Tag: nurses

Skills That Translate to Being a Quality Nursing Leader

Most people don’t go into nursing for the career mobility. There is room for promotions here and there, but for many, the work remains consistently the same for the entirety of their careers. And yet some nurses feel the pull to advance their careers a little bit.

Nursing leadership positions are a great way to continue doing the work you love while also incorporating more responsibilities, and yes, more compensation, into the equation. It’s not easy, but for the right person, it can be rewarding work.

Below, we take a look at skills that translate into quality nursing leadership.

Empathy

Empathy! Ha. I’m a nurse. I’ve got that in abundance. You probably, hopefully, do. It’s an intrinsic component of the work. It’s also a necessary feature of good leadership. As a supervisor, you need to be able to empathize not just with your patients, but also with the concerns of your staff.

Tech-Savvy

Nursing and healthcare in general are quickly moving into a more data-driven, digital landscape. Not only are patient records kept in the cloud now, but hospitals everywhere are relying more and more on data processing to improve patient outcomes and make better use of their limited resources.

You don’t necessarily need a degree in data analysis to work as a nursing leader — although some nurses do receive an education in digital technology.

However, you should at least be aware of what is out there. Many hospitals are technologically stunted not because they lack the means to grow into digital solutions, but because the old guard stands as a barrier.

Become knowledgeable about digital technology so that you can influence your hospital from an informed perspective.

Communication Skills

Nurses at every level wear many hats. You talk to the patient. You talk to the families. You talk to the administration and the doctors. As a regular nurse, the objective of your communication is usually to advocate for the patient. You want to make sure that their care aligns with their wishes.

You’ll still have that responsibility, but as a leader, you also need to represent the interests of the nurses working under you. They will bring their problems to you, and while you probably won’t be able to solve all of them, you’ll be the one talking it out with the other nurses, and the higher-ups.

Time Management

Just because you are a leader doesn’t mean that you don’t have your old workplace responsibilities to deal with as well. If you thought you were busy before the promotion, you’ll likely long for your old schedule after a few weeks at the new gig.

Time management is the skill that helps make the promotion negotiable.

Handle Discomfort with Grace

Leadership roles can come with natural tension. When things go wrong on your floor, you’ll often bear the brunt of it. We’re talking about anything. Patient outcomes, sure, but also scheduling conflicts, interpersonal spats that you will be expected to weigh in on and resolve and much more.

When it’s time for blame to go around, leaders can always expect a large helping of it to land on their shoulders. Fair? Maybe not but it comes with the territory.

A good leader knows how to handle these pressures with grace.

Sound Familiar?

Not surprisingly, most of the skills that make for a good nursing leader are trades that tend to be inherent to the profession in general. Nurses are usually empathetic people, and communication tends to be a key element of the job. If you can’t work as a go-between for the patient, the doctors, and the family, you’re probably not extremely effective on the job.

There are softer, harder-to-define qualities that make for a good leader as well. One of them is drive. You have to want to be a leader in a way that is distinct from simply desiring a promotion.

Think about it this way: nursing is already incredibly hard. Turnover rates are through the roof. Shifts are long and physically demanding. The work is stressful and emotionally demanding. And—

You’re preaching to the choir, love.

Right. It’s a tough job. Leadership responsibilities take those challenges and crank them up a level or two. The discerning nurse needs to ask themselves if they are up for that challenge. The western workplace mindset is such that stagnation is often seen as failure.

It doesn’t have to be that way — particularly not in healthcare. Before you pursue a leadership position, think long and hard about if you want all of the stress that comes with it.

Still There?

If you’ve weighed the consequences and still think you’d like to go ahead and try to get that promotion it’s time to start thinking about what it will take to land the job. The skills listed above might make you well adapted for the work, but that doesn’t mean they will automatically translate into the promotion that you are hoping for.

Most nurses are empathetic. Most nurses are decent communicators. You need to find ways to distinguish yourself from the pack. Continuing your education is one way to accumulate the prerequisite skills that most hospitals are looking for when they appoint their leadership roles.

Of course, getting a graduate degree is no small thing. However for a few years of your time, you might land a transformative job.

With a Bachelor’s in Health Science along with an MBA, Sarah Daren has a wealth of knowledge within both the health and business sectors. Her expertise in scaling and identifying ways tech can improve the lives of others has led Sarah to be a consultant for a number of startup businesses, most prominently in the wellness industry, wearable technology and health education. She implements her health knowledge into every aspect of her life with a focus on making America a healthier and safer place for future generations to come.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

 

Is Switching Specialties as a Nurse Right for You?

With a plethora of nursing specialties to choose from, it can be hard to narrow down which is the right one for you. Nursing school may expose you to a handful of different specialties, but often, it offers just a sampling that barely scratches the surface. How does one know exactly what the right specialty is with just that under their belt?

