Different Misconceptions About Nursing

 

The scope of nursing in Canada is increasing since it is one of the oldest and most well-respected professions. Yet, there can be misconceptions attached to nursing education and the profession because of improper information circulated about it amongst the public. Let us go through some of the common misconceptions about nursing and the truths behind them.

Nursing is a profession only for Women

Historically, the profession of nursing was widely chosen by women. Even in recent times, it is a female-dominated profession, but men have slowly started entering it.

Nurses Must Go Back to Full-Time Schools for Career Progression

Just like every field of medicine, nursing requires you to upskill and keep up with the latest trends and knowledge. Advancing your skills and nursing education is essential to progress in your nursing career. However, the myth that to do so you need to go back to full-time schooling is not true. There are plenty of paths that help you in building a successful nursing career alongside studying. After becoming a licensed Registered Nurse (RN), you can pursue certificates, diplomas, and specialty-based courses that can add value to your professional journey.

Nurses only Work in Hospitals

Gone are those times when nurses were found working only in hospitals. Nowadays, the nursing workforce is widespread across home healthcare services, nursing, and residential care facilities, government organizations, and long-term care homes. It is also important to know that unlike before, nurses in the present don’t just treat patients but also manage and oversee other staff members.

Nursing is Highly Stressful with Long Working Hours

A profession that touches the lives of many and offers improved quality of life will come with its challenges and hurdles for sure. However, in this ever-expanding field of nursing, flexibility is also making its way. Amidst long working hours and extended shifts, nurses nowadays are offered the privilege to make variations to their schedules. There have been many initiatives in private as well as public sectors worldwide to make the lives easier for nurses so that they can spend a balanced time at work and with their families.

Nurses are Aspiring Doctors

The profession of nursing is incredibly demanding. So, nurses are highly passionate about their work. It is true that nurses work in sync with doctors and implement the treatment plans created by doctors. But, in no way are nurses aspiring to be someone other than an exceptional version of themselves.

Nursing is a Messy Job

Nurses often perform work that can be messy. Drawing blood, cleaning bandages, changing adult diapers, and bedpans, and much more. This job requires certain procedures that improve patient care, but they come with a cost for nurses. It can be right to say that some aspects of nursing jobs are messy,

but it is the true intent of nurses and how they perceive it. Nurses who identify their characteristic traits and accept wholeheartedly their professional duties, will not find it messy.

Emotional Health: Strategies for Nurses

 Jobs can be stressful for nurses, and it is no longer a secret hidden from the world. When the global pandemic of COVID-19 struck, the nursing force across the globe experienced burnout and additional stress. It was then that the importance of nurses was realized upfront. So much so, that opportunities and jobs for nurses increased in higher volumes. Terminologies like “frontliners”, “warriors”, and “risk-bearers”, have gained a redefined meaning throughout the world. 

 

The emotional health of nurses is quite important, and there’s no one reason to justify this statement. The logical reasoning states that an emotionally available nurse can be counted as the one who is equipped to take care of his or her patients. Well, realizing the importance of emotional health, now most nursing colleges in Canada have begun educating their students on ways to take care of their emotional well-being. 

 

The Importance of Emotional Health for Nurses 

 

Facts state, “nearly 16 percent of nurses report feeling burned out at work”. While there are many more facts addressing something similar, it is quite common to hear about the high burnout rates. Burnout isn’t just amongst nurses but so many more varied healthcare professionals. According to the World Health Organization, “burnout is now classified as an occupational phenomenon that must be addressed to maintain mental well-being in the workplace”. 

  

Nursing leaders and managers are nowadays are focusing majorly on keeping emotional well-being checks in their units, which is an example to show the importance of emotional health for nurses.  

 

Your demography, the work culture, coworkers, and professional protocols of your facility/hospital majorly impact your emotional health. While a lot of Indian nurses choose to move abroad, it is observed that nursing courses in Canada for Indian students primarily highlight emotional health as a part of the curriculum. These nursing courses in Canada are of particular interest for Indian students because they come from a place that demands emotional health to be popular as a concept amongst the commoners. 

 

Strategies for Nurses to Keep a Check on Emotional Health 

 

Jobs are quite demanding for nurses as there’s a lot that goes into maintaining a rapport with patients, their families, and coworkers, especially in a high-stress work environment. Amidst all these unsaid duties, nurses must consistently maintain the emotional capacity to stay empathetic. The idea should be to create supportive workplaces that offer support and guidance coming in from the leaders and teammates whenever there’s a situation of draining emotional health. To encourage emotional health checks amongst nurses, here are a few strategies we think might be helpful. 

 

• It might sound complicated at first, but yes, you need to prioritize self-care during working hours. It doesn’t have to be a highly consuming self-care routine, but finding a few minutes every day to manifest should do the trick. 

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• The fact that nurses and healthcare professionals spend most of their lives contributing to patient care isn’t a myth. As much as it holds true, doing something about it can be helpful. You should try to find a few minutes in the middle of your day to dial home and hear a friendly voice that makes you feel better. 

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• Nurses, while it’s a message the whole universe needs to know, for you, it’s the most important. Ensure you address your emotions. Whether it is anger, sadness, frustration, absolute joy, or anxiety, you’ve got to feel it all and release it healthily so that these emotions don’t bottle up inside you, waiting to explode. 

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• Exercising goes a long way in keeping your emotional well-being in a good shape. So, whenever you feel low or upset, you could take deep breaths followed by repetitions until you feel better. 

Whether it is witnessed at a workplace or while studying at nursing colleges in Canada, the change towards uplifting the concept of “emotional health for nurses” is well-deserved. Nurses, you must not forget to focus on your emotional well-being as only a healthy mind and body can make other minds and bodies healthy.