Why Enter the Nursing Profession?<\/strong><\/h3>\nNurses are an essential component of a Beaver KY medical team, and for a large number of patients, their primary care providers. A nursing career can lead to many opportunities, including healthcare education, research and specialty areas of practice. Nurses enter the profession for many reasons, among the most significant are its practical and personal rewards. Nurses provide direct, one-on-one care to patients. Many patients in a hospital or home care setting spend more time with nurses than with doctors. Nurses often go into the profession out of a desire to tend to the needs of patients, including in cases of short-term treatment of illness and extended care of chronic conditions. This humanistic aspect of the health profession, as opposed to the analytical or research related facets, is attractive to many who elect to pursue a nursing career. Nurses have extensive applicable skills and can choose from a variety of work environments, including home care facilities, physician’s offices, medical clinics, community centers and hospitals. Also, nurses can advance into a number of specializations, including addictions, critical care, neonatology and genetics. While most nurses provide primary patient care, others elect to be teachers, policy consultants or pharmaceutical representatives.<\/p>\n
Registered Nurse Job Activities<\/h3>\n
Registered nurses are the most extensive occupation in the medical delivery system. RNs practice in a large number of different medical settings, including Beaver KY hospitals, family practices, outpatient clinics, nursing homes and even schools. Their primary job is to help doctors in the care of their patients. However, the specific duties of a registered nurse will depend on their job or area of expertise along with where they work. A portion of the duties of an RN may include:<\/p>\n
\n- Providing medications<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Overseeing patients<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Conducting physical examinations<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Managing care<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Supervising LPNs, LVNs and nurse aides<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Educating 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 advanced job duties and responsibilities. Nurse practitioners (NP), as an example, must hold a Master’s Degree and generally work more independently than their RN counterparts. They can provide primary or specialty care services, prescribe medications, and diagnose and treat basic illnesses or injuries.<\/p>\n
Nursing Online Classes<\/h3>\n
Enrolling in nursing schools online is growing into a more favored way to receive instruction and acquire a nursing degree. Many schools will require attending on campus for part of the training, and almost all programs require a specific amount of clinical rotation hours conducted in a local healthcare facility. But since the rest of the training may be accessed online, this alternative may be a more practical answer to finding the free time to attend college for some Beaver KY students. Pertaining to tuition, some online degree programs are cheaper than other on campus choices. Even other expenses such as for commuting and study materials may be minimized, helping to make education more economical. And many online programs are accredited by organizations like the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) for BSN and MSN degrees. And so if your job and family commitments have left you with very little time to pursue your academic goals, perhaps an online nursing training program will make it easier to fit a degree into your busy schedule.<\/p>\n
Things to Ask Nursing Schools<\/h3>\n
Once you have chosen which nursing degree to pursue, along with if to attend your classes on campus near Beaver KY or online, you can utilize the following guidelines to start narrowing down your options. As you probably are aware, there are many nursing schools and colleges throughout Kentucky and the United States. So it is essential to decrease the number of schools to select from to ensure that you will have a manageable list. As we already pointed out, the location of the school and the price of tuition are most likely going to be the initial two things that you will look at. But as we also emphasized, they should not be your sole qualifiers. So prior to making your final selection, use the following questions to see how your selection measures up to the field.<\/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 confirm that you obtain a quality education, it may assist in securing financial aid or student loans, which are oftentimes not offered in Beaver KY 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 needed on the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN) together with graduation from an accredited school. Some states require a specific number of clinical hours be performed, as well as the passing of additional tests. It’s important that the school you are enrolled in not only delivers an excellent education, but also preps you to comply with the minimum licensing standards for Kentucky or the state where you will be practicing.<\/li>\n
- Reputation. <\/strong>Look at internet rating services to see what the reviews are for each of the schools you are considering. Ask the accrediting agencies for their reviews too. In addition, check with the Kentucky school licensing authority to determine if there are any complaints or compliance issues. Finally, you can call some Beaver KY healthcare organizations you’re interested in working for after graduation and ask what their judgments 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 complete their programs. A low graduation rate may be an indication that students were displeased with the program and dropped out. It’s also imperative that the schools have high job placement rates. A high rate will not only confirm that the school has a good reputation within the Beaver KY medical community, but that it also has the network of contacts to assist students attain employment.<\/li>\n
- Internship Programs<\/strong>. The best way to obtain experience as a registered nurse is to work in a clinical setting. Virtually all nursing degree programs require a specified number of clinical hours be completed. Various states have minimum clinical hour mandates for licensing also. Ask if the schools have a working relationship with Beaver KY hospitals, clinics or labs and assist with the positioning of students in internships.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n