Due to the pandemic of COVID-19, the demand for nurses has increased across the globe. This health crisis has disrupted everything worldwide and put a significant responsibility on nurses to serve the patients affected by a coronavirus. Although the situation is now better due to the COVID-19 vaccine, there is still a huge need for nurses in the health care sector. When it comes to a nursing career, you can explore plenty of options and make the right choice as per your interest and qualifications. With the constantly increasing demand for nurses, this career offers a lot. From high-paying salaries to job security, you can enjoy different perks.
You must understand that nursing is not an ordinary job as you are responsible for the lives of many patients. You can feel mentally and emotionally exhausted once surrounded by individuals dealing with different health issues. Sometimes you have to deal with patients fighting for their lives due to suffering from lethal diseases like cancer or AIDS. So, all these things can affect your mental health, which means you have to be mentally tough to cope with such stressful situations. Without further delay, let’s find out some of the right nursing career choices that you can opt for.
Nurse Practitioner
As a nurse practitioner, you offer specialty and primary care providers services. Choosing this nursing career option allows you to deliver advanced nursing practices to the patients. From prescribing medications to physical examinations, you get a chance to perform different duties. It would be better to dig deep and find more about nurse practitioner specialties to make the right career choice.
If you have to offer in-depth nursing care at a high level and love taking challenges, then a nurse practitioner would be the perfect fit for you. It is essential to earn a master’s degree to become eligible for a nurse practitioner position. Being a nurse practitioner, you will primarily work in hospitals or private clinics.
Geriatric Nursing
As a geriatric nurse, you must be skilled in providing services to older people with illnesses and injuries and to help them improve their quality of life. You also have to work with elderly patients suffering from long-term illnesses like cancer or paralysis. You need to have the right expertise and skills to meet patients who face similar issues in such cases.
If you have a genuine passion for serving the aging community, you should opt for a geriatric nursing career. You need to have a basic understanding of the requirements of the older patients and the advanced treatment methods that will help you fulfill your duties effectively. Having a bachelor’s or associate’s degree is necessary to become eligible for the geriatric nurse position.
Perioperative Nurse
Perioperative nurses are also known as surgical nurses who mainly offer post and pre-operative care services. Some of the significant responsibilities of the nurses include managing tools for surgeries, taking care of surgical rooms, and doing necessary bandages during the operations to prevent patients’ bleeding.
Suppose you are interested in providing physical care that makes a valuable contribution to successful surgeries. In that case, you should opt for this nursing career. You have to get at least a bachelor’s or associate’s degree to apply for the perioperative nursing position. Your employment locations will be surgical centers, hospitals, and outpatient care centers.
Mental Health Nurse
If you want to serve patients facing mental disorders, you should build a career as a mental health nurse. Such a career choice requires you to earn specialization in treating and diagnosing psychological disorders in patients. You may also have to work in the counseling services while serving in this nursing discipline.
If you want to add value to the lives of patients who have a mental illness, then this position can be the perfect fit for you. It is vital to address the emotional needs of patients facing mental health challenges. As a mental health nurse, you have to provide them with the proper moral and emotional support to play a critical role in their treatment. As a mental health nurse, you will mainly work in psychiatric facilities and rehab centers.
Nurse Educator
Being a nurse educator, you have to fulfill the responsibility to teach students the core nursing principles. You may teach basic nursing lessons or disciplines to help young students start as nurses.
It will help if you go for this career position to prepare future nurses by teaching them comprehensive and general nursing lessons. Every individual who wants to inspire young individuals to work in the medical field should become a nurse educator.
Nurse Manager
As a nurse manager, you should monitor the team’s progress under your supervision. You have to ensure that all fellow nurses perform their tasks efficiently and keep track of patients’ conditions. Most nurse managers also have to fulfill administrative duties, including managing schedules, hiring nurses, and making budget-related decisions. If you want to work in an administrative position, it will be the right fit for you. Also, you should have a bachelor’s level degree and a registered nurse license (RN) to apply for this position.
Conclusion
The nursing field is full of challenges, so you need to have nerves of steel to deal with different types of issues. To make the right career choice, you must analyze yourself to determine your interest and capabilities. It will help you decide where you fit in and the right career path for you. Also, consult your peers who are already serving as nurses to better understand different aspects of the nursing profession. It will prepare you mentally before entering the field to overcome the industry’s challenges.