There are those fortunate few that fall right into their dream nursing position. However, many others will have to try on a few different options before finding the right fit. Ultimately, finding the right specialty for you and deciding to make the switch is a journey and really a big decision to make.

Why Consider the Switch?

There are plenty of reasons why you may be considering making a switch to a different nursing specialty. For one, different specialties may offer a higher wage, providing the type of financial stability you’re looking for.

Another reason you might consider switching nursing specialties is you simply want a change of pace. Maybe you’ve decided that the hustle of the hospital isn’t for you anymore and you’re looking for a quieter setting to grow your career. Perhaps you’re even enticed by the potential to work remotely by becoming a telehealth or primary care nurse. If you really aren’t sure what setting you like, maybe you’ll consider travel nursing and garner opportunities to work in different hospital settings all over the country.

 It could also be the right time to switch specialties is if you are starting to feel burned out in your current position. If you no longer feel passionate about the work you do and start to dread workdays, it is worth considering what a different specialty has to offer. Making the switch in this scenario can reinvigorate your drive to help people and provide you with an interesting new way of doing so.

Assessing What You Want

Once you’ve decided that you’re going to switch specialties, the next step is deciding what specialty you want to make your move to. You might know exactly where you want to land next, but if you don’t there are a few questions you should be asking yourself to narrow it down.

The first is which type of patients you want to work with. You might be considering focusing your career on children rather than adults for instance. If so, it is important to evaluate what that switch would look like. Kids can be more physically and emotionally demanding to work with but they can also be very rewarding.

Likewise, you should ask yourself if you want to work in a hospital setting. Assessing if the hospital is right for you will eliminate several potential specialties right off the bat. To narrow it down even further, consider if you’re up for fast-paced, high-risk work. If the answer is yes, maybe something like the ER, ICU, or cardiac unit might be the right place for you.

Another question to ask yourself is whether you are willing to go back to school. Additional schooling can open a lot of different doors. Some specialties will require additional certifications, while others won’t. Higher education positions may also offer more autonomy or a higher wage, which should both also factor into your decisions.

Personal Life Considerations

Answering all of these questions about what you want can help you to make the decision about where the next step in your career will ultimately take you. For some, it might be an easy transfer to a different unit within the current hospital. For others, it might involve applying for different jobs altogether. Still, for others, it might involve a move to a new town or state with a hospital specializing in the care you hope to give.

Moving can pose several challenges for some nurses. For instance, some states may be easier to move to and maintain certifications than others. Many states have inter-state agreements that allow registered nurses to transfer from hospital to hospital while maintaining their licenses, but other certifications may not always transfer so easily. It is imperative to look into the policies of any state you’re planning on moving to before fully committing.

Depending on your schedule and your income level, it may also be challenging to qualify for mortgages within certain specialties. For example, many travel nurses have trouble qualifying, as many loans require you to stay employed at the same hospital for a certain period of time. Before taking the plunge into a new specialty, it is important to research how the change could affect your personal and financial goals.  .

Conclusion

Making the move into a new nursing specialty may be the most rewarding career decision you make. Before taking the jump, be sure to evaluate the reasons you are considering the switch and the factors that will contribute to exactly where you want to land.

Katie Brenneman is a passionate writer specializing in lifestyle, mental health, activism-related content. When she isn’t writing, you can find her with her nose buried in a book or hiking with her dog, Charlie. To connect with Katie, you can follow her on Twitter.   
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

What Nursing Practices Result in Ideal Patient Care?

In nursing school, you learn how to deal with various ailments and situations. But there is a human element to the job that is difficult to learn in a classroom. How do you treat not just the condition, but also the person suffering from it?

Recognizing the humanity of a patient sounds fundamental and obvious, but it can easily be forgotten during the thrum of a busy week. In this article, we take a look at some practices that can result in ideal patient care.

 Mentorship

Nursing mentorship relationships, formal or otherwise can have an enormously positive impact both on the patients and the employees. A newly minted nurse comes out of school with tons of book knowledge, but a relatively limited amount of experience.

Sure, you log your time working in hospitals, but it’s a different game when you’re doing things at the professional level. The pressure is higher. The threshold for bad outcomes increases, if only for the fact that you’re now the one in the driver’s seat. A good nursing mentor can help work through the pressure, ensuring that patients enjoy a higher level of care in the process.

Mentorship relationships can also help when it comes time to consider nurses for leadership positions. Older nurses who coach the new recruits can help management make decisions about who to spotlight and promote.

Hospitals wishing to encourage mentorship programs should consider instituting a formal mentorship program. Otherwise, young nurses can benefit from the experience of others by asking questions, and forming friendships.

 Patient Empowerment

Patients are in an incredibly vulnerable position. At the very least, they find themselves in a situation where they don’t possess the knowledge they need to take care of themselves. Everyone in the room knows more about their health than they do. Depending on the situation, they may not even be able to handle toiletries with the same autonomy they used to.

