Things I wish I knew before becoming a Nurse
Fun fact: when I registered for college at the University of Nevada-Reno, I had NO idea what I wanted to do with my career. I went to freshman orientation as an “Undecided” major and watched all the other students group up into their major categories (Engineering, Business, Nursing, Education, etc.) and thought to myself, “My campus tour is going to be so boring and generalized,” so I hopped on over to the “Pre-Nursing major” group and snuck into their campus tour.
We were in the largest tour group of students, all of which very dedicated to fighting for the hard-earned and prestigious Orvis School of Nursing BSN program in town which only accepted 42 students per semester at the time. I will never forget the moment the tour guides made us fall in love with the university campus, the nursing school, and the career THEN looked us straight in the eye, with the most serious tone, and said,
“Less than 5% of you here will ever become nurses.”
Many were shocked and instantly anxious. But of course naive and competitive me, never having seen a nurse at work in my life, looked to the stranger on my left and said, “I WILL be one of the 5%.” Sooo yes, I blindly entered the nursing field on a whim due to my ridiculously competitive nature BUT thankfully it was the right impulsive and insane decision of my life. I truly couldn’t picture myself on any other path. I am incredibly thankful for this career however, there are a few things I wish I would have known before becoming a nurse….
You have to make a lot of phone calls.
As a clinical instructor, I prioritized teaching my students the Art of Report to all types of colleagues in the hospital and how EASY it can be. The beauty of the hospital is that we are all trying to get our job done efficiently, so abbreviated, to-the-point calls are actually encouraged.
Learning how to communicate is incredibly important and crucial to providing Better Care.
You have to advocate behind the scenes for your patients often.
I was a much more reserved, timid, and un-opinionated person prior to nursing. I quickly realized that I had the power to either give my patients passive and slow-moving care, or I could give them productive and high-quality care. There is no in-between. Perfecting “time management” and “cluster care” will be your two top goals for years to come.
Questioning physician’s orders is necessary but also incredibly rewarding.
This is important for the public to know and for you to know. You have your own nurse supervisors, nurse managers, and nurse directors that you report to. Doctors have a completely separate Chain-of-Command that they report to. So when you approach a doctor to question orders or ask for any change, it is as colleagues. It is a necessary collaboration to provide your shared patient with the best care possible.
You have a specific set of skills that the doctor cannot provide the patient. Conversely, doctors have a Scope-of-Practice that they provide the patient that you cannot. Working together is necessary and incredibly rewarding when you can give the patient the best Plan-of-Care possible!
You need to learn how to cope for the hard days in a healthy way.
Learning healthy coping skills, like seeing a counselor regularly to help you process or going for a decompression walk/run after work, will be priceless to your physical, mental, and spiritual health. Your journey will be hard but with healthy coping skills, you will also grow in resilience, patience, humility, and strength.
You always have time to take a deep breath before acting on the emergency.
Your career can go in a million different directions. The options are limitless!
Enter the field. Not loving your first pick in workplace or unit? Pivot. Love the idea of leadership and management? Start the training. Want to travel or work remotely? Apply and make those moves! Nursing can be whatever you want to be. It can give you your dream schedule, your dream work-life balance, and your dream opportunities.
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