Transitioning

Whether you are a new graduate or an experienced nurse, at some point in your career you will transition. Nursing is a great profession which offers a vast range of career opportunities and allows nurses the ability to transition into various roles and settings. Transitioning occurs during various stages of a nurse’s career: inexperienced new graduates, skilled registered nurses, and advanced practice nurses, transition.  Some nurses elect to remain in their specialty for years, others opt to change role or specialty frequently. Reasons for transitioning are usually related to both personal and professional reasons and may include: improved work-life balance; better work hours; flexible work arrangements; different setting; a new role: reaching a plateau in your current position; feeling undervalued in your current role and, last but not least, burn-out.

In preparing for the transition, first, one should perform a self-evaluation and purposefully examine the reasons for the change. Transitioning sometimes result in moving from an expert to a novice role, however this should not be viewed as a barrier. “Sometimes to move forward, it requires that you take a few steps backward”, and this is ok. Once self-evaluation is completed, and an area of preference is defined, you may then begin a comprehensive inquiry. Explore your options and research specialties, roles, organizations, and role requirements. Search job-sites and utilize social media sites to engage with other nurses in other specialties. Networking is fundamental for successful transitioning. It allows you to gain relevant insights and provides you with invaluable opportunities to prepare for career goals. Recognize, also, that some positions may require additional education. Update your resume, contact recruiters, and ask to shadow providers in the area of interest. These steps will help to guide your decision process, in choosing a specialty that befits your personality and aligns with your career goal.

Change is daunting, as we are taken out of our comfort zone, however, note that change precedes growth. The process may be overwhelming, and seem impossible, however it is achievable. Fear of the unknown can be gut -wrenching and paralyzing, however reframe your thought process, and channel your fear into a driving force. Seek guidance from your colleagues or find a mentor to help you to navigate through the process. Continue to be supportive of each other, and remember that progress is impossible without change.

Stay FAB: Fearless, Affectionate, & Bold

Protocols and Nursing

Health organizations, and agencies create protocols to promote consistency, accountability, and high quality care. Protocols are tailored to the different clinical areas and may delineate skills, assessment, treatments and channels of communication. They are integrated into organizations to assist healthcare providers in rendering evidenced-based patient care, and also to enhance favorable patients’ outcomes.

Nurses are educated in the nursing process, which entails methodical steps to provide patient care and includes: assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation. Nurses are trained to recognize patients’ symptoms, and to administer treatments within their scope of practice. To effectively employ protocols, nurses must acquire and apply critical thinking skills. Nurses are challenged daily with various situations, requiring rapid appropriate assessments and, initiating appropriate treatments. Critical thinking skills are essential, especially with today’s complex healthcare system. Some nurses may acquire critical thinking skills faster than others, however with practice, comes growth. Critical thinking skills can also be gained through self- learning, and utilizing available resources and peers. Nurses remain an integral part of patient care, and are entrusted with the task of making the best decisions for their patients.   Protocols are imperative in the healthcare system, however has led to “protocol driven nursing”. Nevertheless, protocols should not negate the responsibility of one using his or her best judgement.

Nurses have professional responsibilities to adhere to organizational protocols, however they should continue to: thoroughly assess patients, communicate to appropriate personnel, and proficiently administer treatments. Protocols should be used to guide nursing actions, and not solely to dictate how care is provided.  It is critical that nurses continue to use: their best judgement, nursing intuition, and critical thinking skills to provide high quality care which will result in the best patient outcome.

Stay FAB: Fearless, Affectionate, and Bold

Empathy

Simply stated, empathy is being able to understand and share the feelings of others. It is an important attribute of healthcare providers, and is a key component in providing care to our patients. Our patients must be engaged with empathy, to foster improved patients’ communication and satisfaction. Additionally, engaging empathy also supports positive patients’ health outcomes. Being empathetic, shows caring, compassion, and understanding of the patient’s perspective. It allows us to make connections, which help to increase our awareness in assessing the needs of our patients, and aid in formulating appropriate patient-centered care.

Facilitating empathy enables us to recognize and acknowledge others’ fear, ambivalence, pain, and worry. An empathic approach can be a simple touch, making eye contact, or giving a gentle hug. Sometimes, empathy takes us to the level of immense vulnerability, resulting in many different emotions. We should permit ourselves to be vulnerable.

Sometimes experiences cause us to be detached from our emotions and not exhibit empathy. When we acknowledge the lack of empathy, we may need to ‘examine our biases, and walk in others ‘shoes. It is imperative that we champion a culture of empathy, which helps us to be better listeners, build trust, and develop stronger relationships.

Stay FAB: Fearless, Affectionate and Bold