Nurses can restore some of their autonomy by striving for as much patient empowerment as possible. Let them make choices wherever possible. Patiently explain everything that is going on clearly without sugarcoating the facts. Your job as a nurse isn’t to give them good news. It’s to help the patient see what is real, and respond to the situation in the way that is most comfortable for them.

 Advocate for Them

Patient empowerment gives the patient a voice. Advocacy amplifies it. Nurses can advocate for their patients by following several steps:

    • Listen: Find out what the patient wants, and look for ways to implement these preferences in every possible way. Sometimes these preferences will be care related. Other times, they might be cultural or religious. It won’t be possible to grant every request, but it’s important to be on the lookout for ways to make your patient’s desires realized.
    • Articulate: If you’ve formed a close relationship with a patient, they may tell you things that they don’t share with other caregivers. Make sure everyone in the hospital is on the same page when it comes to meeting the patient’s requests. Fill doctors, other nurses, and even visitors in on what the patient wants.

Sometimes patient advocacy can get uncomfortable. It might mean butting heads with your coworkers. It could even mean turning family members away. Remember: your responsibilities as a nurse are to the patient. Be respectful of others, but don’t lose sight of your overall responsibility.

 Put Yourself in Their Shoes

Sometimes the patient won’t communicate exactly what they want or need. When that happens, empathy can help inform your caregiving decisions. What would you want if you were in their shoes? Keep in mind that for many patients, being in the hospital is an entirely new experience. They won’t necessarily have the context to make informed decisions about what they want or prefer.

Nurses, on the other hand, spend most of their lives in the hospital (or so it feels, at any rate). They know more about the rhythms and intricacies of care and are therefore better equipped to make well-informed suggestions and recommendations.

Just remember that patient needs will evolve over time. Continuously get their feedback. By constantly thinking about ways to personalize and improve care, you ensure that the patient is always being seen as a human with unique wants and needs. That alone can have a big impact on their morale, and their overall health outcome.

With a Bachelor’s in Health Science along with an MBA, Sarah Daren has a wealth of knowledge within both the health and business sectors. Her expertise in scaling and identifying ways tech can improve the lives of others has led Sarah to be a consultant for a number of startup businesses, most prominently in the wellness industry, wearable technology and health education. She implements her health knowledge into every aspect of her life with a focus on making America a healthier and safer place for future generations to come.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

 

How Can We Improve Healthcare in Underserved Communities?

Today’s healthcare landscape is vast and complex. Within it exists nearly infinite sub-environments and social contexts, all of which present unique strengths, weaknesses, and difficulties. However, one sweeping reality that affects countless people within the system is a common tendency towards inequitable care provision for certain communities and demographics over others.

The disproportionalities in healthcare provision experienced by specific subpopulations and underserved communities is a story that repeats itself over and over across the country (and around the world). This is a matter of deep concern for equity advocates in healthcare, and there are a number of voices within the healthcare landscape working towards changing this reality.

Current Disparities in Healthcare Access

One helpful lens for understanding healthcare disparities at scale is a set of statistics that reveal the average difference in care delivery and outcomes by demographic. These include social differentiators like income level, race, legal status, gender identity, disability, and religion.

Across a range of metrics, certain communities, like those that earn middle-class incomes or are white/Caucasian, receive (on average) better levels of care and enjoy easier access to healthcare providers than individuals within the same communities and geographic locations that fall into other demographic categories.

There are a number of ways these disparities play out in various settings or instances. A few trends in particular represent a large percentage of healthcare inequity cases across the country. These include the following:

Difficulties in Securing Health Insurance for Noncitizens

Because the American healthcare system is so tightly tied to the insurance industry, it is vastly difficult to obtain any kind of healthcare without some form of health insurance. Unfortunately, insurance is very difficult to secure for a number of demographics, including those with complicated legal statuses or those that don’t work or have permanent addresses.

Racist Policies, Sentiments, and Biases Within the Healthcare System

This is a hugely complex topic and involves deeply systemic and cultural influences. The result, however, is a serially prejudiced system that, on average, is more likely to provide subpar care and treatment to people of color than it is to white people.

Healthcare Professionals, Especially in Places of Leadership, Remain Disproportionately white, Cisgendered, and Male

Though this has long been an area of focus and attempted awareness within the professional healthcare community, it still remains disproportionately monotone. Numbers of ethnic minorities (and other minority groups) working in healthcare fields remain stubbornly low.

This perpetuates difficulties that many patients experience when receiving care from someone who does not look like them and does not fully understand their culture, experience, community, or context.

Current Initiatives that are Working to Equalize Access to Good Healthcare

Above are just some of the ways that the healthcare system is still operating to disproportionately help certain members of society more than others. But though the system is still fraught with these widespread inequalities and problems, strides are being taken towards balancing the healthcare system at large and changing some of these realities so that more people have adequate access to the healthcare they need.

