Nursing is a great career to pursue if you are interested in the medical field. It is in high demand and there are so many different job opportunities out there. It has revolutionized the medical field in many ways over the years and makes a difference in so many people’s lives. According to all the articles found on EBSCOhost, nursing was not a career until the 1800s but continues to be one of the most needed ones. Nursing is a very crucial job that multiple people should consider choosing as a career.
It is superior to acknowledge the importance of nursing and how it started. Nursing has come a long way since the nineteenth century. Now there are many different types and levels of nursing around the world. This career went from being a disrespectable career to being the fourth most in demand job around the world. Now in the twenty first century there are about 2,824,641 registered nurses in just the U.
S. According to the encyclopedia Britannica School, “Professional nursing traditionally begins with Florence Nightingale.” (“Nursing” 1). Nightingale was a well educated woman who decided to violate the social norms and become a nurse. (“Nursing” 1).
“Moreover, she believed that nursing provided an ideal independent calling full of intellectual and social freedom for women, who at that time had few other career options.” (“Nursing” 1). During the Crimean War, Nightingale had the chance to test her nursing skills and nurse injured Russian soldiers. She did so well,the British government asked her to take a small group of nurses to the military hospital.
(“Nursing” 1).
Clara barton was an American Civil War volunteer, she distributed supplies to wounded soldiers.(“Barton, Clara” 1). She continued this through the war. “In June 1864 she was formally appointed superintendent of nurses for the Army of the James. In 1865, at the request of Pres. Abraham Lincoln, she set up a bureau of records to aid in the search for missing men.” (“Clara Barton” 1). During the Franco – German War, Clara became associated with The International Red Cross.( “Clara Barton” 1). After her return to the United States, she fought hard for the country to sign the Geneva Convention. This allowed the treatment of the sick and wounded in battle and proper identifying and burial of those killed in battle. In 1881 she organized the American Red Cross. The American Red Cross was a significant contributor to nursing.
Mary Breckinridge is another important contributor to nursing. Mary was a midwife nurse who established the new system of rural health care. Mary was also a nurse during WW1 through the American Red Cross. After furthering her studies at Columbia University, she decided to focus on the poor parts of Kentucky, where she ended up staying. She looked into the heath care of people who lived in areas with no physicians. Mary was the founder of The Frontier Nursing service, she used the inheritance from her mother to help establish this. She helped provide best medical care to individuals. Ever since the Frontier Nursing Service was founded,maternal and neonatal mortality rates have decreased. (Diekmann 1).
Recent research in nursing shows a nursing shortage in the United States.”The Subcommittee on Health of the Committee on Finance of the United States Senate met to examine the U.S. nursing shortage crisis which is adversely affecting the health care of all Americans,..” ( Congress of the U.S., Washington, DC.Senate Committee on Finance 1). There was a nursing shortage in the early 2000s, but due to the recession in 2007, there was no longer a shortage. Even with the recession, the demand for nurses did not change remarkably. (Snavely 1). It is expected in 2030, just one state to have a demand of 102,200 and a supply of 90,800.
One cause of this is most of the nurses are aging and starting to face retirement. Another cause is nurses are going back to school and going higher up in the medical field. A third cause is shortage of faculty, because of this schools are restricting the number of new students in the nursing program. “A fourth contributing factor results from the high attrition rate inherent to the profession. Nursing is highly rewarding, yet incredibly stressful and demanding both for the caregiver and family members. Burnout, fatigue, and stress causes many nurses to leave the vocation only a few years after entering into it.”( Snavely 2). Our inability to match the supply and demand of health care can have far reaching consequences.( Snavely 1). Overall nursing shortages have an inevitable negative impact on the quality care of patients.
One of the most important aspects of being a nurse is how caring they have to be. Nurses have to take care of patients physical problems and also their emotions needs. They work very hard and long to provide care for their patients. One might choose this career because of all the opportunities available to help. A nurse not only cares for their patients but their family as well. It is a great feeling to be there and know that you are really helping people out in all the ways that you can physically and emotionally.
There are even greater opportunities when it comes to being a nurse like saving a life in an emergency. When working in a place like the emergency room, there are always critical situations that happen in the blink of an eye. Not many people understand how much nurses do, but when the doctor is not readily available, a nurse will always be there to provide care before the doctor arrives. This could make all the difference in saving their life. Whether the situation is big or small, a nurse will always be there for support and that is the best reason to become one.
It is not exceedingly difficult to become a registered nurse. The first step into becoming a nurse, is graduating high school. Once you have your high school degree, you can apply to any college of your choice that has a nursing program. Ocean County College is one of the many places that offer it. For this college there are a few requirements to enter the program: 1. a high school diploma or GED, 2. qualifying SAT/ACT scores or complete all the general education classes, 3. Pass the TEAS Test, 4. A clean background check. Once you complete all these tasks you are given a date of completion, which is a waiting list to get in. When they get to your date, you will be accepted.
When you are finally in the program, you are even closer to becoming a nurse. Registered nursing is a two year degree and will most often not take much longer. When you pass all your nursing classes, you will graduate with your nursing degree but will not be a nurse just yet. After, you must take the NCLEX-RN exam to officially become a registered nurse. Once you have passed that test you must get a state license and begin looking for jobs to apply for. Once you find a job, you will officially be a working nurse.
Through this research, one might consider becoming a nurse because of how important they are to society. It is also a career that is very stable and fulfilling to be a part of. Since the demand is high, it would be very beneficial that a great number of people read this and give thought to choosing this as a career. Further research would lead you to discover the many different opportunities a nursing career has to offer. Aside from that, researching is good for someone who is looking for a job in the medical field, that may not have thought of nursing as an option. Research is such an important resource especially when it comes to what you want to do for the rest of your life.
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