According to the article Career One Stop ‘Registered Nurses’, “assess patient health problems and needs, develop and implement nurse care plans, and maintain medical records” (2017). This description of service provided by nurses is the jest of what this profession encompasses. I plan to enter the field of nursing, more specifically, an emergency department registered nurse as my career choice. The care and service an emergency department nurse, also known as ED nurse, provides “is a specialty area of the nursing profession like no other. To provide quality of patient care for people of all ages, emergency nurses must possess both general and specific knowledge about healthcare” (‘Nurses for a Healthier Tomorrow ‘, n.d). Nurses in this field experience a wide range of cases dealing from the most mundane to the most severe cases one would encounter in a hospital setting. Thus, “emergency nurse must be ready to treat a wide variety of illnesses or injury situations, ranging from a sore throat to a heart attack” (‘Nurses for a Healthier Tomorrow’, n.d).
With every career there are certain limitations of authority and responsibility given based on certification or licensure acquired by that person. According to the article Nursing Scope of Practice, “Scope of practice describes the services that a qualified health professional deemed competent to perform, and permitted to undertake - in keeping with the terms of their professional license” (n.d). These standards are placed in order for each individual in their career may perform their task accordingly to work efficiently as a team. To simplify and understand completely the scope of practice and the responsibilities it constitutes, a registered nurse may use the ‘who’, ‘what’, ‘where’, ‘when’, ‘why’, and ‘how’ as answers to the nursing scope and standards of practice (‘Nursing Scope of Practice’, n.d). Along with scope of practice, code of ethics goes hand in hand with how nurses effectively carry out their roles/service.
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The practice of code of ethics for nurses goes a long way when dealing with the safety of patients and quality of care expected for the individual’s role in the field. According to the article ‘Code of Ethics for Nurses’, “the Code of Ethics for Nurse with Interpretive Statements (The Code) was developed as a guide for carrying out nursing responsibilities in a manner consistent with quality in nursing care and ethical obligations of the profession” (n.d). This enables nurses to understand what the job entails in its entirety of responsibilities and is reinforced with the scope of practice.
To become a registered nurse, one would need to acquire an associate’s degree or a bachelor of science in nursing degree from an accredited institution (‘Registered Nurses at My Next Move’, n.d). Students have flexible options with ‘generally three basic pathways’, according to the article ‘Best Types of Nursing Degrees’, when deciding to apply for a nursing program (2019). Some institutions offer both options of traditional and accelerated programs to which the traditional route constitutes of 40-year generic undergraduate program and accelerated consists of a more rigorous program lasting generally around 24 months with the student completing prerequisites and/or mandatory standardized testing in order to apply (‘Best Types of Nursing Degrees’, 2019). Some institutions also offer hybrid options of having dual classroom setting of online and on campus (‘Best Types of Nursing Degrees’, 2019). According to the website, ‘Florida Nursing Education Programs’, there are a plethora of institutions that offer nursing programs statewide (n.d). Two of which are the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Barry University and Palm Beach State College, offering bachelor's degree in nursing and an associate’s degree in nursing, respectively, according to the website ‘Florida Nursing Education Programs’ (n.d). According to the article, ‘The RN Licensing Process’, the proper certifications one would need as a first-time registered nurse to practice is “referred to as license by examination. All 50 states us the same licensing exam: the NCLEX-RN” (n.d). After passing this exam one would be allowed to practice in that states with the licensure and put on a registry.
According to the Barry University website, tuition and fees for a full-time undergraduate student is approximately $14,850.00 per semester, (n.d). The approximate cost for Palm Beach State College nursing program is $15,518.00 (‘Financialaid | College Affordability’, n.d).
According to the website, ‘U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’, registered nurses’ occupation availability/opening is approximately “203.7 thousand and has a median annual wage of 70,000” (n.d.). Growth trends for this occupation are projected to increase up to 15% according to the article, (‘Employment Trends by Occupation’, n.d). As stated previously, there is a shortage of nurses according to the website title, ‘Nurses for a Healthier Tomorrow’. Due to this and the projected growth increase in this career, there are a number of job offerings listed locally in the Miami, Florida area. According to the website, ‘Miami Herald Jobs’, there are approximately 341 jobs advertised locally. Experience is not required as most nurses are entry-level from achieving a bachelors or associates degree and there is no on the job training, however, other nursing programs and positions has experience as preferred, according to the website, ‘CareerOneStop’ (2017). Entry level salaries listed according to the website is 48,690 annually in the United States (2017). Registered nurses with experience salaries are listed as a range from $52,016-$101,520, according to the website, ‘Payscale’. There are many subcategories or departments a registered nurse can advance his/her career. According to the website, study.com, “a registered nurse, who has an undergraduate degree, can specialize in a certain area of nursing by attaining a master’s degree”. This opens up opportunities for one to venture in different department fields such as a “nurse anesthetist, nurse midwife, or practitioner, all of whom are referred to as advanced practice registered nurse (APRNs).