Changing Legislation to Correct Implicitly Biased or Prejudiced Policies

Systemic manifestations of discrimination and racism are often baked into legislative policy. The process of assessing current legislation and reshaping it to be more equal and equitable is a long, painstaking process. However, it can be a source of deep and significant institutional change.

Design Initiatives to Encourage More Members of Minority Groups to Study Medicine

These might look like demographic-specific scholarships, programs, or job fairs; or curriculums implemented in high-minority primary and secondary education spaces. Encouraging minority groups to consider healthcare a viable career option can have ripple effects on not only current but future generations and create precedent for more individuals to choose to enter the healthcare workforce as well.

Prioritizing Public Health Campaigns that Equip and Empower Minority Demographics to Partake in Healthy Living

Statistics reveal strong disparities in health IQ and healthy living habits between, for example, white/caucasian populations and ethnic minority populations. The work of providing diverse cultural contexts and backgrounds with health information made pertinent and relevant to them is slowly gaining traction and needs to be increased.

Ways to Contribute Personally Towards Stronger Equity in Healthcare

If you are a healthcare professional and want to make a difference in bringing about better, more equitable healthcare provision for all communities, here are a few ways you can get involved in this process.

Educate Yourself on the Nuances of Providing Healthcare to Those of Different Cultures, Identities, and Ethnicities

Whether you yourself belong to a minority identity or not, everyone has room to learn and grow when it comes to becoming more culturally knowledgeable and equipped. Terms like “transcultural nursing” and “cultural sensitivity” help shape this concept into actionable knowledge areas.

Seeking out conferences, talks, reading materials, and training on these topics can help you better understand, identify with, empathize with, and respect people with different cultural or ethnic backgrounds than your own.

Advocate for Equitable Policies, Awareness, and Conduct Within Your Own Healthcare Facility

Whether you work for an independent local hospital, a large nationwide healthcare provider, or a small outpatient clinic, your healthcare environment may or may not have an adequate understanding of equitable practices and policies.

Speaking up for underserved communities and supporting implementation of better equity practices can help change the nature of your healthcare facility as well as educate your colleagues and fellow professionals about the importance of healthcare equity.

Find Opportunities to Volunteer Your Healthcare Expertise to Support Underserved Communities in Your Area

Especially in locations where disparities are large and certain demographics or populations have poor access to healthcare, find opportunities to volunteer with nonprofit organizations or other initiatives to meet the healthcare needs of communities that have the most difficulty accessing treatment. This can be a significant and often life-altering way of lessening healthcare inequality.

With a Bachelor’s in Health Science along with an MBA, Sarah Daren has a wealth of knowledge within both the health and business sectors. Her expertise in scaling and identifying ways tech can improve the lives of others has led Sarah to be a consultant for a number of startup businesses, most prominently in the wellness industry, wearable technology and health education. She implements her health knowledge into every aspect of her life with a focus on making America a healthier and safer place for future generations to come.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Top Medical Certifications to Have As a Nurse

You have worked hard in college to obtain your degree. You’ve spent the last few years gaining invaluable on-the-job experience. Now, you have reached a point in your nursing career where you want to set the stage to move up the ladder.  However, many nurses often are not aware of the many different certifications they may obtain. If you want to further your nursing career, here are the top medical certifications you should strive to obtain.

Critical Care Certification

One of the most popular certifications for registered nurses, the Critical Care Registered Nurse Certification is often required by healthcare employers and covers a multitude of critical care and acute specialties. In the nursing world, you will often hear the CCRN certification referred to as the must-have of all nursing certifications.

Certified Emergency Nurse

In hospitals across the nation, there is often a shortage of nurses who are properly certified to work in high-volume emergency departments. If you are a nurse who enjoys the challenge of helping people with different types of injuries, many of which may be life-threatening, consider obtaining the Certified Emergency Nurse certification. Though similar to the CCRN certification, the CEN is more in-depth regarding emergency room nursing.

Certified Nurse Educator

When you obtain this certification, you will be qualified to teach other nurses about various illnesses and procedures. Once obtained, you can teach in a nursing school or be an in-house educator within a hospital or other healthcare facility. This will also be a good opportunity for you if you already possess a stroke education certification, since you can use your knowledge of stroke patients to help nurses provide better care.

Family Nurse Practitioner

To gain this highly-coveted nursing certification, you will need to graduate from a Master’s degree program and pass an exam. Yet once you do, having a Family Nurse Practitioner certification can open the door to many career opportunities. First and foremost, having the FNP certification means you will be able to act as a primary care provider, giving you the authority to prescribe medications and do many duties performed by physicians. If you want career stability and the chance to work almost anywhere you wish, consider that demand for nurse practitioners is expected to grow by more than 50 percent throughout this decade.

