Five things I love about being a nurse

(I'm really excited about this post because I've been waiting to write it for about a month!)

I've been back at work now for two months. I don't love going to work, because I really do feel that my focus needs to be at home right now, but I do love being a nurse. Here are five reasons why:

1. The nurse-patient relationship

The relationship I have with most of my patients is pretty unique. There aren't a lot of situations in life where, within 30 seconds of meeting someone, you might have your hands all over them, or be invited into the depth of their emotions. Sure there are some patients that consider us nurses their adversaries, or worse, their servants... but most times, we very quickly enter into a unique relationship of love and trust. I do my best to love them fully throughout my shift and they do their best to trust that I will care for them to the utmost of my ability.

A patient recently told me that I have healing hands. I love the difference that I can make with my hands. I can hold a patient's hand as I speak to him and look him in the eye, or touch her knee for a moment while I assess her status and the connection that is made in that brief moment is profound. North American culture has made touch between adults quite infrequent, yet I believe we need physical contact with people. I love that I can provide it in a healthy, healing way.

2. Work that is both physically and intellectually challenging

I come home from each shift physically and mentally exhausted, but with an energy that comes from having worked hard. It's a good exhaustion. The kind that comes from knowing I did my best all day.

People often tell me that they could never do my job, with a tone like they might use if they were saying the same thing to a plumber. Yeah, there are some less desirable parts of my job, but even when I'm doing these physical duties, my mind is always going. I'm always assessing, evaluating, comparing, figuring out. Even with body fluids. Even with pee.

3. Unlimited career directions and flexibility

When I graduated from nursing school over 5 years ago, I had no idea all the different avenues that one could take as a nurse. Some nurses use their skills to travel all around the world. I'd like to think that one day, I will be able to take my nursing skills to Africa to help with health promotion in some of the world's poorest countries. Other nurses use their skills to advocate for important changes to health or safety policies. Some day I will be one of those nurses. One can choose to nurse from the youngest babies all the way up to the very elderly. I am currently nursing adults who have had surgery, or are waiting for surgery, or have gastrointestinal disease.

Nursing, for me, has been a very flexible career. Right now, I'm working five shifts a month, only on weekends. Because of the extended shifts, I can work mostly once/week and be working the equivalent of two 8-hr days/week. I love that I can build my work schedule around my family needs. I'm fortunate that my work has been very good about accommodating me. They have trouble filling weekend shifts, and so are willing to let me work only weekends. It is really nice not to have rotating shifts right now because it gives us more of a weekly routine. When the kids are in school, I hope to be able to find a job where I can work only while they are in classes and be home for them after school. I knew that a profession that is 96% female would have to be family-friendly in some way.

4. Supportive colleagues

I work with great, great people. These nurses and other allied health workers work their butts off taking care of their patients. And we all work hard to take care of each other. We often work independently, but when we need help, another nurse will be there as quickly as possible. Nurses give up breaks to help each other. Nurses support each other emotionally, and believe me, we face some emotional challenges in our profession. This past weekend, one of our coworkers had a close family member pass away unexpectedly, in the hospital, right at the beginning of our shift. Immediately, we sent her to be with her family and covered for her until another nurse was able to replace her a few hours later. I love that we take care of each other. I love that we challenge each other. I love my coworkers.

5. Independence

Nurses work within a great team, but we also work independently. Many times in a shift, we are required to use our judgement to make decisions about the care we provide. It may be that we hold a medication because our assessment of the patient indicates that the medication would be harmful at that particular time. Or it may mean that we have to make some quick decisions and get the doctors involved because our nursing sense tells us that our patient is about to deteriorate. Good doctors know to trust the judgement that a nurse has about his or her patient, because the nurse is the only health professional that is with the patient for an extended period of time. Each nurse has a story of how they used their quick thinking and assessment skills to catch a problem before it was too late.

I love being a nurse. It is my calling. It fits my family. It fits me.

What's your five things this week? Write a blog post and link up to join the fun. Or, if you don't have a blog, leave me your list in the comments. You don't have to copy my topic, but feel free if you need a little direction. I can't wait to hear what y'all have to say!