Why Choose the Nursing Profession?<\/strong><\/h3>\nNurses are an essential part of a Newberry FL medical team, and for many patients, their primary care providers. A career in nursing can lead to a number of opportunities, including research, health care education and specialty areas of practice. Nurses go into the profession for several reasons, the most meaningful are its practical and personal advantages. Nurses provide personal, one-on-one care to patients. Many patients in a medical facility or home care environment spend more time with nurses than with physicians. Nurses frequently go into the profession due to a desire to tend to the needs of patients, including in instances of short-term treatment of illness and extended care of chronic conditions. This humanistic side of the health profession, rather than the research or analytical related aspects, is appealing to many who decide to pursue a nursing career. Nurses have a wide range of applicable skills and can choose from an assortment of work settings, such as nursing homes, doctor’s offices, health clinics, community centers and hospitals. Also, nurses can advance into a number of specializations, such as substance addictions, critical care, neonatology and genetics. Although many nurses provide personal patient care, others elect to be educators, policy consultants and pharmaceutical representatives.<\/p>\n
Registered Nurse Job Functions<\/h3>\n
Registered nurses are the most extensive occupation in the healthcare delivery system. RNs practice in many different medical settings, namely Newberry FL hospitals, family practices, outpatient clinics, nursing homes and even schools. Their basic job is to assist doctors in the treatment of their patients. However, the exact duties of a registered nurse will be dependent on their job or area of expertise along with where they work. Some of the responsibilities of an RN may include:<\/p>\n
\n- Administering medications<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Overseeing patients<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Performing physical examinations<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Coordinating care<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Supervising LPNs, LVNs and nurse aides<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Instructing patients and their families<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Maintaining health records and charts<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Nurses with a more advanced degree may have more high level job duties and accountabilities. Nurse practitioners (NP), for example, must hold a Master’s Degree and typically work more independently than their RN counterparts. They can administer primary or specialty care services, prescribe medications, and diagnose and treat routine illnesses or injuries.<\/p>\n
Online Nursing Degrees<\/h3>\n
Attending nursing programs online is growing into a more favored way to obtain training and earn a nursing degree. Certain schools will require attending on campus for part of the training, and nearly all programs call for a specific number of clinical rotation hours conducted in a local healthcare center. But since the balance of the training may be accessed online, this method may be a more accommodating solution to finding the free time to attend college for some Newberry FL students. Pertaining to tuition, a number of online degree programs are less costly than other on campus choices. Even additional expenses such as for commuting and study materials can be reduced, helping to make education more easily affordable. And a large number of online programs are accredited by organizations such as the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) for BSN and MSN degrees. And so if your work and family commitments have left you with very little time to work toward your academic goals, perhaps an online nursing school will make it more convenient to fit a degree into your hectic schedule.<\/p>\n
Things to Ask Nursing Schools<\/h3>\n
Once you have determined which nursing degree to pursue, along with if to attend your classes on campus near Newberry FL or online, you can use the following checklist to start narrowing down your choices. As you probably are aware, there are a large number of nursing schools and colleges within Florida and the United States. So it is necessary to lower the number of schools to choose from to ensure that you will have a workable list. As we previously discussed, the location of the school as well as the price of tuition are undoubtedly going to be the initial two factors that you will take into consideration. But as we also emphasized, they should not be your sole qualifiers. So before making your ultimate selection, use the following questions to see how your pick measures up to the other programs.<\/p>\n
\n- Accreditation. <\/strong>It’s a good idea to make sure that the degree or certificate program along with the school is accredited by a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting organization. Aside from helping verify that you get an excellent education, it may help in acquiring financial aid or student loans, which are often not available in Newberry FL for non-accredited schools.<\/li>\n
- Licensing Preparation<\/strong>. Licensing prerequisites for registered nurses are different from state to state. In all states, a passing score is required on the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN) as well as graduation from an accredited school. Certain states require a certain number of clinical hours be completed, as well as the passing of additional tests. It’s imperative that the school you are attending not only delivers an excellent education, but also preps you to satisfy the minimum licensing standards for Florida or the state where you will be working.<\/li>\n
- Reputation. <\/strong>Check internet rating services to see what the reviews are for all of the schools you are considering. Ask the accrediting organizations for their reviews too. Also, contact the Florida school licensing authority to determine if there are any complaints or compliance issues. Finally, you can contact some Newberry FL healthcare organizations you’re interested in working for after graduation and ask what their opinions are of the schools as well.<\/li>\n
- Graduation and Job Placement Rates<\/strong>. Find out from the RN schools you are looking at what their graduation rates are as well as how long on average it takes students to finish their programs. A low graduation rate may be an indication that students were dissatisfied with the program and dropped out. It’s also essential that the schools have high job placement rates. A high rate will not only substantiate that the school has a favorable reputation within the Newberry FL healthcare community, but that it also has the network of contacts to help students obtain a position.<\/li>\n
- Internship Programs<\/strong>. The most ideal way to obtain experience as a registered nurse is to work in a clinical setting. Almost all nursing degree programs require a certain number of clinical hours be completed. Various states have minimum clinical hour requirements for licensing also. Ask if the schools have a working relationship with Newberry FL hospitals, clinics or labs and help with the positioning of students in internships.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n