In the care of patients and assisted living residents, nurses must be helpful, highly skilled, compassionate, and able to make challenging decisions when it comes to the administration of care, including when a doctor is not present. They offer a range of services including nursing consultation, health education, and training that are ideal for nurses and facilities that hire nurses.
When choosing a nurse, it is vital to choose someone who is dedicated to operating by the highest standards of practice in their treatment of patients or residents. This is crucial because of the many important responsibilities’ nurses must fulfill.
Nurses must uphold and meet the following high standards in order to perform their duties with optimum effectiveness:
1. Have exceptional communication skills
One of the most important capabilities a nurse can possess is excellent communication skills. These skills are essential in the realm of speaking and listening. A nurse can solve problems much more effectively if she or he is able to communicate clearly with patients and their families. An effective nurse can anticipate the troubles and needs of a patient prior to administering medicine and communicate with the patient effectively about questions and concerns.
2. Uphold the highest standards of professionalism
Nurses must operate with a professional disposition in their work. This covers everything from attending to patients, keeping patient records, administering medication and treatment, and more. Professionalism in nursing should equate to highly skilled and ethical in the performance of one’s duties.
3. Pay attention to details
How a nurse provides care to patients can result in significant consequences for the good or bad. For this reason, it is important to hire nurses who carefully pay attention to the details related to care, which will help prevent errors.
4. Have good interpersonal skills
Along with have excellent communication skills, nurses must possess good interpersonal skills so they can function as effective intermediaries between doctors and patients and also interact cordially and effectively with other nurses and medical staff.
5. Solve problems quickly
A nurse seeking to uphold high standards of practice should have the ability to solve problems in the healthcare environment quickly. One step above this is the ability to anticipate and prevent problems from happening before they occur.
6. Show empathy to patients and their families
Many patients undergo a significant about of pain and suffering during the course of care and treatment. Nurses operating with high standards of practice will express appropriate empathy and compassion for patients and their families and provide comfort. They will do this despite the stress and physical fatigue that often accompanies the job.
7. Have sufficient energy and stamina for work shifts
Nurses work long shifts and are often required to provide physical support to patients, lift heavy equipment, and stand for long stretches of time while performing their duties. For these reasons, nurses must have enough energy throughout the day to maintain high standards of practice, regardless of the demands imposed upon them.
