Choosing a career in nursing can feel overwhelming and leave you wondering: “How do I know if nursing is even right for me?”
Are you feeling a pull or a call towards nursing, but you don’t know what questions to ask, or where to start? If this sounds like you, and you’re interested in what a nurse actually does, or you’re looking for which path in medicine is your calling…keep reading!
4 Signs that Nursing Could Be Right for You
1. You want to help others.
When you think of a nurse, you often think of someone kind, caring, and trustworthy with an interest in helping those in need. And this is true!
The foundation of nursing is an inherent desire to help others. While some people know early in life that nursing is their calling and can remember wanting to be a nurse since they were a child—walking around with a stethoscope taking care of their animals (real or stuffed)—for others, it might not be as straightforward. A sign nursing could be for you is if you find joy in helping others heal, supporting people through challenging times, and empathizing with people in different walks of life.
2. You like science and learning about the body.
Do you appreciate biology and understanding how the body works? No, this doesn’t require that you love high school biology labs, dissection, and are 100% okay with the sight of blood… but a tolerance is needed!
In addition to helping and engaging with others, a career in nursing offers an opportunity for continuous learning and growth. Nursing, and other medical professions, require lifelong learning as scientific discoveries are made and new evidence-based practices are developed. If learning is something that excites you, nursing could be a great fit.
3. You enjoy working hard.
Nursing is not an easy job! It requires long hours, physical and emotional strength, and the ability to handle stressful situations. Nurses are often on their feet for the majority of their shift and may be required to work nights, weekends, or holidays. However, those with a strong work ethic who are dedicated to helping others can find fulfillment in this challenging yet rewarding career!
4. You have excellent communication skills.
A huge part of nursing is being able to effectively communicate with patients, families, and other healthcare professionals on a daily basis. This includes listening attentively, providing clear instructions and information, and being able to show compassion towards patients who may be going through difficult times.
And this goes beyond just words—nurses are also great at picking up on nonverbal cues like body language and facial expressions to assess a patient’s needs and provide emotional support. The ability to read and interpret nonverbal cues is essential in the nursing profession to ensure that patients feel heard and understood.
Different Career Paths in Medicine
If you’re still left wondering, “How do I know if nursing is right for me?” after reading the previous section, it might be worthwhile to explore different paths in medicine as well!
Medicine is both a scientific and altruistic job. Nurses, physician assistants (PAs), and doctors all have a shared goal of helping others, but differ in their journeys to obtaining their degrees and their day-to-day practices after graduation. So, how do you know which avenue to pursue?
Let’s have a look at each career pathway.
Nursing
Obtaining a nursing degree can be completed a few different ways:
- Attending a 4-year bachelor’s program.
- Completing an associate’s degree and pursuing a 1-2 year bachelor’s program.
- Completing a 1-2 year accelerated nursing program if you already have a bachelor’s degree in another field. (…My first degree was in political science!)
You can also pursue a master’s or doctoral degree and become a nurse practitioner, which offers more autonomy to diagnose and prescribe treatment, sometimes under the supervision of an attending physician.
As a nurse, you’re providing direct client care, so a large portion of the day is spent interacting with clients and families. You also perform hands-on bedside nursing procedures such as placing peripheral intravenous lines, hanging antibiotic infusions, and monitoring vital signs.
The care you provide as a nurse is holistic: you engage with people and provide emotional care, while also using critical thinking to ensure physical safety. Nurses are responsible for helping people with daily tasks like taking a shower or brushing teeth. They also complete assessments to monitor medical changes in client conditions.
Physician Assistant
PA school is more closely related to the training you receive as a physician, but the length of school is shorter (about three years). As a PA, you’ll work closely with a doctor. You’ll experience less hands-on and face-to-face time with clients, and more time will be spent determining diagnoses, ordering appropriate treatments, and interpreting diagnostic test results under the supervision of a physician.
Physician
Medical school is an extensive training process to gain a thorough understanding of disease processes and treatments, typically lasting four years. Medical school graduates will then complete a residency program which includes hands-on training under the supervision of more experienced physicians.
