Essay on Transition to a Professional Nursing

I became a mother at a very young age, seventeen years old. When I was in labor at the hospital, I experienced the nursing care of two very distinct nurses. I quickly became aware of the demeanor of the night nurse. She was unkind, pushy, and insensitive. She also did not explain things and did not smile much. On the other hand, the day nurse was merrier, compassionate, caring, informative, and reassuring. Despite my juvenile state, my comprehension was very astute. I comprehended that there are two types of nurses. One who solely works to attain a paycheck and the nurse who chose the nursing profession because they value humanity. Simultaneously, I was becoming a mother and discovering what my profession would be thanks to the caring day nurse who was a role model.

Nursing is a practice in which nurses promote health and the well-being of patients. I believe that nursing is not only a job that prevents and cures illness, but has a deeper meaning and understanding. Becoming a nurse gives the opportunity to maximize and promote patients’ well-being. It is a way to learn and understand new perspectives and expand prior knowledge, to build relationships with patients, community, and other nurses, in addition to learning how to empathize and realize the patient’s needs, and to value and see people as human beings. I think even with the list given is not enough to define or explain a nurse. I believe being a nurse is a diverse and immeasurable experience, and what happens in this field is unknowing and uncertain. My goal in nursing practices is to take in life experiences and use the skills and ideas learned to shape me to become a better nurse and a better person.

A number of emotions were felt during this experience, in regards to transitioning from a student nurse to the registered nurse role. Primarily, the transition in role from student nurse to registered nurse was similar to any clinical experience I have had at Midlands Technical College. I was placed in a medical-surgical rotation. I felt slighted that not only were we required to complete a data tool but we also participated in the teamwork model demonstrated in prior semesters. Personally, I did not feel a transition during this particular clinical experience.

Professional nursing practice has been developing for several centuries. Nursing as a profession can be traced back to the early Christian era. Since then the perception of nursing practice has changed significantly. “Nursing is caring, commitment, and dedication to meeting the functional health needs of all people” (Craven &

It has grown from a non-educated nurse to one that has to be even more educated to keep up with the fast changing times with diverse topics and culture differences. It is a constant challenge for physicians and nurses to do their best in the fast changing nursing field. As nurses, we have to be constantly upgrading our education. We can’t expect anything to always be the same and to never change. Register nurses today work as a team, they work every day with physicians, pharmacists, speech and occupational therapists, just to name a few. Since nurses are primarily responsible for direct patient care and coordination, I believe that they should not be these educated on the health care

Throughout the history of nursing, nurses made vast strides to help it grow into the profession it is known to be today. Without clearly defined education and roles, the role of caring for the sick aimlessly moved amongst different groups of people from deaconesses, knights, nuns, and inmates until institutions were established for organized teaching programs. Today, individuals are eligible to take the Registered Nurse (RN) licensure test as soon as they complete the minimum of an Associates Degree in Nursing. However, there has been an increasing push for “making the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), or equivalent degree, the standard for entry-into-practice” (Altmann, 2011). Aiken et al. reported that recent studies indicate a decrease in morbidity, mortality, and failure-to-rescue rates in hospitals that employ larger percentages of baccalaureate prepared nurses (as cited in Altmann, 2011, p. 257). In addition, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) recently released a report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, and recommended the increase of BSN prepared nurses from 50% to 80% by 2020 (2011). In order for nurses to advance in the healthcare environment as professionals, they should be educated to the appropriate degree and be committed to lifelong learning. This paper will discuss professional identity in nursing and the implications of a bachelor prepared nurse.

According to Alligood, there are several characteristics of the transition process including awareness, engagement, change, time, and critical points and events, as well as factors that may enable or hinder the process and positive outcome of transition can be personal, community, or societal (2014). Awareness is a major characteristic of transition, so to be in transition, a person must be aware of changes happening (Meleis, 2010). Engagement or involvement in the process of transition may include pursuing and obtaining information and assistance. It is important to recognize that without awareness, engagement will not occur. It is also important to recognize that transition involves change, another characteristic of transition, although change may not necessarily mean transition (Meleis, 2010). A person who goes through the process of transition will go through changes and may view the world from a much different perspective than they previously did.

