Nursing can be a gratifying career for individuals who enjoy offering care and coming up with solutions to satisfy the needs of their patients. Being a nurse has several benefits, including good pay, a promising future, growth opportunities, and the ability to specialize.
Nurses provide medical care to patients by taking their vital signs, giving them prescriptions, and performing physical examinations. A career in nursing can be immensely fulfilling because nurses may improve people’s quality of life and even save lives, in addition to educating patients and their family members about healthy lifestyles. Comforting families who receive sensitive news can be another rewarding aspect of nursing jobs.
Aspiring nurses must complete a comprehensive educational program that includes anatomy, medicine, nutrition, and psychological wellness. Their in-depth training also prepares them to manage the large number of people they work with daily. During their shift, nurses handle a variety of responsibilities and situations, which makes for an engaging and stimulating career.
Intrinsic rewards and professional advantages of a nursing career
Here is a look at some of the major benefits of choosing a nursing career.
Fulfillment through serving others
The fulfilling aspect of providing care and assisting patients in achieving health and well-being goals is one of the biggest benefits of becoming a nurse. The fundamental goal of nursing as a career is to save lives via compassionate, comprehensive treatment, which is why numerous individuals choose to pursue a career in nursing in the first place.
Opportunities for continuous learning
The medical care sector is continually changing to incorporate novel procedures, cutting-edge therapies, and alternative techniques that can assist nurses in providing better care for their patients, regardless of the area of medicine in which they choose to specialize. As a result, nurses usually have to keep up with the latest developments in their field and have the opportunity to learn new skills during their careers.
Making a difference
Nurses’ expertise, commitment and compassion are vital to the medical sector. They put in a lot of effort to make sure their patients receive the finest treatment possible because they frequently serve as the initial point of contact for them. Therefore, nursing is one of the professions that offers the greatest opportunity for personal fulfillment. Nurses can enjoy great satisfaction from serving others. They can appreciate the chance to positively affect the lives of their patients by offering compassionate support and medical attention. Many of these professions report that they value the opportunity to establish deep connections with patients and their loved ones that transcend beyond the clinical setting.
Travel possibilities
Throughout the nation, there is a need for nursing professionals to care for sick and injured people in rural and urban settings alike. This means that nurses are generally able to work anywhere they desire. Furthermore, certain nursing professionals work as travel nurses by trade, which entails moving across the nation and beginning a new job in a new workplace approximately every 13 weeks. Nursing can be a great career choice for people who have a passion for travel.
Nurses earn competitive salaries
Hospitals well compensate nurses for their vital role in patient care. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average yearly wage of nurses was around $81,000 in 2022 in the United States. This means nurses are likely to earn enough to support their families and pay off their financial obligations from nursing school. By developing their skills, pursuing a higher education, or focusing on a particular area of expertise, nurses can increase their pay. Working additional hours might also increase a nurse’s income.
Job outlook
Preventative healthcare is becoming increasingly important in society, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that the employment of registered nurses will rise by 6% between 2022 and 2032. Around 177,000 new employees will be added because of this expansion throughout that time frame. This means there is a positive work outlook for nurse professionals in the United States.
Furthermore, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that this is greater than the median rise in employment across all occupations. A significant number of individuals choose to pursue nursing because nursing offers stable employment. The growing senior population in the United States is contributing to the rising demand for this profession.
Free education is available to nurses
There are several initiatives designed to motivate individuals to pursue careers as nurses because they are in such great demand. Individuals can submit applications for scholarships or financial assistance to help pay for their nursing degrees. Typically, universities, government initiatives, and independent groups offer this type of funding.
Overtime compensation
Nurses are eligible for overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standard Overtime Laws (FLSA). This rule specifies that if a nurse works more than 40 hours in a seven-day period, they may be entitled to overtime compensation. Therefore, picking up additional hours of work usually gives nurses plenty of opportunities to earn extra money. Having access to additional hours at work can give professionals greater control over their finances.
Diverse specialization
Nurses can choose from a wide range of specializations within their profession. This allows them to choose an area of study that best suits their requirements and skills during their education and training. Specializing in a particular field can boost nurses’ overall level of career fulfillment.