Residency can last three years or longer depending on the medical specialty. Physicians, like PAs, focus on healing disease processes through medical treatment options, and have been trained more thoroughly on specific medical treatments including diagnostic testing and targeted treatments.
What Type of Nurse Should I Be?
If you’ve decided that nursing is right for you, there’s still lots to discover when it comes to different kinds of nursing! Nurses have the opportunity to specialize in, and primarily work with, a specific population. Different nursing specialties can include labor and delivery (or postpartum), neonatal, cardiac, neurology, oncology, pulmonary, surgical, trauma, and transplant.
Other nursing opportunities that can be pursued after a few years of clinical nursing experience and/or additional school include nurse anesthetist, nurse midwife, flight nurse, nurse educator, or nurse manager. Truly, the opportunities with nursing are numerous!
Pro tip: If you’re considering a career in nursing but are still unsure about what kind you’d like to be, try thinking of the extracurricular activities you did in high school. Were you a camp counselor, did you enjoy the adrenaline rush of sports, or did you like volunteering at senior homes? These activities could align with a specific area of nursing.
For example, a camp counselor might enjoy pediatric nursing, seeking the adrenaline rush and fast pace of sports could align with an interest in emergency care nursing, while volunteering with older adults could mean you enjoy working with geriatric populations.
Still not sure what type of nurse you should be? Keep reading or take our quiz to get matched with a nursing specialty based on your personality and interests!
Inpatient Nursing
As an inpatient nurse, you’ll typically work three 12-hour shifts a week in a hospital setting caring for acutely sick patients. These shifts can be day shift, night shift, or a combination of both. Hospitals are open 24/7, so working weekends and holidays is typically required. Some hospitals offer 8-hour shifts, and working holidays and weekends will be shared among the staff.
As an inpatient nurse, you’ll work on a specific unit or as a “float nurse” that goes to different units based on the hospital’s needs. Some hospital units include medical-surgical, intensive care, cardiac, oncology, labor and delivery, and neonatal intensive care.
Although the care on each floor will vary greatly, inpatient nurses will administer medications, complete thorough physical assessments, monitor changes in client vital signs, provide care with activities of daily living (e.g., showering and toileting), and provide emotional support to clients and family members. The inpatient nurse is also the point of contact for other members of the interdisciplinary team (e.g., doctors, physical therapists, social workers) and will help coordinate care for their clients.
A day in the life of an inpatient nurse is unpredictable! This can be exciting if you despise the mundane. And, you have autonomy to determine how your day should be organized based on your client acuity that day. If you enjoy a fast-paced environment and don’t mind some excitement, this could be for you.
Outpatient Nursing
As an outpatient nurse, you could work 8-hour, 9-hour, or 10-hour shifts 4-5 days per week. These jobs could include working in a clinic, a day surgery center, or an infusion center. These environments can be fast-paced, but the people seen in outpatient settings are typically not as acutely sick as those in the hospital.
Nurse Case Manager or Nurse Navigator
This nursing path can be both inpatient and outpatient. A case manager or nurse navigator typically doesn’t perform clinical care, but uses their nursing knowledge to help set up continuous care for a client (e.g., home health services).
Home Health/Hospice Nurse
As a home health/hospice nurse, you’ll see clients mostly at their homes. You complete physical assessments, wound care, or medication administration, and evaluate if the client is receiving appropriate care or if any changes need to be made.
As a hospice nurse, you’ll help clients at the end of their lives, providing compassionate and comforting care to aid with a peaceful passing.
So, How Do You Know if Nursing is Right for You?
After reading this, maybe you’ve determined that you enjoy helping and interacting with others, think biology and physiology are cool, and you like the idea of developing strong critical thinking skills. Great!
If you’re still left wondering how to know if nursing is right for you, some helpful questions to ask yourself are: What brings me joy? Can I empathize with people in different walks of life? Do I enjoy helping others through difficult times?
And just remember, nursing is not a one-size-fits-all field. There are so many different avenues to choose from, which makes this career so exciting! Whichever path you decide is right for you, best of luck on your journey!
Looking for more *free* content to help you along your nursing journey? Check out these other posts on the Blueprint Nursing blog!