No matter which of these certifications you ultimately obtain, there is no doubt that you will be using your set of specialized skills and knowledge to help patients who are struggling with many different conditions and illnesses

Lizzie Weakley is a freelance writer from Columbus, Ohio. In her free time, she enjoys the outdoors and walks in the park with her husky, Snowball.
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Is it Worth Pivoting Your Career to Travel Nursing?

As a professional working in the healthcare industry, there is no shortage of routes you can take as a medical worker. This is especially true for those in the nursing profession. For nurses, there is a multitude of advanced nursing careers you can pursue such as becoming a nurse educator or a privately practicing nurse practitioner. One nursing career that has begun to gain popularity is that of travel nursing.

Travel nurses enjoy a slew of benefits that make the role enticing and increasingly sought after. If you’ve found yourself wondering whether or not pursuing a career as a travel nurse is a good idea, you’re not alone.

Understanding the pros and cons of becoming a travel nurse can help you decide whether pursuing the role is right for you. Here are some key aspects of nursing that can help you determine if it’s worth pivoting your career to travel nursing.

What Is Travel Nursing and How Does it Work?

Before committing to changing the course of your career to become a travel nurse, it’s important to have a thorough understanding of what travel nursing is and how travel nursing works. In many ways, travel nurses’ function in the same way that their registered nurse counterparts do. They are both trained to do the same types of tasks in the same types of facilities.

What differentiates travel nurses from registered nurses is the fact that travel nurses do not live in the same area in which they work. Instead, travel nurses will travel to various locations to work in a facility for a certain period of time.

Travel nurses always work on a contractual basis with the facilities they travel to. Typically, these contracts will be for at least three months. During the duration a travel nurse works at a facility, they will not only be paid a salary but will also have their accommodation provided and be given a weekly stipend. In many cases, travel nurses will also be given a signing bonus for agreeing to a contract at a new facility.

While the traveling and compensation differ significantly between travel nurses and registered nurses, in terms of day-to-day duties, they function in the same capacity.

The Pros of Becoming a Travel Nurse

If you’re contemplating shifting gears and pursuing a career as a travel nurse, it can be useful to understand the benefits that come with the role. Having a clear understanding of the positive aspects of becoming a travel nurse can help make it easier to decide if pivoting into the new career is right for you. Here are some of the pros of becoming a travel nurse.

Higher Salaries

One of the biggest perks of being a travel nurse is the lucrative salaries that travel nurses can receive. On average, travel nurses make close to $20,000 more than their registered nurse counterparts. While this is an estimate for the average travel nurse, it must be kept in mind that the wages of travel nurses can vary widely.

In fact, some facilities are willing to pay travel nurses $10,000 a week during times when they are short-staffed. In addition, given that travel nurses have higher salaries, the overtime pay that they receive is far more substantial than their registered nurse counterparts.

More Autonomy

Travel nurses, unlike their registered nurse counterparts, have the freedom to choose which contracts they accept. This allows them to only have to work in locations and facilities where they feel comfortable working. Having this increased autonomy is a big draw that attracts many nurses to the profession of travel nursing.

Seeing New Places

For those who love to travel, becoming a travel nurse can be an amazing way to see new places. On top of having the opportunity to travel without it interfering with one’s work schedule, travel nurses typically have their travel and lodging expenses covered. As such, travel nurses have the opportunity to explore new places without having to foot the bill.

The Cons of Becoming a Travel Nurse

While there are many attractive aspects of being a travel nurse, it’s important to be aware of the negative aspects of the role as well. Before committing to pursuing the role, it’s important to be fully aware of the negative aspects that travel nurses must face. Here are the cons of becoming a travel nurse.

Having to Frequently Leave Home

While traveling can be exciting and enjoyable for some, for those with families, it can be quite difficult. Travel nurses are required to frequently leave home for months at a time in order to earn a living.

For those with families and other responsibilities that require them to stay in one place, being a travel nurse and constantly leaving home can cause an enormous amount of strain. This being the case, it’s important to be honest with yourself about whether the schedule of a travel nurse would be conducive to the time of life you envision yourself having in the future.

Not Being Able to Make Deep Bonds with Coworkers

While it is more than possible for travel workers to be on good terms with their coworkers, it is far harder for them to forge deeper bonds. While this isn’t a huge deal for some, for others this lack of deep workplace friendship can be incredibly taxing. As such, it’s important to understand that as a travel nurse, you wouldn’t be able to craft deep relationships with your coworkers.

Feeling Lonely

For travel nurses, spending time alone and away from friends and loved ones is a normal part of life. While some can handle being alone well, others can experience anxiety and feelings of depression as a result of it. If you find that being alone isn’t your strong suit, you may not be the type of person who would thrive as a travel nurse.

