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We have all been the benefactors of a nurse’s compassionate care at some point in our lives. Either that, or we know someone in this profession. Nurses are one of society’s biggest blessings, and the healthcare industry would not be the same without them.
What makes a good nurse? What are the characteristics they possess? The author of this essay explores what it takes to be a nurse practitioner.
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What Qualities Make A Great Nurse?
I remember the first time I met Nurse Jane. She was a long-time friend of my mom’s, and there was one time that she spent a weekend with us. We were out to get some ice cream when a couple of people walked up for her and thanked her for her service. It turned out that these people were her former patients from the local hospital. They remembered her because of the way she took care of them during their hospitalization.
I think that for people to remember you specifically for the kind of person you are is a major accomplishment. Not only was Nurse Jane a successful nurse because of the way she had administered medical care to these former patients, but she had all the important characteristics that made patients feel safe and at ease with her. Through the nursing profession, she had managed to acquire powerful life experiences that she learned from and carried over into her personal life.
My encounter with this modern-day Florence Nightingale is my inspiration behind this essay. I would like to share what I believe are the important qualities of good nurses.
They Possess Strong Communication Skills
A good nurse knows how to adjust her communication to different types of people. He or she is conversing with various kinds of people throughout her workday – doctors, patients, fellow nurses, lab technicians, family members, and more. For each of these people, he or she would have to tweak his or her language to ensure that the message or the information is accurately processed.
She would have to use mostly medical jargon and keep her communication as brief and as concise as possible with busy physicians. He or she would need to be kind and cheerful to stressed lab technicians. Finally, he or she would have to be gentle with patients and family members. Knowing when to speak or listen more is also part of this skill set.
They Have The Physical Stamina And Emotional Stability To Withstand High-Pressure Situations
While a nurse’s day can be measured in shifts, what happens during those shifts is variable. It is inevitable that there will be a few days in a week where the work environment will be a lot more tense and the cases assigned to them will require quick yet life-changing decision-making. During these times, a great nurse is quick on his or her feet and can handle the physical challenge of running down long hallways, chasing after doctors and lab results, and providing medical care to all the patients assigned to them for that shift.
They Are Good At Time Management And Caring For Multiple Patients
It takes a lot of practice to nail down a successful routine, but experienced nurses will credit high self-awareness as a formidable ally in all these. The more you know yourself and your strengths and weaknesses, the more strategically you can manage yourself and how you distribute yourself in your work. Part of good client care is also establishing good self-care.
Nurses know that in order for them to give the best of themselves at work, they need to always work from a place of health. Nursing requires you to also be a good patient yourself and know how to ask for help. Lives and families are at stake every day, so getting a good night’s rest and getting some me-time makes all the difference in coming back to work recharged.
They Are Interested In Continuing Education
Most nurses know that it is easy to become obsolete in the nursing field if you are not up-to-date on the latest breakthroughs and issues in medical services and patient care. As such, they make it a point to invest in themselves to gain more knowledge and sharpen their competence in the field. There are plenty of nursing programs, seminars, and conferences for the professional nurse that improves his or her abilities in quality care.
They can study interesting topics such as therapeutic communication, patient management, and new innovations and techniques. They understand that it is part of their job to be a lifelong learner, as it will help them in taking care of the people entrusted to them.
They Have Sharp Critical Thinking And Problem-Solving Skills
A good nurse makes use of his or her technical know-how day in and day out in order to keep patients safe. They administer all the required medications in the correct doses routinely and make the necessary adjustments if a dose is delayed or skipped. Part of the nurse’s job is to help honor the patient’s wishes in terms of comfort when it comes to receiving treatment and medications. If they are unhappy with the way their care is being administered, nurses spend time figuring out how to meet their needs without compromising the patient’s care plan.
Conclusion
Even from their days as nursing students, most nurses work long and tiring days putting themselves in their patients’ shoes so that they will develop the high degree of empathy that is needed for the job. A great nurse does not and cannot function like a robot with no feelings, as he or she is dealing with people who are sick and need tending to. Together with all the hospital staff members, these hardworking people do their best to excel in their nursing careers by being kind and respectful to everyone – especially those in a hospital bed.
If you know of a good nurse, know that they are often underappreciated and could use some affirmation from the people they know. Take some time today to tell them that they’re doing a great job.
FAQs
What Is Expected Of A Nursing Student?
Every nurse-in-training is expected to be familiar with the rigors of the job they are preparing for. They must come in expecting to do all the hard work, knowing that they will have to develop the important characteristics that will help them thrive in their nursing career. They must already have an established interest in healthcare and patient care, and they must be willing to absorb maximum knowledge in all these key areas so that they can apply it in their future workplace.
Why Are Nursing Students Important?
They are important because they are the future of the healthcare industry. Nursing students acquire all the necessary nursing skills during their academic years so that they can enter health institutions fully equipped to jump in and help. Investing in their journeys is part of what helps them develop the qualities of a good nurse.
What Should A First-Year Nursing Student Know?
Every freshman should know that it will be a tough but worthwhile journey and that they always need to remember why they were passionate about this profession, to begin with. They also need to understand that passion and interest are not enough and that they need a strong skill set to survive the challenging work environment in hospitals and health institutions. Their critical thinking and problem-solving skills will be put to the test, as well as their time management and communication skills. They also need good physical stamina and emotional stability to weather the harsh days.