Career Planning

Why Nursing

Today there are numerous careers available. How do you decide which one is for you? If you want to have a positive impact on the daily life of someone, then nursing is a definite option.

Most nurses regard their career as a calling of wanting to help those in need. Some say it was something they always wanted to do because they had a close relative that was a nurse or they had a life experience with a nurse that had a big impact on their life or that of a family member. Very few would say it is something they thought they would try and see if they liked it.

Nursing is a demanding job that requires personal interaction with people on a daily basis. It is a career where you will have an impact on someone’s life and they will have an impact on your life as well. Read stories of real nurses and their work to see how life-transforming this work is. 

A few tidbits about nursing:

• Requires a college education that meets regulated standards of instruction.
• Graduates must pass the NCLEX licensing exam in the state they wish to practice.
• Nurses are licensed by the Board of Nursing of their state and must renew the license regularly. 

Nurses have several resources to engage with their profession, protect their license and advocate in the workplace. Learn more about different organizations that nurse can connect with. 

Being a Nurse

Being a nurse means being part of a dynamic profession. Nursing is a challenging career where there is life-long learning. Things change in health care daily and keeping up is essential in doing your job effectively. It is a profession where you can be involved in making changes from a local level all the way up to influencing the legislation that regulates nursing. In addition, it is a profession that has many areas of specialty in which one can find that nursing role that fits their expectations. 

There are four roles of nurses: 

• Member of a profession – By being a member of a professional organization, advocating for nursing and being active members of their community, nurses work to maintain oversight of the profession, represent the interest of nurses and protect patient welfare. Each nurse has a responsibility to be part of the change process and move the profession forward. Joining a professional organization is the first step, and could lead to more influential roles. Today, there are even two RNs that hold seats in the Texas House of Representatives!
• Provider of care – Nurses provide high quality care based on current standards of practice defined in their state Nurse Practice Act. Nursing is life-long learning which is needed to stay current in health care practices and treatments. Nurses provide care without prejudice or bias.
• Advocate for patient safety – Nurses advocate for those that cannot advocate for themselves. Patients do not always understand what is being prescribed or procedures being ordered by the physician and the nurse is the subject matter expert that guides them in making decisions. Nurses are the intermediary between the patient and the health care team. Nurses are also responsible to maintain a safe environment for their patient.
• Member of the health care team – In today’s health care environment, nurses cannot do everything. They are a member of a team and collaborate with other health care providers to meet the needs of their patients. Nurses refer patients to the various support providers, make recommendations to physicians to meet their patients needs and coordinate care between all he various elements of health care.

The image of the nurse has changed over the years as we have better defined the role and what it takes to care for the patient of today. The image of the nurse most people have comes from their exposure to nursing. That may be from television portrayals, the movies and the media. Those are not always accurate. Nurses do more than follow the doctor around, give medications, empty bed pans and sit at the desk.

From actual personal experience, some have seen the true role and how it affects patients and families. Being there to provide support and information for the patient and family. Answering questions and educating them on the care they are receiving and the care they will nee after they go home. The constant assessment, providing the physical care they need, carrying out highly technical procedures and skills, and giving the mental and emotional support required for healing. And doing all this in an environment that is safe for the patient.

Becoming a Nurse

The Institute of Medicine report The Future of Nursing set the entry level for nurses as a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN). The 2-year Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) is still being offered and may be an expedient way to get into the profession, but the completion of the BSN is required within a specified period of time by most employers.

If you are applying to nursing schools, look for schools that

• Meet the educational requirements set by the state Board of Nursing.
• Are accredited by the BON and national accrediting bodies.
• Have a high pass rate for their students on the NCLEX.

Nursing education is rigorous and demanding. The days are long, but the years are short. The colleges and universities want to see a GPA of at least 3.0 overall and especially in the natural sciences. Most schools require you make a grade of 75 or better in the nursing courses in order to progress. Once you have successfully completed the educational program, the school will issue an Affidavit of Completion to the state BON and you will be scheduled to take the NCLEX. This is the licensing exam the BON uses to assure the person has the basic knowledge to perform the work as a Registered Nurse (RN). Upon successful completion, a license is granted and the person may work as a RN in that state.

The nurse must renew their license on a regular basis. In Texas, this is every two years. To accomplish re-licensure, the RN must to complete 20 hours of Continued Competency education. A portion of those hours may be in a required area depending on the current Nurse Practice Act requirements. To learn more, consider purchasing An Introduction to Texas Nursing in hard copy or in the Texas Nurses mobile app.