Nursing Careers

Nowadays, “empathy” is one of those vague qualities that online quizzes love to throw around – and it is often treated as something you either have or don’t. But empathy in nursing is not just a “nice to have” personality trait.

If you’re taking the time to read this, you’re probably in the final stages of nursing school or maybe you have finished nursing school. Either way, congratulations, because you’re likely on the verge of finding your very first nursing job.

When people see the title “Registered Nurse,” they immediately see a scrubs-clad figure doing the rounds at a hospital. And yet, the type of work nurses do can be radically different depending on the specialty and work setting.

As a new grad nurse, you will likely apply to more jobs than you can count before receiving your first interview invitation. Don’t allow your excitement or desperation to take hold and land you in a position you might regret. If you notice any red flags as a new grad nurse during an interview, take them as a warning to run in the opposite direction.

Hospitals and other facilities are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so work doesn’t stop after 5 PM. To decide whether night shift nursing is right for you, you’ll need to know the benefits and drawbacks, have the tools to manage the difficulties, and understand how to make the most of your days off.

During the early days of the pandemic, a viral picture made the rounds around social media: a plane full of healthcare workers headed into New York City, which at that time was seeing its hospitals collapse and its streets empty. For many of us, this extreme scenario was the first time we heard about “travel nursing.”

During my first semester in nursing school, a statement by our Dean struck me particularly profoundly: “Nursing school is not just meant to give you the knowledge and a degree so you can ‘find your way’ after graduation. The goal of nursing school is to create a nursing professional.”

Being a nurse or a CNA in a hospital or in a nursing home can provide vastly different experiences. When we think “nurse,” many of us immediately picture a hospital – but in reality, the day-to-day routine across different settings can vary quite a bit.

Becoming a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) or nursing aid is one of the quickest ways to gain hands-on experience in the healthcare field.

One of the biggest appeals of choosing to pursue a career in nursing is the opportunity to continuously grow in your field. Being a nurse practitioner is a goal for many nurses who want to gain more autonomy in their field. Fortunately, there are a variety of paths to becoming a nurse practitioner for those who have been a career-long nurse or for those who are deciding to dive head first into the nursing world.

One of the most intimidating aspects of being a nurse is the fact that anytime you are performing your job duties, you are running some risk of being sued. Poor documentation and medication errors are only a few of the many reasons why a nurse may get sued. Nurses can protect themselves from hefty litigation fees by being prepared with nursing liability insurance, but many nurses wonder if it is necessary and, if so, how to go about getting it.

Once you are near the end of nursing school, you will quickly feel the pressure to start applying to jobs in order to have your new job lined up soon after graduating. Even though nursing is a field in which there are always plenty of jobs available, it is hard to ignore the competitive nature of applying for jobs as a new graduate.

Many nursing students can’t wait to work in the acute care setting, thriving off the adrenaline and multitasking that comes with a traditional bedside nursing job. But you may find out that this environment is just not for you–and the great news is, you have tons of other options! Here are 5 unexpected jobs you can do as an RN.

Despite the high demand for nurses, nursing can still feel like a competitive profession. I remember nearing the end of nursing school and realizing that I was in competition with all of my classmates to find a job after graduation, then I thought about all of the other nursing schools in our area who would be graduating right around the same time…and my head started to spin.

There is nothing that compares to the sigh of relief you take when you walk out of your last day of nursing school. With such a huge accomplishment checked off, you are one step closer to your dream nursing career. But what happens next? Here is the inside scoop on some of the most pressing questions you may have fresh out of school as a new graduate nurse.

When it comes to becoming a nurse, there are a lot of routes you can take. It can be difficult to distinguish the difference in nursing degrees and job options that are available. Here are career options available to anyone who completes a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing (BSN), the ins and outs of completing a BSN, and my personal experience becoming a bachelor-prepared nurse.