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What to Know Before Becoming a Nurse

Posted by Sara Giboney Friday, Aug. 20, 2021

What to know before becoming a nurse

Do you have a passion for helping people? Have you thought about becoming a nurse?

Nursing is a rewarding career that allows you to help people in their time of need. According to U.S. News and World Reports, nursing ranks as one of the best healthcare jobs in the U.S., .

Before you pursue your career in nursing, here's what you need to know.

Top Nursing Skills

Nurses must have technical and clinical skills to provide care to patients. They also need skills that will allow them to manage the care of many patients during a shift, work on a team of healthcare professionals, make quick decisions, be on their feet all day and more.

Some of the skills required to be a good nurse are:

  • Staying calm under pressure
  • Listening
  • Critical thinking
  • Teamwork
  • Time management
  • Organization
  • Learning from mistakes
  • Communication
  • Attention to detail
  • Compassion
  • Physical stamina

A Typical Day as a Nurse

Providing patient care is just part of a typical day as a nurse. Nurses have a variety of responsibilities during each shift including communicating patients’ status to other healthcare professionals, coordinating patient care with a healthcare team, analyzing diagnostic test results and communicating patients’ health status to their families.

Nurses may also find themselves comforting patients and their families facing challenging situations, requiring nurses to have compassion and respect.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, a typical day for nurses includes:

  • Assessing patients’ conditions
  • Recording patients’ medical histories and symptoms
  • Observing patients and record observations
  • Administering patient medicines and treatments
  • Consulting and collaborating with doctors and other healthcare professionals
  • Coordinating patient care with other healthcare professionals
  • Operating and monitoring medical equipment
  • Helping perform diagnostic tests and analyzing the results
  • Teaching patients and their families how to manage illnesses and injuries

Where Nurses Can Work

When you think about nurses, you most likely envision a work environment like a physician’s office or a hospital. But nurses have job opportunities in diverse work environments.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, nurses can work in:

  • Physician’s offices
  • Hospitals
  • Outpatient care centers
  • Senior care facilities
  • Government entities
  • Home healthcare
  • Public and private elementary and secondary schools
  • Colleges and universities

How to Become a Nurse

At Nebraska Methodist College (NMC), you can enroll in our traditional four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing program whether you’re right out of high school or you’re transferring from another college. Your BSN will give you the foundational knowledge and skills that you’ll need to be a nurse.

Contact our admissions team at (402) 354-7200 or at admissions@methodistcollege.edu for more information.

Is nursing right for you? Download NMC’s nursing career guide to learn more.Nursing Career Guide

Topics: nurse education, nursing, bsn

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