My Interest in a Career in Adult Nursing

Having worked in the financial sector for eight years I thought I needed a career change, when I joined my husband abroad. I was contemplating on the sector to branch until I arrived at a decision to study nursing. This was after my mom was sick at the point of death. The most painful aspect was all these while I was with her, she showed no sign of sickness until I relocated. I could not bear the emotional trauma because doctors could not diagnose her sickness, got weaker by the day, lost a lost of blood and reduced much weight. Some nurses showed no caring attitude towards her. Instead of encouraging her, they made her lose hope. Eventually, a family friend recommended one good hospital where they diagnosed her with a cyst and had to undergo a surgical operation. This was successful, and she recovered with time. Mom confessed the nurses were so kind to her. My joy knew no bounds and I realized how valuable healthcare professionals were to our society.

The fields of nursing are enormous but want to become an adult nurse because as a healthcare assistant working in a care and nursing home, I have grown to enjoy working with adults of different ages and backgrounds. I help with their personal care such as washing, toileting, feeding, mobility, getting up and going to bed. This has made me aware of how vulnerable they are. Showing them a compassionate love and care so they would not lack emotional support and feel devalued is vital to me. I have built trusting and respectful relationships with them and gets the opportunity to interact with their families. Seeing nurses administer medication to residents, writing care plans, checking patients’ progress, among their day-to-day duties is something I admire and serves as a motivation. They give me all the encouragement and support in my decision to study adult nursing.

Though rewarding and fulfilling, working in the healthcare sector comes with challenges, some of which I experience. Time management is a factor, where I try as much as possible to fit in personal responsibilities around my work. I can manage varied shift patterns and hours where sometimes requires me to work weekends, long shifts and bank holidays. Sometimes, some residents are rude, and I try to be patient. Another challenge is the physical endurance of having to stand for long periods of time and manual handling. I can maintain my energy by making sure I am well hydrated, eat well and live outside my care job.

I have enthusiasm, , determination and hard work, willingness to learn, excellent time management skills, teamwork skills, flexibility, multi-tasking, excellent communication and interpersonal skills, listening and observational skills, problem-solving skills, ability to remain calm under pressure, attention to detail, patience, empathy and compassion. With these skills, I have received positive the supervisions I have had so far at work and excelled in my undergraduate studies which I came out with a first-class honour degree.

In my leisure time, I derive joy in reading, researching and watching African movies. I am more than excited at the prospect of , which I will put in the best of my ability, shine and climb higher heights.

Works Cited

1. Anderson, R. (2017). The Importance of Compassion in Nursing. Journal of and Practice, 7(3), 104-107.
2. Austin, J. A., & Bergum, V. (2016). Transformative Learning Through Caring: Nurse Educators’ Perspectives. Journal of Nursing Education, 55(3), 151-156.
3. Boyle, D. A. (2015). Countering Compassion Fatigue: A Requisite Nursing Agenda. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 20(1), 1-9.
4. DeMarco, R. F., & Tufts, K. A. (2014). The Influence of the Nursing Faculty Role on Clinical Teaching Effectiveness. Journal of Nursing Education, 53(6), 336-340.
5. Han, Y., & Yin, L. (2017). The Effect of Empathy Training Program on Nursing Students’ Empathy and Self-Efficacy: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Nurse Education Today, 48, 1-6.
6. Hayes, L. J., & Mann, M. M. (2017). A Model for Teaching Nursing Students Caring Attributes. Journal of Nursing Education, 56(3), 146-149.
7. Jefferies, D., Johnson, M., & Nicholls, D. (2018). Caring: Exploring the Conceptual Structure of Caring from the Perspectives of Patients, Nursing Students, and Nurse Educators. Journal of Nursing Education, 57(6), 359-364.
8. Papathanasiou, I. V., Tsaras, K., Sarafis, P., & Stamouli, M. (2014). Exploring the Link between Burnout and Compassion Satisfaction in Nurses: A Psychometric Analysis. Health Science Journal, 8(2), 274-282.
9. Williams, A. (2016). The Power of Caring in Nursing. British Journal of Nursing, 25(6), 320-324.
10. Zamanzadeh, V., Valizadeh, L., Tabrizi, F. J., Behshid, M., Lotfi, M., & Gharibnavaz, H. (2015). Challenges Associated with the Empathy of Nursing Students: A Qualitative Study. Nursing Ethics, 22(8), 991-1000.