Keeping current with nursing industry news, health trends, or cutting-edge technology and equipment is a great way to boost your career. But, as many nurses know, finding the time to actually get that information in a class or seminar is daunting. With work schedules and family responsibilities, finding hours every week to just grocery shop sometimes seems impossible.
But people do manage to find time to learn new things and stay current in the field, both things that make them relevant in today’s market.
How can you do the same? Look for ways to get information in whatever time you have available.
1. Webinars Are Short and Sweet
A class offered in a webinar format is a great way to sneak in information when you don’t have time for a full-on class. Webinars are offered in subjects ranging from career development to the latest in technology. Even if you don’t put it on your resume, gathering information this way keeps you up-to-date on the latest technologies and issues. Best of all, you can be anywhere and log in to participate.
2. Local Speakers Offer Knowledge
If you’re part of a networking group, a local nurses association, or a community group, regularly check in to find out when speakers are scheduled. If the topic isn’t one of your typical interests, go anyhow so you can hear from others in the field what is most pressing to them. You can also suggest speakers you’d like to hear or topics you’d like to learn more about. These meetings generally last only a couple of hours, and you’re likely to find at least one that you can attend.
3. Read the Latest
It sounds easy, but subscribing to relevant journals and magazines or even taking 30 minutes every week to hunt around online and read the latest studies or updates can give you nuggets of information you otherwise might miss. When a higher up brings it up in a meeting or in passing, you can add something to the discussion.
4. Conferences Offer Information
If you can carve out a day or even half a day, attending a nursing conference will pay off. Conferences have so many speakers and events that cover all kinds of subjects. Can’t manage to take the time? At least peruse the conference schedule, note the speakers and topics, and start reading up on what they are researching.
5. Get a Tutor
Truly, one of the best ways to learn something is to get it straight from the expert. If you’d like to learn how to use social media to advance your career or think your professional communication skills could use a refresher, hire someone for an hour or two to help you. You can ask your local high school to suggest a few teens (almost always social media experts) to help you navigate social media sites. Maybe your neighbor works in public relations and can offer pointers for your announcements, presentations, or memos. You don’t have to find a formal tutor to keep current, just someone who knows the right way to do what you need to learn!
Using your available blocks of time, no matter how small they are, can keep you informed and keep your knowledge current. Will you learn everything you need to in one webinar? Probably not. But investing the time gives you more information than you had before and can make a difference in what you know.
Katrina Sanders, RN, ONC, is a clinical coordinator at Novant Health. In addition to being a nurse for 14 years, Sanders is a busy mom of twin one-year-old girls, a five-year-old, and a 10-year-old while still earning professional credentials that add value to her hospital and work unit.
Sanders is committed to going above and beyond the call of duty for her patients and their families. She has been known to go to get their lunch from the cafeteria, locate a recliner for a family member to sleep in, or share DVD’s and laptops for family members to play with while they wait for a loved one.
Today she shares how she became interested in a nursing career at a young age and what inspires her to be the best nurse she can be.
What made you become a nurse?
I love nursing because I am able to provide comfort, passion and encouragement to my patients. At the end of the day, I feel like I gave my heart and soul to make a difference in someone’s life. I have wanted to be a nurse since I was in the 10th grade. I have a strong desire to help people and care for them in their time of need. For me, there was no moment of divine intervention, no following the footsteps of an admired parent or relative, but rather a gradual realization that nursing would be the perfect job for someone who has a big heart like I do.
What inspires you about nursing?
What inspires me about nursing is that as a nurse you can take care of the patient’s physical needs like dressing wounds and giving medications. However, as a nurse, you can also comfort them when they are scared, read a book to them or play a game with them. I am inspired to be a nurse because I know I can more than physically heal a patient.
What do you think are the most important qualities for a nurse to have?
The most important qualities of being a nurse include being attentive, being a great listener and being sensitive to people’s needs. Why? Because you can’t properly care for someone if you do not know what is physically, mentally and emotionally going on with them. In order to give someone holistic care you need to know their story.
Where do you see the future of nursing headed?