Opportunities for career advancement
Those who work in nursing can potentially take advantage of several options for career progression. Individuals may choose to become floor managers or shift leaders, or they might want to move into top administrative roles depending on their particular interests and career objectives. Furthermore, it is typical in the sector for nurses to transition into other healthcare roles, such as nurse practitioners or physician assistants. If you’re just beginning your career, you might explore opportunities such as a certified nursing assistant job in Philadelphia, which can be a great stepping stone into the field of nursing while allowing you to gain valuable experience.
Transferable skills
Nurses possess numerous transferable skills such as communication skills, teamwork skills, adaptability skills, organizational skills, leadership skills, decision-making qualities, problem-solving, critical thinking, empathy, self-motivation, technology skills, time management, punctuality, work ethics and much more. These abilities can help nurses excel not only in the medical sector but in other fields they may wish to pursue in the future.
Pride
Many nurses take great pride in their profession because they carry out essential, life-saving tasks that give patients confidence in the care they are receiving. The ability to play such an influential and supportive role daily can help nurses feel more fulfilled.
Professional acknowledgment
In addition to pride, nursing professionals usually experience some degree of professional acknowledgment for their contributions. Nurses enjoy a professional standing that allows them to engage in practice in their area if they adhere to rigorous licensing procedures. As a result, nurses are generally viewed as extremely skilled, knowledgeable, and reliable professionals.
Flexibility
A significant level of flexibility exists in the nursing profession. There are nurses who work full-time schedules and others who work part-time. To meet certain scheduling requirements or enjoy a greater degree of flexibility, nurses may sometimes work on a temporary or seasonal basis, which is a big draw for nurses with family responsibilities.
Job satisfaction
Nursing professionals typically report high levels of job satisfaction thanks to the possibilities for career progression, flexibility, competitive salary rates, and acknowledgment in their field. Work satisfaction may provide nurses with psychological benefits such as reduced stress levels, greater efficiency, gratitude for coworkers, and healthy working connections.
Interacting with a diverse range of people
Every day, nurses interact with a wide range of individuals, including their patients and coworkers. They collaborate with physicians, physician assistants, specialists, social workers and other nursing professionals. Furthermore, nurses provide care to patients belonging to a diverse range of ethnicities, racial backgrounds, cultures, races, and age groups. This allows nurses to practice open communication, build trust, improve relationships, enhance decision-making, improve conflict resolution, raise cultural awareness, and foster empathy and compassion.
Shift scheduling options
A full-time nursing schedule typically consists of five days with eight hours of work each day. Another common schedule in hospitals is a three-day work week with 12-hour shifts. Nurses may have more free time and personal time during the week with this type of schedule. Nurses who are employed in clinics generally have a more traditional schedule.
Daily variation in responsibilities
Nurses usually see variation in their daily responsibilities because they deal with different groups of patients every day. This might be especially interesting to individuals who would rather take on fresh challenges during their careers instead of continuously performing specific jobs.
How to become a successful nurse
To reap all the benefits of a nursing career, aspiring nurses must obtain advanced education, gain experience, and work on developing their skills. Obtaining the necessary state licenses and getting a degree are prerequisites for becoming a nurse.
All aspiring nurses must begin by earning a bachelor’s degree from a reputable institution. Successful nursing students may choose to earn an advanced degree in nursing to improve their earning prospects. For example, a Master’s in Nursing salary tends to be higher than the earnings of those who only hold a bachelor’s degree as they typically have greater degrees of specialization, competence, and experience in the sector. Wilkes University offers online advanced degree programs for individuals who wish to pursue a career in nursing.
Similarly, nursing professionals may be able to access more work prospects with an advanced degree. A nurse can aim to expand their competences in several areas as they progress academically. As a result, advanced degree holders in nursing are frequently in greater demand. Nursing professionals who obtain a master’s degree may be able to enhance their yearly earnings and obtain a greater rate of incremental pay increases and add-ons than RNs and BSN graduates.
Advanced education helps nurses pursue a more rewarding career
Nursing professionals may develop a stable and rewarding career with an MSN, perhaps leading to greater job security. Their skills may be more useful to medical organizations if they have specific knowledge, and this might help them land a long-term position. Because they are required to continuously learn and stay updated on the latest methods, these positions may help nurses remain relevant in the healthcare sector. Therefore, completing advanced education in nursing opens a world of opportunities for nurses as they are able to secure better job opportunities.
