The Noble Calling of Nurses

I believe that to go into healthcare it is said that you have a calling to do so. For myself I have known since I was 4 years old that I wanted to go into healthcare. So, why go into healthcare in this day and age when we have so many career opportunities to choose from?

I think we choose to work in healthcare for a variety of reasons. We don’t come in and do 8 hours of one task and go home and

no matter what part we play in the patient care team, each role is critical in making the whole process function. To work in the healthcare profession a person has the ability to touch and make an impact on a patient’s life. We not only care for patients, but in our everyday duties we work with family members as well. We help ease their fears. We involve them in the patient care process.

We work in a patient care environment. We take a patient through the nursing process. From initial illness to care and convalescence and can judge the effectiveness of any care provisions.

We find we learn a lot in a short time. We keep cool under pressure, learn to be well organized, and understand our patient’s needs.

As a nurse we wear many hats. We learn not only to care for our patients medically, we work to help meet spiritual needs, psychosocial needs and sometimes to just be there and listen.

We meet people from all walks of life, each with their own experiences and stories to tell. We learn to be non-judgmental. It is our job to help make them better. We work in hospitals, clinics, and even out in the community. Our work is one that is incredibly diverse. I believe that our work, no matter what role we play is very gratifying. To know that no matter how bad our shift was, if we touched and made an impact on one life, we did our job.

Even though today’s modern healthcare is technology based, the patient is the reason we are in healtchcare.

Florence Nightingale once said, “It is a noble calling, the calling of nurses, but it depends on you nurses to make it noble”

This I believe.