of the people you serve. I was motivated to write this article to help young students choose a job that responds to their interests.
Nursing is not an easy profession. This job is a great way to combine your passion for helping others with your desire for a rewarding career.
Nurses provide care to sick or injured patients. They assess patient health problems, and develop nursing care plans. Also, the nurses help prevent disease by instructing and advising patients on health maintenance, and they inform them about the resources or services available for their recovery.
Nurses assist, observe and speak to patients. They evaluate the complete health condition of patients and develop nursing care plans. For example, they record details and symptoms by conducting physical exams and taking their vital signs. They inform patients and family members on treatment and care plans, as well as answer their questions. In addition, the nurses administrate medications and treatments by following the medical prescription, then monitor for side effects and reactions. Sometimes, they take sample of blood, urine or other body fluid for laboratory analysis. Then, they may interpret diagnostic tests to assess patients’ conditions and needs.
Nurses work in a variety of places depending on their qualifications and their education. The most common places where nurses work include hospitals, residences and long-term care centers (CHSLDs), rehabilitation centers, medical clinics, local community service centers (CLSCs) or companies. Certain members of the profession also work as educators or in research or management.
The DEC is a technical program of 3 years offered at the college level. This Nursing program requires a Diploma of Secondary Studies (DES) (or equivalent) and the successful completion the "Physical Science 436" and "Chemistry 534" courses. After completed the DEC in Nursing, Bachelor's degree in Nursing is offered in 2 years. The students can also do the Pure and Applied Science Program at the college level in 2 years and pursuit their studies at the university to obtain the Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 3 years.
In Quebec, registered nurses usually earn between $24.25/hour and $45.00/hour. So, the median annual salary was around $75,000 in February 2022, equivalent to $36.10 per hour. In addition, most nurses have the opportunity to work overtime several times a year, which can increase their salary by up to $100,000 per year.
Since January 2012, OIIQ has implemented continuing education standard for nurses. It requires 20 hours minimum of training every year, which seven hours must be accredited. The training can be done by courses, conferences or online. For example, CPR certification must be updated every 3 years. Also, nurses can take other online training on OIIQ website to enrich their knowledge on how to provide cares, technical advances for treatments or examinations, communication with patients and nursing care plans.
Being nurse can involve health risks. In fact, nurses are often exposed to many contagious and infectious diseases or body fluid. Also, repetitive exposures of radiation treatments or anti-neoplastic drugs can be dangerous if preventive measures have not been respected.
It is unlikely that nurses will be completely replaced by robots. However, technological advances allow more efficient care and reduce the risk of medication errors. For example, the medical monitor is one of the principal devices used to periodically measure basic physiologic parameters such as the vital signs.
The majority of nurses retires at 65 years. However, the retirement age for a registered nurse is 61 or 35 years of service to receive REGOP benefits.
As you can see, nurses play a vital role in today’s healthcare society. One of the most exciting aspects of nursing as a profession is the surprising number of career opportunities available to registered nurses.
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