Pursuing Life as a Travel Nurse

Travel nurses are important medical professionals who help facilities function smoothly when they are short-staffed. While these professionals enjoy higher pay and more perks than their registered nurse counterparts, traveling is not for everyone and can take a toll on one’s personal life.

By having a deeper understanding of the role of a traveling nurse, you’re in a better position to weigh your options and decide whether or not becoming a travel nurse is right for you.

.With a Bachelor’s in Health Science along with an MBA, Sarah Daren has a wealth of knowledge within both the health and business sectors. Her expertise in scaling and identifying ways tech can improve the lives of others has led Sarah to be a consultant for a number of startup businesses, most prominently in the wellness industry, wearable technology and health education. She implements her health knowledge into every aspect of her life with a focus on making America a healthier and safer place for future generations to come.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

What It Takes to Be a Crisis Nurse

Nothing is quite right beneath the granite sky. Here, the remnants of a family home splashed onto the curb with utter indifference. There, a business, shuttered before the storm but now only barely standing anyway. Sirens flash. The wind licks up moodily, an eerie remnant perhaps, of the storm that passed through and just as quickly moved on to another place. The world looks as though it’s been put in a blender and spit out again.

This is the office of a crisis nurse, whose job has them going into the situations everyone else is fleeing from. Like Batman. Their job is to provide medical attention to communities impacted by disasters.

In this article, we look at what it takes to become a crisis nurse, and what the job entails.

 Background

The first step to becoming a crisis nurse is to receive the proper nursing education. Most RN certification programs take four years to complete and are part of a standard undergraduate curriculum. You can also apply for accelerated programs, which take place over the course of 12-18 months.

Naturally, these programs are very fast-paced. Because of how demanding they are, it can be very difficult to take them on while working a job or raising a family.

Once the educational requirements are satisfied and the testing and background verification procedures are complete you are eligible to begin acquiring professional nursing experience.

 Gaining Experience

The usual background requirement for becoming a crisis nurse is two years. While you can satisfy this requirement with any type of nursing experience, it’s a good idea to look for positions that will prepare you for providing emergency care.

This accomplishes several things. As a crisis nurse, you may find yourself working almost exclusively in emergencies. By logging lots of time in these scenarios, you can get a good idea if this career path is really right for you, while also developing valuable skills that can be applied directly to the new job.

Emergency experience will also help your resume stand out. The number of these positions available may be overshadowed by the number of applicants, so it’s good to accumulate a resume that stands out.

 Be Adaptable

It’s not so much that there aren’t many crisis nursing jobs in circulation. More that the number of local positions can vary tremendously. It’s a good idea to go into the job hunting process with an open mind, and a willingness to relocate for the position.

 A Traveling Job

Unless you happen to live someplace that naturally comes into contact with enough disasters to keep a healthcare professional busy three hundred or so days out of the year (Gothom City, perhaps) you’ll need to travel for this job.

The idea, of course, is to go into whatever community is being impacted by a disaster that is larger than the local healthcare system can handle on its own. For example, during hurricane seasons, crisis nurses may be hired in the aftermath of the storm to provide additional assistance to the community. When their time there is done, they move on to the next town.

Crisis nurses were also vital in responding to high-need areas during the height of the pandemic.

 A Dangerous Job?

Crisis nurses are typically working in the relatively controlled environment of a hospital. The position is not intended to be dangerous. However, there is always an element of risk to the nursing profession. Any emergency room nurse will be all too happy to share with you stories of overly aggressive patients, or belligerent visitors.

Crisis nurses are not supposed to come into contact with danger, but the capacity for risk is certainly there. During the height of Covid-19, for example, nurses specifically responding to the pandemic experienced a much higher risk of infection than those who were working on non-covid floors.

 An Emotionally Difficult Task

It is worth noting that working as a crisis nurse can be an emotionally challenging job. Most nurses at least run the risk of encountering difficult situations at work, but for crisis nurses, emotional challenges are baked right into the job description.

Crisis nurses should go into the job with the understanding that they will often be interacting with communities in their most desperate moments.

 Self-Care

Crisis nurses need to know how to take care of themselves just as well as they take care of their patients. Stress, anxiety, and even depression are common burdens experienced by people working in the medical profession. The job is difficult. The things you experience are often emotionally challenging.

People who don’t prioritize their mental and emotional health experience a significant risk of burnout. Practice self-care and be willing to speak up and advocate for yourself at home and at work.

 The Perks

There are benefits to being a crisis nurse that sweetens the pot for those considering this line of work. For one thing, the job tends to stay fresh. Rather than returning to the same floor of the same hospital day after day, you will be traveling to new places, always responding to the unique circumstances of the disaster that brought you there.

For many crisis nurses, this alone is an exciting way to break up the monotony of working life.
There is also the pay. According to ZipRecruiter, crisis nurses can expect to make up to $100,000, significantly higher than the average nursing salary.

