I have been a Registered nurse for thirty-plus years now. It is an honor and a pleasure to serve my fellow beings in this capacity and a career choice that I will always be glad I made.
My first job as a nurse was in an elderly care facility - by what ever name you choose to call it. It�s the place where I think all nurses should start their careers no matter what path they choose to take. I say this for the important lessons I learned.
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Putting theory into practice is not that easy
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Listen to what others have to tell you. Talk �with� the patients not at them
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Organize your work if you intend to get it done
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Be gentle, kind, caring, cheerful, and innovative
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You are one member of a team and a good team works together
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If you work hard and pay close attention, you�ll carry valuable lessons with you when you�re caught up in the world of technology.
You know you�re a nurse if:
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You knock before entering the room, knowing the only patient in there is the one that just died.
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You�ve ever told a confused patient your name is that of a co-worker and just call me if you
need anything
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You�ve had to contend with those who think constipation for four hours is an emergency
More "nurse if" on other pages
From here I went to various sized hospitals and settings. I�ve been a staff nurse, team leader, charge nurse, head nurse, nurse manager, case manager, orientee, orientor, preceptor, supervisor, Director of Nursing, CNO, and probably other names but all have been a
NURSE
I�ve worked in nearly every type of unit. I�ve worked with traditional modes of care, team nursing, primary care, dyad, and half a dozen modifications of these. Regardless of what your role is or how you do it,
A NURSE IS A NURSE IS A NURSE
.
At the Nursing Spectrum, this statement about the future of nursing is believable. In the future, when an organization�s management team comes to work, they will be less worried about cost structure and far more worried about whether its reputation for, and actual delivery of high quality, will be high enough to enable them to stay in business. In such an environment, no organization will want to be known for its problems or shortage of nurses. Nurses will increasingly be recognized as vital to the quality of healthcare in all settings, and vital to the survival of healthcare organizations.With this belief comes the problems and issues of the availability of these nurses
.
Nursing Spectrum
and
Lippincott's Nurse Center
address the future of nursing and the aging RN workforce
Hospitals are a different story however. For profit or not for profit makes a big difference in how patient care is delivered. I�ve learned that the mission statement tells a lot about the hospital priorities. Insurance providers and government agencies play a role in how the hospital operates. For these reasons, nursing involvement in legislation is very important.
