My Expectations From A Career In The Nursing Field

Discovering the path of a career I stumbled across the nursing field. In need of a job but also taking into consideration of helping people I landed a job in the nursing field. I have done research looking more in depth into the career of nursing. The main things I have looking into is the process and futuristic things in nursing that I may face.

Often, nursing students should think about these subjects such as the history, future growth trends, technology trends, employment opportunities, education requirements, and education institutions. These will help narrow somethings down to decide is this really what you would love this a career. The history and development of the nursing profession is very interesting. Theoretically, nursing is believed to have begun in the home as a result of the tradition of women taking care of their family when needed, whether it be the role of a wife, a daughter, a mother, or a sister. Women were the typical use for the care of society. Nursing beginning in the home is just a basic belief that came about from modern type thinking. Nursing became very popular in times of war. Nurses were needed to care for the army and the military, and all those who were hurt from the war.

Florence Nightingale is considered the founder of modern nursing. She was a very religious woman and an English nurse that worked to improve the poor conditions of her time by helping out her community and improving and maintaining the health of society. She wrote a book called, “Notes on Nursing, ” in which she layed down the profession and key points of the profession (Self Growth). She is considered the most influential person in the development of nursing. One of the biggest developments in the nursing career came about from Florence Nightingale: The Nightingale Training School of 1860 for Nurses, in which students would go off after graduating and travel all around the world helping others out and giving them the care that was needed (Self Growth). Apart from Florence Nightingale, there were many more developments within the career field of nursing. While Linda Richards was America’s first trained nurse, Ellen Dougherty was the first registered nurse. Looking back upon history, the typical nurse was in fact a woman.

Over the years, more and more men have joined the nursing profession and have made it a more diverse group of workers. The nursing profession is not simply a feminine career. Nurses have cared for people for a long time now, making sure society is safe and healthy, and that the quality of life continues to improve over time. There are many different economic and growth trends in the future of the nursing career field, and many of them are unfortunately negative. Although statistics show that there are over 2, 7 million nurses in the United States alone, they also show that many registered nurses have left and are leaving the career of nursing in search for better opportunities and better paying jobs.

Nurses make up the largest section of healthcare in the nation, but unfortunately a shortage of nurses is in effect now and is looked upon to continue and extend into the future. People are obviously having trouble trying to make a living off their nursing paycheck and people continue to leave the career field to try and find a more financially rewarding job. The fact that people continue to leave the career field is not the only problem. According to statistics, “when experienced nurses leave their positions after only a few years in the profession, they are often replaced with recently graduated and inexperienced staff members”. Not only this, but what is referred to as the, “aging RN factor, ” is also a rising problem within the career field, showing that the average age of nurses was 45 in 2000. Many statistics and facts give the impression that the shortage of nurses will continue into the future. It was recently recorded that there are almost 500, 000 licensed and unemployed nurses in the United States. Also, “it is estimated that we will lack 29%, or more than 434, 000 nurses, by 2020”.

The career of nursing is in a time of need. Statistics show that with the modern economy, this profession looks like it is just going to get worse in the future. Healthcare is vital to the United States, but many people continue to leave the career field of nursing. Although the future economic and growth trends look bad, technology is fortunately being thoroughly worked upon. Articles have it that, “new graduates…will be able to select the delivery system that best meets the needs of the patients and institution, and will be more autonomous and possess leadership and management skills”. Technology is working on making more of a nurse’s tasks automatic and quick. Specifically, tasks such as, “documentation and updating patient records, smart beds to monitor vital signs, barcodes, and automatic medicine carts could reduce the time and errors in dispensing medications, and voice-activated technology would eliminate the need to constantly write things down”. It is stated that with the new technology being worked on in the nursing career, an increasing number of men and minorities will join this profession.

Three competing business of our area within the career field of nursing are the Community Hospital of Monterey Peninsula, Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital, and the Natividad Medical Center in Salinas. Each of these business facilities have their benefits. Chomp states that the benefits of working there are that, “You will be making a home for yourself in an area celebrated for its stunning scenery and natural attractions, and building a professional future with a facility that's recognized for its award-winning dedication to patient care”. Aside from Chomp, Salinas Valley Memorial has several benefits for employees including health insurance, discounts on prescriptions, and a reasonable amount of personal time off from work (SVMH). Apart from both Chomp and Salinas Valley Memorial, Natividad Medical Center of Salinas has it that their benefits and advantages are simply their experience and originality in doing things, as they have been operating for over 119 years. Each of these competing businesses within the Monterey County have their own distinct benefits and advantages.