There are many national professional organizations for nurses: American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, American Association of Nurse Anesthetists, American College of Nurse-Midwives, etc. All of which have different fees depending on the type of membership acquired. According to the website, ‘National League of Nursing’, there are “three different types of memberships: individual, school of nursing and associate”. The type of membership a student would acquire, according to the website, National League of Nursing, would be the individual, graduate student, which costs $80 per year which includes substantial savings and privileges at NLN meetings, access to and saving on products and resources and free or substantially discounted access to premier NLN publications like the research journal Nursing Education Perspectives and more.
According to the article, ‘Continuing Education for License Renewal’, “Registered nurses are required by law, to complete 30 contact hours of continuing education every two years, in addition to paying the renewal fee, to maintain an active license” (n.d). However, according to the website, Nurse.org, different states require different amount of required CEUs taken over a 2-3 years period. Different ways nurses can gain CEUs according to the website, Nurse.org, are “nursing-related courses taken on a college program, a semester course will earn you 15 contact hours, while a quarter course will count as 10 contact hours”.
A nurse has many definitions. To me, that describes the person I am and why becoming a registered nurse is ‘fitting’ for me. The different type of skills and attributes one would need to become a nurse are what my personality encompasses. I understand that there are many rules and way in which healthcare is carried out. Becoming a nurse is where I would like to contribute my skills all while being coachable so that I am always in a position to learn new approaches and heed advices. I have many steps to complete in order to pursue my career in nursing. My personal plan is to complete all the prerequisite courses and testing needed in order to apply to the Miami-Dade College Accelerated Nursing Program. After which, I hope to get accepted in preparation to take the NCLEX-RN, pass it to become a licensed RN to legally practice in the states of Florida. I plan to specialize in Emergency nursing as my current work experience as an Emergency Department Medical Scribe, has greatly influenced my career specialization. In addition, as I have done research on this career field, through this paper, I have also decided as a career goal to further my education/experience by applying for master’s degree after acquiring my BSN to become a nurse practitioner.
References
- Best Types of Nursing Degrees. (2019, February 13). Retrieved from https://nursejournal.org/articles/types-of-nursing-degrees/
- California Board of Registered Nursing. (n.d.). Continuing Education for License Renewal. Retrieved from https://www.rn.ca.gov/licensees/ce-renewal.shtml
- CareerOneStop. (2017, March 21). Retrieved from https://www.careeronestop.org/toolkit/careers/occupations/occupation-profile.aspx?keyword=RegisteredNurses&onetcode=29114100&location=UNITEDSTATES
- CareerOneStop. (2017, March 21). Retrieved from https://www.careeronestop.org/toolkit/careers/occupations/occupation-profile.aspx?keyword=RegisteredNurses&onetcode=29114100&location=MIAMI,FL
- Code of Ethics for Nurses. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/nursing-excellence/ethics/code-of-ethics-for-nurses/
- College Affordability - Financialaid. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.palmbeachstate.edu/financialaid/college-affordability.aspx
- InfoNet Development Team. (n.d.). Employment Trends by Occupation. Retrieved from https://www.careerinfonet.org/carout2.asp?next=carout2&Level=&optstatus=&id=1&nodeid=210&soccode=&stfips=12&jobfam=29&SOC=291141
- Miami Herald Jobs. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://jobs.miamiherald.com/search?keyword=registerednurse&location=MiamiFL&page=1&radius_mi=100&jobtype=HealthCareProvider
- National League of Nursing. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.nln.org/membership/categories-and-benefits
- Nurse CE and CEU: Continuing Education for RNs. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://nurse.org/articles
- Nurses for a Healthier Tomorrow. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.nursesource.org/emergency.html
- Nursing Programs. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://appsmqa.doh.state.fl.us/MQASearchServices/NursingPrograms
- Nursing Scope of Practice | American Nurses Association. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/scope-of-practice/
- PayScale- Career Registered Nurse (RN) Hourly Pay. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Registered_Nurse_(RN)/Hourly_Rate/e57a1cea/Late-Career
- Professional Organizations. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://healthfinder.gov/FindServices/SearchOrgType.aspx?OrgTypeID=14&show=1
- Registered Nurses at My Next Move. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.mynextmove.org/profile/summary/29-1141.00
- The RN Licensing Process. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.nursinglicensure.org/articles/rn-licensing.html
- TitleStudy.com. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://study.com/articles/advancement_opportunities_for_registered_nurses.html
- Tuition and Fees. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.barry.edu/future-students/undergraduate/admissions/tuition-and-fees.html
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://data.bls.gov/projections/occupationProj
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