ALT-1 Keys to Success for Nurses
I have learned in college that nursing is a profession as well as a vocation. Yes, it is a profession because a nurse can earn a handsome salary out of giving "tender loving care". On the other hand, it is a vocation because of its rewarding aim to reach out to the sick by rendering "tender loving care"! I would like to think that these two definitions compliment each other in order to spell the word "success" but sad to say, they do not.
Perhaps, the real key to success is the underlying motivation of becoming a nurse. Nowadays, people are attracted to nursing because the nursing programs many schools are offering are easy and practical (only 2 years for associate degree). It also promises to land an entry-level position with attractive salary and benefits. But what happen to the other definition, "nursing as a vocation" if we only think of the figures we will be earning? What ever happened to Florence Nightingale's burning lamp for compassion? Somehow, the lamp's light is gone and we are all in total darkness.
As a Registered Nurse, I can truly say that the key to success is what lies within your heart to fulfill that "burning compassion"; this is the will to "care" genuinely. I've been working as a nurse for almost 5 years and I observe that this quality of "compassion" is slowly vanishing away. It is quite ordinary to watch my colleagues argue over OT's (Over time pay) or hear them comment if Mr. X (a complete care patient with many IV contraptions and foul-smelling decubiti all over the body) is already dead. Nobody wants to care a heavy patient for 5 straight duties!
It is really challenging to be "compassionate" and at the same time, carrying-out your nursing duties of rendering quality care within the scope of nursing and state laws and as well as your hospital policies but most of the patients (I observe), only want a little bit of your time. When you make your rounds, ask them what they want like, if they are in pain or if they want their televisions to be turned off because most likely, these patients will not bother you in the next fifteen minutes. Patients want a cheerful nurse who greets them, "hello, good evening Mr. /Ms Smith?" They want to feel that they are at home. If they ask questions regarding their diagnosis and you cannot give them a specific answer, be honest. Yet, always tell them to ask their attending physician. If you'll do these "compassionate acts" then, you won't be feeling guilty looking at your paycheck because you know you have done a rewarding job. Most of all, you can say for yourself that Nursing is indeed, both a profession as well as a vocation!
