Pediatric Nursing, Is it Right For You?
Pediatric nursing is a difficult and rewarding profession, with many benefits not found in other nursing fields. In order to be successful, one has to have some background knowledge of the pediatric population. We hope this article will help you understand the fundamentals of pediatrics and what it takes for someone to become a pediatric nurse.
Pediatrics is the medical specialty which deals with the health care of infants, children and adolescents. Pediatric nurses help children and their families cope with a variety of health issues such as illness, disease, hospitalization or disability. They also provide education on proper hygiene, nutrition and parenting skills.
The population in which they work is usually very diverse, as well as the problems they face together.
From premature babies to teenagers with chronic illnesses, pediatric nurses must be able to deal with many situations to provide high quality care for their clients. It is also important that they respect the child's family, culture and personal preferences while still providing them with information that will improve their daily lives or their child's health status. Pediatric nurses must also be ready to advise parents on topics such as drug or alcohol abuse, sexual abuse and pregnancy.
Pediatric nurses come from a wide variety of backgrounds, experience levels, training and education. There are no specific educational requirements needed to become a pediatric nurse. In fact, the vast majority of nurses who work in pediatrics were not formally trained in pediatrics or pediatrics nursing during their nursing education. There is also no grade point average requirement to become a nurse in this specialty area because all nurses are competent in the field.
Employment opportunities can be found at hospital nurseries, physician offices, drug rehab centers and schools. Pediatric nurses may also have their own private office in which they provide home visits.
Pediatric nurses must be certified in the field, this certification can be attained through either an additional course of study, or by having a specialized degree, such as a bachelor's degree in pediatric nursing. This comes with additional experience and education as well. The additional courses are typically 75-100 hours long, and include topics such as pediatrics health care systems and advanced pediatric assessment skills.
The bachelor's degree takes four years to complete full time. It covers a variety of topics including pediatric nutrition, anatomy and physiology, growth and development and advanced nursing skills.
Because pediatric nursing is a specialty area, there are specific criteria which must be met in order to practice as a pediatric nurse. These include:
1.All nurses must be certified through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).
2.Must have at least one year of experience within the last five years working in pediatrics or neonatal care.
3.Must obtain certification in Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP) and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) program, both administered by the ANCC.
4.Must have completed a minimum of 75-100 post-basic educational hours in pediatrics, such as pediatric nursing courses or a bachelor's degree program in pediatric nursing.
5.Must obtain certification from the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) within five years of passing the examination.
There are many different types of pediatric nursing jobs. The work environment in each of these jobs varies. Here are some examples of the types of jobs you may find when becoming a pediatric nurse:
•Direct care staff - the focus of this job is to earn money and provide services to patients. They are responsible for taking orders from physicians, nurses, or other healthcare professionals and supervising their clients. They also may be asked to do some housekeeping duties if they have a private office in which they provide home visits.
•Administrative staff - this type of nurse is also responsible for supervising other employees and for keeping records for the hospital or clinic so that it is run smoothly.
•Team leader - if someone has worked as a nurse in the pediatric field for several years, they can become a team leader. This job is responsible for supervising all the other pediatric nurses on the team. They much be able to organize and motivate their staff.
•Educational staff - these nurses are responsible for educating doctors and parents on various medical topics such as disease, treatment or disease prevention methods. They may also lecture to groups of parents on parenting skills that could help prevent future health problems with their children.
•Home health care staff - nurses who work in this field travel from home to home taking care of children and adolescents who are medically unable to visit a hospital or clinic. They must be able to provide rotations, ambulation and feeding. They are also responsible for doing home health assessments, which involves going through the patient's home and background.
•Clinical nurse manager - this is a new position that is becoming more common among hospitals or clinics. The function of this type of nurse is to oversee all nurses and provide leadership in order to achieve the best outcomes for their patients.
Pediatric nurses are paid differently than other nurses. For example, pediatric nurses may work in settings that do not have high educational requirements for entry into the field like physicians or anesthesiologists, so they can make less money without having to have a higher degree like those other professionals do. For example, in 2009 pediatric nurses made about $57,000 a year. This is significantly less than the $62,000 per year anesthesiologists made. In spite of this difference in wages, it still seems that nursing as a whole is one of the highest paid jobs out there. Also, being a pediatric nurse doesn't necessarily mean you'll be working with children for your entire career. Teachers and other medical professionals all go through training so they can care for children and their health needs and provide them with the best care possible.
As the population of children in the United States continues to grow bigger, so does the need for qualified pediatricians and nurses to take care of these children's healthcare needs. Pediatric nurses have the ability to meet this need.
Pediatric nurses do not just focus on working with children. They work with all ages, including infants, infant care and preschoolers, adolescents as well as adults and elderly infants.
Pediatric nursing was first developed in the 1970s, however it is only within the past 20 years that pediatric nursing has become so strongly established. Pediatric nursing is still a developing field of nursing because there are still many new things that are being discovered about how best to care for children.
Conclusion
As the population of children in the United States continues to grow bigger, so does the need for qualified pediatricians and nurses to take care of these children's healthcare needs. Pediatric nurses have the ability to meet this need.
Pediatric nurses do not just focus on working with children. They work with all ages, including infants, infant care and preschoolers, adolescents as well as adults and elderly infants.
As pediatric nursing continues to develop, new types of jobs will be created in order to best meet the needs of children and their families.
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