While pursuing a nursing career, it is important to understand that there are many different categories. Nurses are a very vital component in the health care industry since they care for patients in need. Each nursing career has their own qualifications and they differ greatly though there may be some similarities here and there. Each rank of nursing has its own skills, responsibilities and proficiency. A nurse’s location also distinguishes them and their responsibilities. In this article, we are going to discuss the most demanding nurse ranks and their qualifications as well as their tasks
Types of nurses
The following are some of the types of nurses that are high on demand considering that this field is growing rapidly with changes in health care.
1. Professional health nurse
This is a nurse who counsels people such as employees on health and safety and also conducts a plan of action for individuals. Occupational nurses often have one on one contact with employees and help them with health-related questions they may have.
2. Private duty nurse
This is a nurse who provides patients with advanced medical conditions with care at their homes. They can offer long term services depending on the condition at hand to patients who may require individual monitoring such as those with brain injuries. Their responsibilities vary from one patient to the other but mostly they carry out ventilator tracheostomy care.
3. Public health nurses
A public health nurse is a nurse who works towards improving the health of the public through services such as health promotion. They advocate for better health services for the public through the local authorities of the area in question.
4. Nursing directors
Nursing directors supervise the staff and all nursing services in a health facility. This type of nursing recommends medical and leadership skills because nursing managers from different departments repot to the nursing director.
5. Home care nurse
A home care nurse is situated in a patient’s home and in most cases, they take care of elderly patients who have health impairments or critical conditions. It is their duty to make sure the patient is safe and comfortable at home. They also administer and manage medication, check the patient’s health and organize a care plan.
6. Midwife nurse
This is a nurse who takes care of pregnant women by ensuring their wellbeing before and after delivery. They carry out tests, organize treatment plans and assess the patient’s progress and they work hand in hand with gynecologists and obstetricians. While in a medical institution, they conduct medical examinations on patients.
7. Pediatric nurse specialist
A pediatric nurse deals with children by checking out all primary illnesses and managing side effects of the conditions at hand. They work in a clinic and advice patients on the appropriate measures to boost their long-term health conditions.
8. Nursing home manager
This type of nurse deals with elderly people in nursing homes. They combine a set of skills while undertaking these activities which include supervision and managerial skills along with their education and experience.
9. Psychiatric nurse specialist
This is a registered nurse who specializes in mental health by assessing, diagnosing and treating mental conditions. They offer therapy sessions and administer medication according to a patient’s needs. They work together with health specialists to organize treatment plans for their patients.
10. Chief nursing officer
This type of nurse manages and supervises the nursing operations in their designated facility. They ensure smooth running of the facility’s daily operations by applying their medical expertise and business skills in regard to the hospital systems. They run and organize trainings for newly employed nurses and managers.
11. Intensive care nurses
They are also known as critical care nurses and they deal with patients with life-threatening conditions. Their responsibilities include: acknowledging emergencies and looking after patients in their recovery phase in the ICU, offer emotional encouragement to their patients, monitor patient’s progress and carry out assessments.
12. Oncology nurse
An oncology nurse takes care of cancer patients and assist them with their treatments and take control of the symptoms. Some of their tasks include: monitor and assess patient’s conditions, creating care plans, counselling patients, training the patient about the illness and creating a treatment plan, administering medications and evaluating lab results.
13. Delivery and labor nurses
They are also known as obstetric nurses and they assist pregnant mothers throughout the delivery process. Duties of delivery and labor nurses include: attending to patients during prenatal clinics, conducting tests on infants and offering training to mothers on infant care and monitoring fetal pulse rate during labor. Despite providing their services to healthy mother, they also conduct emergency deliveries such as caesarian section in case of complications.
Conclusion
There are quite a number of types of nurses and we cannot exhaust all of them. The ones discussed above are just a few of the most demanding careers. Apart from the above-mentioned careers, you can also decide to take healthcare administration and health care informatics as alternatives. Having a background in your selected field can be advantageous and it can benefit you as you explore the health careers available to match your passion.
FAQs
1. What do I consider when choosing a nursing specialty?
There are a lot of specialties to choose from and you might want to narrow down your career choice using the following aspects: the interests, time limit, expected income, educational program and the institution you wish to join.
2. How many hours does a nurse work?
The duration of work typically depends on the institution a nurse is working for. Nurses working in hospitals may be required to work long hours and during weekends since patients need attention all hours of the day and night while nurses in a physician’s office nay work the normal working hours.
3. What are the essential traits of a nurse?
A nurse should possess the following core qualities in order to be a successful nurse: good communication skills, critical thinking, be compassionate, pay attention to little details, excellent organization skills and have emotional stability.
4. In which institutions do nurses work?
There are several institutions where nurses can work such as: nursing homes, hospitals, community centers, schools, military camps and physician’s offices among others.