 Conclusion

Crisis nursing is a difficult profession, not for the faint of heart. The right candidate will be ready and willing to regularly encounter desperate medical situations while working in recently devastated communities.

They will need to be able to travel often and adapt to changing circumstances at the drop of a hat. Perhaps most important of all, they need to know how to take care of themselves.

The work is difficult. The situations are long, hard, and often emotionally devastating. For the right candidate, however, crisis nursing is a great way to make a living while applying their trade in a way that literally saves lives

.With a Bachelor’s in Health Science along with an MBA, Sarah Daren has a wealth of knowledge within both the health and business sectors. Her expertise in scaling and identifying ways tech can improve the lives of others has led Sarah to be a consultant for a number of startup businesses, most prominently in the wellness industry, wearable technology and health education. She implements her health knowledge into every aspect of her life with a focus on making America a healthier and safer place for future generations to come.

 

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

When Bureaucracy Prevents Nurses from Working – It’s Not Pretty

America’s nursing shortage is so profound that one would think recent graduates could start in their new registered nurse jobs the day after graduation. But that is not how it works. Thanks to bureaucracy, graduates in some states need to wait weeks – or even months – before they can start working.

Bureaucratic delays are both unnecessary and illogical. But they are commonplace in any industry that requires workers to be licensed. From nursing to cosmetology and selling real estate, bureaucracy fouls everything up. The strange thing when it comes to nursing is that bureaucrats have not learned their lesson. How much worse does the nursing shortage have to get before something changes?

Waiting Months for a Permit

The Erie Times-News recently told the story of a nursing school graduate who was already working for a local hospital at the time she finished her education. She was employed as a patient care technician. Ready to begin working as a registered nurse, she only needed a temporary state permit to get her through until she passed the nursing boards and got a permanent license.

Getting a permit should be simple enough, right? Not in Pennsylvania. This particular young lady waited for months and still didn’t get it. And she is not alone. Both Pennsylvania’s Department of State and nursing board are overwhelmed with permit and license applications. They have processed some 4,800 applications since April 2022. The Department of State operates on a staff of just twenty.

You cannot fault state workers themselves. The system is not designed for efficiency. Rather, it is designed to be slow and tedious. The fact that aspiring nurses even need to make application is proof of that.

Licensing Is Largely Meaningless

What is so frustrating about this sort of thing is that licensing is largely meaningless. While hospitals and clinics are desperate to fill growing numbers of open registered nurse jobs, permit and license applications languish on government desks. Yet a license is little more than a piece of paper a nurse needs to pay to get. It doesn’t do anything.

A licensed nurse has undergone years of education and training. They have put in clinical hours. By the time they have earned their degree and finished their clinical rotations, they are ready to begin caring for patients. Obtaining a state license doesn’t make them a better nurse. It does not improve the quality of care they provide.

The Bureaucracy Persists

One of the hospitals the Erie Times-News spoke to told them they had plans to start four dozen new nurses in mid-July. When the time came, they could only start twenty. The remaining eighteen were waiting on licenses or scores from the nursing board. The hospital is looking at some of them not being available for another month.

The bureaucracy persists even in the face of desperate need. Meanwhile, the bureaucrats and politicians continue to promote licensing and accreditation as a way to guarantee only properly trained people can enter the nursing profession. But isn’t that what a college education is for?

Incidentally, bureaucratic licensing and accreditation are becoming increasingly more prevalent in the American workplace. It is getting to be that some states will not allow people to do anything without being licensed. And why? Is it about money? Is it about control?

There are few answers to the question of why. There is also a very little hope that the bureaucracy will go away. The one thing we can say for sure is that registered nurse jobs are available in spades. If you are looking for a career with an insatiable demand for workers, try nursing.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

What Are Informatics Nurses & How Will They Shape the Future of Healthcare?

The healthcare system has access to more data than ever before. Thanks to wearable health technology and digital patient records, it is very easy to receive granular insights both into induvial patients’ health and wellness and the well-being of entire communities. 

Hospitals have the tech, but many lack the ability to process and interpret the information they are getting. Informatics nurses can change this. 

In this article, we look at how informatics nurses will shape the future of health care. 

What Are Informatics Nurses?

Informatics is the study of computational systems that are designed to store, manage and process data. It is a broad discipline used in industries across the business sector. In healthcare, informatics are used to observe trends and recognize patterns, both as they relate to individuals, and communities at large. 

In the world of healthcare, data has recently become more important than ever. The desire for data implementation is there, but the skill set to take advantage of it may not be in many places. Informatics nurses have been educated to handle data, AI, and other technologies that are key modern medicine. They are there to bridge the skill gap, allowing hospitals and healthcare systems to reap the full benefits of data processing and implementation.