Within the career field of Nursing are many employment and job opportunities. Depending on whether a person decides to specialize in a specific area of nursing or just go into the general form of nursing, registered nurses receive many options in what they want to do. Without naming every single type of nurses, several examples of the different types are Ambulatory Care Nurses, Critical Care Nurses, Emergency Nurses, Home-Healthcare Nurses, and Long-term care nurses. Other types of nurses are those who specialize in a specific type of care or, “who have jobs that have little or no direct patient care, but still require an active RN license”. The career of Nursing has many employment and job opportunities.

Many people do not think about high school preparation for nursing. Another reason to consider being a registered nurse is the great high school preparation. Individuals need to graduate high school and also graduate a nursing program. The career of nursing is fairly simple when relating to other types of careers. There are really only three things you need to become a registered nurse. The three normal paths taken to becoming a nurse which is a bachelor's of science degree in nursing (BSN), an associate degree in nursing (ADN), and a diploma. It takes no more than 4 years to receive any one of these three depending on the process of the student. A graduate with any of these can apply for beginning positions in the nursing profession in most states. These are the educational requirements for becoming a registered nurse. There are three educational institutions that meet the requirements of becoming a nurse that I have looked up which is East Carolina University for the (BSN) program, Wayne Community College for the (ADN). The University of East Carolina has been ranked in the top ten schools of nursing in the nation for many past years, making it a highly qualified and excellent school to attend. Although true, East Carolina University state that statistics show that, “ECU graduates average 95% pass rate on the national nurse practitioner certification exams, ” and also that, “96% of ECU’s nursing graduates have jobs waiting for them upon completion of study”. These statistics lead people to infer that the quality of education at Gonzaga University is good and makes it easier for people to become nurses. In addition, the Wayne Community College also has a good nursing program. It is proved that, “the passing rate for Wayne Community (ADN) program passed with the percent of 92 which is awesome”. Lastly, the University of Phoenix has been very successful in their nursing department. Graduates have been highly successful and have made huge changes in our nation’s healthcare. University of Phoenix states that, “our accredited Nursing degree programs are designed to help you meet the complex challenges of health care today, and prepare you to lead change for the future”. These are 3 educational institutions that meet the requirements of becoming a nurse.

Finally, I really learned a lot from my interviews with Cherry Hospital Nurse Timothy Riley. As present employees of the hospital, they told me a lot that I didn’t know and that I didn’t learn from my research on Nursing. Timothy is a nurse at the Cherry Hospital. He is a very awesome guy that took the time to answer a couple questions about her career. When asking Mr. Riley what attracted her to this profession, he stated, “I sort of just drove in into the Nursing profession dealing with helping my family medical needs. In high school I had no real idea what I wanted to do in my future, neither did any of my friends. As I went on to college, I knew I had to choose something as a career, and I absolutely have no regrets for deciding on being a nurse. I love my job”. Looking back upon his reply, most high school students are in the same position as she was, not knowing what they want to do with their life. In addition, Mr. Riley comments on Nursing in general by stating that, “It’s not about the paycheck. Don’t get me wrong, money is great, especially in today’s economy. But nursing is about helping others, doing the job a lot of people don’t wish to do. It’s about self-fulfillment”. Tim Riley really helped me understand the profession of nursing. Susan Stevenson said, “I first look to see if they are a registered nurse, which is usually not a problem. I then look through their resume to see how they are unique from the typical employee. Other than that, the main attribute I look for in an employee is dedication”. Mrs. Stevenson showed me that it’s not as hard as many thinks it is to get a job in the nursing profession. It is fairly easy. She basically said that a person just must show that they’re dedicated to their job, that they can be counted on to work when needed and to also change the lives within our community.

Mrs. Stevenson also stated, “I have very good relationships with all my employees. They are all really good friends of mine. In work-wise, I just want to make sure they are aware of their schedules and have no problems. I also hope they don’t transfer to another department”. This shows that there are good relationships with each other when being a nurse. My interviews with Timothy Riley and Susan Stevenson really helped me understand what it takes to become a nurse and why it is a good job to get into. While many say nursing is only for women, they showed me that anybody who wants to help can become a nurse. They also showed me it’s not about the money, but about the self-fulfillment in the long run.