March 17 2014
Often when you are interviewed for a job you can be asked the simple question ‘Why do you want a Nursing Job’?. This often gets put as ‘Why do you want to be a Nurse’? Here is one persons thoughts on this question –
This might seem like a nit-picky question but in job interviews what is the best response to “So why did you want to be a nurse”? I find this question to be a frustrating one because I’m not applying to nursing school. I’m already a nurse. My response has been “Well, it’s what I decided I wanted to do when I was a teenager. I took an allied health course in high school and the career choice clicked”. Is that what they’re after? I think they should ask “Why do you want to be our nurse?” instead.
I wasn’t one of those people that knew since they were 7-years-old that nursing was their calling/destiny and nothing else would quench their professional thirst. And when they ask that question, I feel like they are disappointed if you don’t have some inspiring story that moves them.
10 funny signs I was destined to become a nurse
iStockphoto | ThinkStock
As a kid, I never thought of being a nurse. It wasn’t until my mid-20s, after a degree in a totally unrelated field, that started thinking I might become a healthcare provider. Here were my clues that I was destined to be a nurse…what were yours?
10 funny signs I was destined to become a nurse
Whatever your answer, be prepared!
January 21 2014
Nursing is not only about caring for a patients physical needs, there is also a huge amount of communication with the patient, relatives and colleagues. If you are part of the leadership team then you will need to hone your skills in talking to your colleagues to get the best out of them.
Effective Communication Strategies for Nurse Managers
For nurse managers, successful leadership and staff management means establishing a culture of communication in their unit. Not only do they represent and support their nursing staff and oversee unit-based operations but they also act as communicators responsible for effectively relaying messages related to staffing, employee satisfaction, patient safety, overall care quality, customer satisfaction, and budgeting.
It is important to note that for successful communication to take place (where the parties involved not only understand the message but also create and share meaning with each other), there has to be harmony between non-verbal cues such as body language as well as tone of voice, and actual words.
Often the patient or family member can become challenging and agressive as they come to terms with the situation facing them. As a nurse, dealing with type of conflict takes care and skill.
De-escalation skills for nurses.
On December 10, 2013
The de-escalation of a patient or family member becoming aggressive within the hospital setting is perhaps one of the most challenging situations we will encounter as nurses.
It takes well tempered clinician with good communication skills and strong sense of self awareness to manage any personal provocation, emotional challenges and professional deprecation that often accompanies such encounters.
The most effective de-escalators have been found to have the following skills:
Honesty.
Confidence.
Non-judgemental.
A permissive non-authoritarian manner.
Ability to empathise.
This is all easier said than done.
I am going to give you some practical tips and strategies to manage an aggressive person within the hospital setting.
Think of your response-ability as a skill that you can develop and improve with reflection and mental rehearsal just as with any other emergency scenario.
Communication as a nurse is an important part of the skill set and any opportunity you get to work on this skill is worth taking.
December 16 2013
With diabetes already making up a significant percentage of all medical problems treated in the NHS and the problem apparently increasing year on year, it is worrying to hear that we are getting no closer and in some cases getting worse at treating this condition.
‘Urgent’ review call over diabetes
Tuesday 10th December 2013, 12:10AM GMT
Health officials must carry out an “urgent” review of diabetes care across the UK, a charity has demanded after a damning report concluded that the NHS “struggles” to deliver adequate care to people who suffer from the condition.
The quality of care that patients receive is a “question of location”, according to Diabetes UK’s latest State of the Nation report – which highlights a postcode lottery of services across England.
The full report goes on to say there has been liitle overall improvement in care despite the fact it accounts for around 10% of the entire NHS budget –
Little overall improvement
As well as highlighting a wide variation in standards of care, the report also shows there has been little overall improvement. While there have been some successes – such as more people meeting the target level for blood pressure – in some aspects of care, things have got worse. This is despite the fact that diabetes accounts for about 10 per cent of the entire NHS budget, with around 80 per cent of this being spent on treating complications that could in many cases be prevented.
The report calls for the Government and NHS England to carry out a review into the reason for the large geographical variation and to put in place an action plan to improve healthcare for people living in the worst-performing areas. It also wants clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) in areas where performance is below average to take urgent action to bring standards up to the standards that already exist in the average (median) performing areas.
….more at
December 5 2013
With an ageing population and the average lifespan increasing, it seems that Home Care for the Elderly is just not coping. In fact it appears to be getting worse by the year.
This article highlights the opinions of many who would have elderly relatives and shows a lack of confidence in the current care system.
Funding plea for care of elderly
Almost two-thirds of people over the age of 50 think the Government treats elderly people badly, according to a new poll.
Almost two-thirds of people over the age of 50 think the Government treats elderly people badly, according to a new poll.
The survey for the charity Age UK found 63% belie ve older people are treated poorly, with 74% of those saying low standards in social care are to blame.
Some 70% of those aged 50 to 64 said they did not feel confident that older people receiving care services are treated with dignity and respect.
The poll of more than 900 adults comes as Age UK urges the Government to do more to tackle problems in the sector.
More worrying is the fact that their is an almost reluctant acceptance that this is not going to change as demonstrated in the following from Nick Triggle, Health Correspondent for the BBC –
Why the elderly care crisis is here to stay
Another day, another story about old age care.
The report from the Care Quality Commission that a quarter of home care services are not meeting all the quality and safety standards makes depressing reading.
Evidence of rushed appointments, botched assessment and revolving door of carers suggests the system is on its knees.
The temptation is to think that will all change with the introduction of the cap on costs that the government announced on Monday.
But sadly that is not the case.
The complex nature of the system means the reforms should help reduce the need for people to sell their homes to pay for care.
But they do little – perhaps nothing – to improve the quality of services on offer.
The last decade has seen services squeezed until the pips squeak.
In fact, they have got so bad that just over a year ago the Equality and Human Rights Commission said some services were “breaching human rights”.
…..
Somehow we have to address these issues urgently. They are not going to go away but instead increase as more of us live longer lives.
Home Care for the Elderly
