What Does it Mean to be a Nurse?

The challenges and rewards of our profession

The Challenge
Judging by all the stories about desperately understaffed hospitals, anyone would think there
aren’t enough nurses. It’s true the average American hospital falls short of the nursing staff it
needs by at least 10 percent. There are plenty of nurses, it’s just that many of them aren’t
working in hospitals. They work for insurance companies, become malpractice paralegals, or
sell real estate.

Many graduates leave hospitals once reality hits them. Plus, young people are not quite as
interested in nursing as they once were, given today’s many other options.

An Essential Role

In an era when almost one-sixth of Americans lack health insurance, when some form of
universal healthcare is under constant discussion by politicians and the public, and when
healthcare costs are skyrocketing, nurses are more pivotal than ever. The stability of our
complex healthcare system depends on a steady supply of well-educated nurses.

Today, the public’s reassessment of the nurse’s vital role in healthcare delivery is once again
making nursing an attractive and rewarding career choice. Nursing will be taken more
seriously as an essential profession as our demographics change.
The Rewards

There are many positives. In what other job would we meet thousands of people from every
walk of life—an incredible cross-section of society—who need and want us? Or be able to
move from one end of the country to the other and still find ourselves in demand
professionally?. A nursing career gives us an inside track on coping with health problems,
too. We know how to ask the right questions, access information, and put that information to
work as we advocate for others.

Our profession usually involves physical exercise, always good in moderation, as opposed to
sedentary desk work. Nursing is the kind of job where we usually don’t have to take work
home with us, though we may have to stay overtime and will certainly take home emotional
baggage, at least on occasion.

It’s the kind of job where the results and rewards are often immediate. Nursing allows us to
get that analgesic to a patient, help him make that phone call, and explain to his loved ones
why he needs a particular treatment. We are essential not only to patients and their families,
but also to doctors, who rely on us for vital information about their patients’ conditions.
Making a Difference
We make a difference, sometimes just by listening to someone for a few minutes or
answering a simple question. What may be routine for us is a matter of life-and-death for
patients and we can demystify the hospital structure for them. As nurses, we often forget that
what is familiar to us is a frightening new environment for patients, where they feel helpless,
vulnerable, and overwhelmed.

As nurses, we can look back and say that our efforts are effective, practical, and make a
difference. Maybe not every day, maybe things don’t always go smoothly, and maybe we
aren’t always perfect, but we can enjoy the satisfaction of knowing that at least we tried, and
sometimes fought well against all odds. How many other professions can make such a claim?

Give your opinion on these questions :

1. There is a fact that there are many nurses who burn out and leave the hospital to work at
other places. What do you think are the reasons behind this?

My opinion : The people who think like that mean they don't have a high sense of concern
for health.

2. As a nurse candidate, what are the essential roles you will have?

My opinion : provide services to improve public health.

3. What do you think is the best reward you can get as a nurse?

My opinion : the best reward I can get as a nurse is thanks from the patient.

4. Do you agree with the statement saying that “nurse can make a difference” ? Why? Or
why not?

My opinion : I agree with that statement, because the profession as a nurse is about the
patient's comfort and even the patient's life and death.

Name : Abu Bakar Rahmat

NIM : M18010018