Definition of Hospital Nurses

A hospital nurse is defined as a nurse who is assigned at a medical facility known as a hospital. The nurses duties are directly related to assisting the doctors on staff with the maintenance and management of patients admitted to the hospital and those receiving medical treatment as preventative or outpatient medicine. The nurse routinely reports back to the doctor or staff of doctors giving medical information about the patient, their symptoms and sometimes mental state.

Careers

• There are different types of nurses. The most common is the hospital nurse that works in the hospital with a doctor. Other types of nurses include a Licensed Practical Nurse and a visiting nurse. These nurses work inside and outside the hospital at nursing homes and they visit patients at their home to collect health vitals to report back to a medical facility or doctor. The hospital nurse typically works a strict schedule often exceeding an eight hour work day. There are numerous career choices that can be when a nurse desires to work at a hospital. Among the hospital nurse career choices are gynecology, labor and delivery, internsive care unit, neonatal critical care (a nurse who works with newborn babies) and cardiac (heart) unit to name a few. In the workplace the nurses attire consists of a loose fitting outfit that can sometimes be called "scrubs". This can be a shirt and a bottom that looks similar to a surgeon's outfit. They are also allowed to wear a white dress or skirt with a blouse and shoes with a rubber sole. Shoes includes sneakers or special shoes made for nurses in the medical field.

Education

• Most hospital nurses have a four year bachelors degree plus an additional two year degree with the nursing specialty. The nursing degree is a very competitive program. In some cases there are long wait lists and extensive testing that must be done in order to enter the nursing program. Classes in a traditional nursing program include advanced math, science, nutrition, computers and classes dealing with psychology and patient care. In order to graduate from a nursing program a grade point average above a 3.0 must be maintained for students to excel in most programs. There are some programs that allow an associates two year degree for nursing.

Considerations

• Once a student graduates with a nursing degree they are required to take the NCLEX exam. This is a state board exam required by the state the nurse is working in. The nurse must take the exam for each state the nurse plans to work.

Working

• The nurses work week has a lot of variations. Some nurses work extended shifts and shorter work week with hours ranging from 10-14 hours. When a nurse comes to work at a hospital he or she is usually relieving another nurse. The nurse with the shift ending will share vital information, if any about the condition of the patients, doctors on call or doctors working the floor with the nurse. The nurse is assigned to a section or unit of the hospital including the pediatric, psychiatric and maternity ward. All departments within the hospital are assigned nurses. the number of nurses scheduled depends on the number of doctors ans patients in a hospital. As the nurse works her shift she is required to stop in each patients room and take their vitals which includes their temperature and blood pressure. This information is reported to the doctor and recorded on the patient's chart. Nurses are currently in demand in the United States. In 2008 there was a shortage of nurses in hospitals and alternative health care facilities.

Doctors and Nurses

• The doctor and nurse relationship is very close. the doctor rely's on the nurse for information recorded in the chart and to check on the patient if there is any trouble. The patient calls the nurse if there is any distress. the nurse must them decide if the doctor is needed. the nurse must also call the doctor to request medication or an additional exam of the patient. It is the nurse who determines if the patient needs urgent medical attention if there is a problem in the doctors absence. Like doctors, Nurses have a code of ethics they must follow while in the workplace and treating patients. They must have proper conduct and follow proper medical proocedures at all times. State licensing can be revoked if violations to ethics policies can be proved.