After more than a decade in his second career, aging registered nurse John Noble “knew as I got older, bedside nursing would potentially get harder.” He knew he eventually would need to move away from the bedside and took advantage of the hospital paying for further education. He chose a Master’s degree as a Nurse Practitioner (NP) as it allowed him the flexibility to decide during school if we wanted to go into management, teaching, or become a practicing NP. In school he really liked the NP role, and the rest is history.

For instance, in 2014, Hain and Fleck discuss some of the barriers that nurse practitioners including Family Nurse Practitioners, in the wake of the various reforms taking place in the nursing profession. In their article, "Barriers to Nurse Practitioner Practice that Impact Healthcare Redesign", they examine some of the recent reforms and changes introduced in the nursing practitioners field in order to respond to growing demand for healthcare services. For instance, education for Nursing Practitioners began as a certificate course before advancing to the bachelors and master’s degree levels in order to impart nurses with appropriate skills that would help address emerging health challenges (Hain, & Fleck, 2014). The target population for nurse practitioners also broadened from pediatric and family to other areas such as women’s health, gerontology, and many other areas of specialty practice. Today, nurse practitioners play a crucial role in providing quality patient centered healthcare in different settings (Hain, & Fleck, 2014). As such, the role of NPs in healthcare in contemporary practice is very much different from what it was when the field emerged a few years

This made me felt confused and kept asking myself “I am very prepared to face the real world”. This essay will discuss three of the potential challenges I anticipate during my practice as a new graduate nurse.

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) published several recommendations on how best to meet the challenges of an rising patient population while the number of available nurses decreases Among these are to increase the proportion of nurses with a baccalaureate degree to 80% by 2020, double the number of nurses with a doctorate by 2020, and ensure that nurses engage in lifelong learning (IOM Report, 2011). This paper will identify how I see myself coinciding with these suggestions, and will point out how heightening my education will help me complete in the current job market and how it will affect my role in the future of nursing.

After a two-year comprehensive study that began in 2008 by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) in collaboration with the Institute of Medicine, the 2011 Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report was released (Institute of Medicine [IOM], 2011). The report provides eight essential recommendations for the nursing profession to undertake to ensure they are able to appropriately respond and lead the way in the rapidly metamorphosing healthcare (IOM, 2010a). Recommendations four, five, and six focus on the need for nurses to continue to advance their education. In this reflection paper, I will focus on how I see myself fitting into these recommendations by the IOM. I will also discuss how my level of education will affect my role in the future of nursing and ability to

The occupational field of nursing and the educational instruction associated with nursing has evolved over the past century due to detail oriented research and scientifically developed contributions. The advancement of new technology and improved theory has drastically upgraded nursing practices, allowing patients to experience an efficient and professional form of healthcare serves. To learn more about the changes in the field of nursing that have taken place in the last 60 years I interviewed nurses that graduated from nursing school in three different decades. Although changes have taken place in regards to educational setting, cost of education, dress code, clinical hours and state board exam, the overall core of nursing has remained

Nursing is an esteemed profession that has developed over many years. This paper will explore the factors that influenced the development of the nursing profession, the roles and responsibilities of nurses, the many different career opportunities available to nurses as well as the origins of my passion to pursue nursing.

The second step in the change theory is the transition stage. Once people are unfrozen, the problem now shifts to how to keep them going. This is now the actual change process a stage that is characterized by confusion as people try to change from the old to new ways. This stage is further characterized by fear because people tend to be unsure and is the hardest step in the whole process (Schein, 1995). During transition, new behaviors are developed, values and attitudes. It is achieved through development techniques and change in existing organizational structures. People undergoing this stage need to be given ample time to adapt to new ways. Of uttermost importance during this stage is support. Support is offered in terms of coaching and training as well as acceptance that mistakes will be part of the transition process (Smith, 2001).