Bridging disciplines

Historically, nurses have met their patient’s needs with a combination of compassion and medical understanding. These qualities still have their role in the healthcare system, but they don’t necessarily naturally include more modern healthcare skill sets such as technological fluency and data comprehension. 

Informatic nurses bridge the skill gap between healthcare practices of the past and future. Currently, many healthcare systems across the country are handicapped by staff that were educated well before modern data analysis principles even existed. They don’t have the background knowledge, nor the availability to learn new skills that would be required to take full advantage of healthcare data processing. 

By hiring informatics nurses, healthcare systems can provide their patients with the best of all worlds, giving them high-quality care that is backed up by sophisticated data sets. 

Better Patient Outcomes

Data improves patient outcomes by allowing physicians to take a granular look at the individual’s information, and then cross-reference it with information from people in their demographic. 

Instead of looking simply at a patient’s height, weight, and age, informatics nurses will be able to examine health trends based on more specific considerations, like heart rate, blood pressure, and more. 

Better intel breeds better outcomes. Data interpretation can help care providers select the course of treatment most likely to produce success for the individual being cared for. 

Treating Hard-to-Reach Patients

Data can also improve care for people who might otherwise find it difficult to access the healthcare system. Rural communities are often a good example of this. Several towns may share one hospital, putting some people many miles away from high-quality care. 

While these people may not be able to get to the doctor’s office routinely, they can still produce important health data through wearables. Infomatic nurses can then access this information remotely, monitoring patients’ health even from a great distance. 

This means patients’ can receive lifestyle recommendations without ever going to the doctor. They may even be able to catch health conditions early, despite their limited access to conventional medicine. 

With a Bachelor’s in Health Science along with an MBA, Sarah Daren has a wealth of knowledge within both the health and business sectors. Sarah has been a consultant for a number of startup businesses, most prominently in the wellness industry and health education. She implements her health knowledge into every aspect of her life with a focus on making America a healthier and safer place for future generations to come.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Remote Nursing Jobs Gain Traction – Here’s What You Need to Know

It seems like the entire world went virtual at the height of the COVID pandemic. Even in the healthcare sector, the pandemic forced us to seek non-emergency medical care through virtual means. As a result, remote nursing has gained traction. Even now, healthcare job boards list thousands of remote registered nurse jobs.

It may seem like nursing and remote work are incompatible. Nursing is usually a profession requiring direct access to patients. It is a career that involves bedside care and constant monitoring. So how can it be performed remotely?

In fairness, the vast majority of registered nurse jobs still adhere to the traditional model. There are just some types of care that cannot be provided virtually. But the growing movement for telehealth is opening opportunities for nurses looking to gather the traditional clinical setting.

Telehealth Primary Care

One of the most lucrative fields for virtual nursing is primary care in a telehealth setting. You may have some experience with this yourself if you visited remotely with your doctor during the pandemic. Telehealth appointments are similar to in-person visits from a structural standpoint, even though they are conducted by way of video chat.

A registered nurse still greets the patient and collects preliminary information. They may consult with the patient and answer general questions. The nurse provides a vital service prior to the actual visit with the doctor.

Other Remote Opportunities

While telehealth and primary care are getting a lot of attention right now, they are not the only means by which registered nurse jobs can be performed remotely. There are a number of other remote opportunities nurses can look at. Here are just a few examples:

Healthcare Case Manager

Nurses who work as case managers are essentially go-betweens. They are intermediaries between patients and the facilities that provide their care. A case manager’s responsibilities include coordinating resources, evaluating options, monitoring patient progress, and keeping patients and their families in the loop. Helping patients manage costs can be part of the equation as well.

Fortunately, this type of work doesn’t always have to be done in person. Perhaps it should be most of the time, but there is a growing demand for remote access to caseworkers. Patients and their families would rather collaborate remotely than try to arrange personal visits.

Nurse Educator

Demand for nurse educators is growing right alongside the demand for nurses themselves. Practitioners looking to leave traditional registered nurse jobs in favor of remote work might consider becoming educators. A nurse educator combines clinical knowledge with practical experience to help train the next generation.

The beauty of this particular job is that it relies on an educational model that was in use long before the pandemic: remote learning. The only difference now is that technology plays a bigger part.

Nurse Recruiter

Recruiters are challenged to find the best nurses for open positions. But nursing is a complex job that requires the right combination of knowledge, skill, and practical experience. Recruiters who have never donned a nurse’s scrubs to step into a clinical setting don’t know what it takes to excel in a given job. Nurses do.

Nurse recruiting can be done remotely. In fact, it often is. Registered nurses leaving clinical work in favor of recruiting could work from home, utilizing technology to make contacts, conduct interviews, etc.

Remote nursing jobs are gaining traction. Nurses looking to get out of traditional clinical work are discovering that remote jobs are a better fit for them. It is really not surprising when you consider the state of the modern workforce.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.