I see nurses starting to practice at the fullest extent of their education and training. Nurses will need to be skilled in the use of computer technology.
What goals do you still have for your career?
I plan to graduate in December with my BSN and then pursue my Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) degree.
What advice would you give to other minority nurses?
Be open to new experiences and do not be afraid of change. Have an open mind to whatever experiences come along and take advantage of the opportunities as they come your way.
Denene Brox is a freelance writer based in Kansas City.
Each year, Minority Nurse awards scholarships to three outstanding nursing students. Selecting our recipients can be quite the challenge, so this year we teamed up with the National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurse Associations to help us decide. And the 2014 scholarship recipients are…
WINNER
Christal Leitch Mercer University
Christal is a mother of two on top of being a full-time student. Originally graduating from a college that was not nationally accredited, she has had to start from scratch with her prerequisites. She has been a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society since 2010 and has maintained a GPA of 3.71. Her professors say she has “demonstrated an ability to rise to any challenge” and describe her as “dedicated,” “inspiring” and “compassionate.” She aspires to be a nurse anesthetist or a certified nurse midwife.
RUNNERS-UP
Yvonne Shih Boston College
In addition to an outstanding academic record, Yvonne received a study grant to learn about the effects of nurse-to-patient ratios in hospitals and earned a competive undergrad research fellowship to work with a professor on an NIH-funded study. She is also an active volunteer mentoring young girls and was a group leader for her school of nursing’s diversity advisory board Stand Against Racism event.
Karachi Egbuta Roberts Wesleyan College
Karachi’s grandmother inspired her to pursue a career in health care and become a public health advocate. In addition to excelling at her university, she has co-authored an article in a peer-reviewed journal and has been an active volunteer with Montefiore Medical Center since 2006. She wants to volunteer abroad in Nigeria and hopes to become a family nurse practitioner.
Stay tuned to learn more about these amazing individuals in a future edition of our In the Spotlight series. The staff at Minority Nurse would like to congratulate our winners and thank all of you who applied for our scholarship. We know that paying for tuition is burdensome, and we encourage you to search our scholarship database to see if you are eligible for other scholarships to help you reach your goals.
Each year, Minority Nurse offers scholarships to three outstanding individuals pursuing a career in nursing. We received an overwhelming number of applications this year and selecting our winners was no easy task! Several of our applicants had an impressive academic background as well as a dedication to community service, and we commend each of you for your compassion and stellar work ethic. Unfortunately, we could only select three winners so an outstanding GPA alone was not enough. We took into account your personal struggles as well as your devotion to your families and your communities. After much deliberation, we have chosen our 2013 winners. – See more at: http://www.mndivi.wpengine.com/blog/minority-nurse-staff/minority-nurse-sc…
And thank you to all who applied for our scholarship. To help further your own education, we encourage all of you to search our scholarship database to see if you are eligible for other scholarships. – See more at: http://www.mndivi.wpengine.com/blog/minority-nurse-staff/our-2013-scholars…
Nurse-on-nurse bullying. Lateral violence. Hostile work environment. These are common terms for what’s sadly a common situation in many health care environments.
If you’re being bullied, it can help to have a “script” that helps you face your harrasser. Peggy Klaus, a Berkeley, California, a leadership and communication coach, has taught courses on difficult conversations for nurses, physicians, and medical students.
Here she offers some recommendations but doesn’t propose a one-size-fits-all solution. “We each have our own level of tolerance,” explains Klaus, “You have to be vigilant and see how it’s affecting you, and how it may be impeding your effectiveness. That’s especially important when you’re working in the crucial role of a nurse.”
1. Talk to your supervisor. Assume that nursing leadership is going to want to be helpful. (Many hospitals are anxious to put a stop to employee-to-employee harassment, if only because it places them at risk for lawsuits, for allowing a hostile workplace or retaliation if they a nurse who has made a formal complaint.)
One possible script from Klaus…
“Have you ever been bullied? What did you do to solve the problem?”(Makes the conversation more personal, and you’ll be more likely to elicit empathy from your supervisor.)
