Nursing is the type of profession that requires you to mix knowledge and skills with your personality trait. You are not only supposed to be smart and good at your job, but you need to be forthcoming and a profound individual. It is understandable since nurses interact with patients the most. They are the first line of frontline workers who form the basis of making an impression on the patients.
However, you are not the only nurse working in the hospital sector. There are many prospective and senior nurses looking to excel in their careers. So, while it can be challenging to rise to the top, there is a lot you can do for yourself to reach the pinnacle of your career. Here’s what it takes to reach the top:
1.      Be Reliable
Patients come to you with the utmost trust in your skills, and you need to ensure to treat each patient with kindness and empathy. When you’re chartering down their information, do it with the utmost accuracy. If a patient is fumbling, you can guide them through what they want to say. Reliability is all about how you handle a patient.
2.      Invest In Yourself
As you work through your career, don’t forget to check on yourself every now and then. Go through your CV and see when you last updated your skills. You may also want to visit your education section and enroll yourself in online courses. If you’re already a practicing nurse, consider a terminal degree in nursing to reach the summit of your nursing career. You could also get your DNP online to become a doctor of nursing. Not only are you allowing yourself new opportunities to advance your career. You also get to polish skills and knowledge that you may not have visited for a while. All of these make you a better and more informed nurse. Hospitals and patients both like it when their healthcare provider takes their profession seriously.
3.      Be Selfless
As a nurse, you can’t put yourself first, as the profession demands your utmost sincerity and selflessness to the craft. You can’t pick who gets to be your patient regardless of how you feel about their ethnicity, culture, or religion. Similarly, you can’t allow yourself to get heated with another patient, especially if they’re uncooperative and aggressive. Put your best foot forward and extend empathy to them. Understand that everyone has a different tolerance for pain, and some express their discomfort through aggression. A successful nurse has a gentle hand and a calm demeanor at all times. So no matter what you’re up against, take care of your patients.
4.      Express Concern over Their Safety
Hospitals can unintentionally be a pretty hazardous environment while tending to patients. As a nurse, it is your job to make sure your patients are safe and secure at all times. For example, suppose they need to go in a machine such as an MRI machine for imaging. You want to make sure the patient is not claustrophobic or has any metallic instruments inside of them. Similarly, if you have an immunocompromised patient, you want them to be in a sterile environment with no microbes. As a nurse, if you pick up patterns on where the hospital can improve patient safety, you can always bring it up with the administration. Through collaborative efforts, you can issue hospital policies that aim to protect and take care of patients.
5.      Show Concern over Their Symptoms
When a patient presents their symptoms to you, ask questions about it. Several diseases are similar to each other, and you want to narrow down their cause of discomfort. Encourage patients to look at online hospital-given resources for guidance, such as learning more about their diseases and what they do for themselves at home. Encourage patients to make a list of every question they have about their condition, as well as a list of medications they’re taking. When you extend help beyond a standard medical procedure, you pave a path for a swift recovery.
6.      Be Forthcoming
No one likes getting treated callously. Even if you’re following the procedure, you should still attempt to converse with your patients. Start with a smile and a polite conversation, go through their form with them, and ask questions that allow a patient to express themselves more. Don’t just look for a ‘yes’ or a ‘no.’ Sometimes, patients like to share stories about how they learned they were sick and if they saw a family member go through something similar. You should indulge them and let them complete their piece. It gives you a sense of connection to your patients, and they will feel more comfortable around you.
7.      Educate Your Patients
Medical terminologies are confusing, and some are downright complicated. Most patients who come in may have the laymen terms enough to communicate with you. But when it starts going in the scientific territory, they will falter. As a nurse, it is your job to make sure patients understand their diagnosis. If their condition is extensive, you may need to tell them what recovery looks like. It is hazardous for a patient’s life if they leave feeling more confused. Moreover, keeping them in the dark will encourage them to look for alternate methods of treatment.
Wrap Up
The nursing sector is one of the busiest ones. You are responsible for communicating and making patients feel comfortable within a hospital. As a nurse, your skills are what make you stand out. You need to be a blend between professional and friendly. It would also help while you work you also work on your education. More knowledge can make you even a better nurse. When it comes to how you should conduct yourself as a nurse, be polite, kind, and respectful. In addition, you should also take the time to know them and help them understand their disease and the treatment better.