“I’m concerned because If nurses aren’t being collegial, it greatly affects the hospital.” (Don’t emphasize your own distress as much as downsides your supervisor can relate to.)
“Patients don’t get the kind of care they need, our evaluations as individuals and as a group will suffer. I’ve been thinking a lot about this problem. I would be doing my group a disservice if I didn’t bring this up.”
2. Ignore the bullying. If that’s a possibility for you, you can decide to play along, be civil and respectful, and just go about your business.
“Don’t play low status, though,” says Klaus, “which comes out in verbal and nonverbal behaviors such as having slumped shoulders or ending sentences with an upward inflection as if asking a question or seeking approval.”
3. Confront the bully. Be direct, assertive, and respectful and talk alone in a private, confined space, such as a conference room. Group confrontation doesn’t work, so talk first with the lead bully, and if necessary, repeat with the others.
One possible script from Klaus:
“I’ve recently noticed behavior or signs that you’re trying to bully me and I want it to stop.” (Give a couple of examples and say how it affects you.)
“I really want to work this out between us and not involve higher ups or human resources.”
Ask for the bully’s input and end on a positive, affirming note: “I look forward to working well with you.”
If the behavior changes, but then the bully slips and starts up again, go back and have the conversation again.
“You know, things had gotten better but I noticed that this is increasing and it’s got to stop.”
4. If the bullying doesn’t stop, go higher up the chain of command until you get relief.
Jebra Turner is a health writer in Portland, Oregon. You can visit her online at www.jebra.com.
As you probably already know, Nurses Week began Tuesday May 6th and runs to Monday May 12th this year. That’s the anniversry of the birthday of perhaps the most famous nurse of all, Florence Nightingale.
The U.S. Deptartment of Health and Human Services set the theme for 2014 as “Nurses: Leading the Way.” Nationwide, nurses have been recognized this week for the critical contributions they make to leading the charge for our health and happiness. As there are now over 3 million Registered Nurses in the U.S., that’s a lot of thank you’s!
This week and every week throughout this year, let’s remember that leadership is a trait that many nurses strongly embody, and others can further develop with just a bit of intention and effort. Here’s how:
1. Know that you’re already a healthcare leader. How? Well, as survey after survey shows, nurses are the most trusted professional (above even doctors, dentists, and pharmacists) and the go-to source for advice on education on personal health.
Are you making the most of your favored position to lead the charge for healthcare information, say? Or how about making your voice heard in the workplace or the larger community about healthcare topics, such as the Affordable Care Act? Have you written a letter to the editor about a local health-related issue dear to your heart of that of your patients? Any of these activities would serve to raise your profile as a nurse leader and also empower the folks in your community. A win-win.
2. Support Other Nurses as Leaders. Are you a member of a nursing organization, either associated with your workplace, specialty, or perhaps a minority group you belong to? There are many reasons to join, including getting your own needs met. But there’s one often overlooked opportunity in belong to a professional group: supporting other nurses in their professional development and encouraging them to take on leadership roles. Women are especially hesitant to lead, and since nursing is a predominately female occupation, well… Peer support leads to more nurses putting themselves out there as leaders.
3. Encourage Management to Give Nurses Opportunities to Lead. Nurses already go above and beyond to take care of patients, of course, but they also often streamline operational functions so that everything comes together to improve the patient experience.
Does management offer ways for nurses to serve on committees and boards so their unique experiences are heard? If not, individual nurses and nurse groups should take up the charge to make sure they do.
Are there opportunites for training and certification in leadership topics and techniques? Of course, it’s important that nursing staff should renew their certifications and other medically-based training. That’s not enough though. Healthcare providors must offer professional development courses and programs that helps nurses take charge — or lead the charge for change.
So, what are you doing to help ensure that nurses are leading the way in our nation’s healthcare? Please share your experiences — we’d like to know.
Jebra Turner is a health writer in Portland, Oregon, but you can visit her online at www.jebra.com.
Sanders is committed to going above and beyond the call of duty for her patients and their families. She has been known to go to get their lunch from the cafeteria, locate a recliner for a family member to sleep in, or share DVD’s and laptops for family members to play with while they wait for a loved one.
