What makes a good Nurse? What are the qualities of terrific Nurses? The Nursing profession is about kindness and caring for the whole person as well as medical, emotional and technical knowledge, and so much more. Below are a few traits that make Nurses so great!
Good Communication
Communication is essential to patient safety, health and well-being. As you are at the center of patient care, it is your responsibility to facilitate dialog. As you care for older and more culturally diverse populations, you will need to strengthen your communication skills. Without strong communication skills, serious errors can occur.
Emotional stability
As you know, Nursing is a stressful job where traumatic situations are common. The ability to accept suffering and death without letting it get personal is crucial. Some days can seem like non-stop gloom and doom. There are heartwarming moments like helping a patient recover, reuniting families, or bonding with fellow Nurses. But those moments are less common than the tougher situations. So remember to take care of YOU too so you can handle the inevitable crises.
Empathy
Empathy is a complex emotion and can be a complex concept while working with many patients who have different kinds of needs. Responding with empathy requires the ability to put yourself in your patient’s shoes, see situations from their perspective and demonstrate that you understand their feelings and are reading them accurately. Most importantly, it requires you to act on that understanding in appropriate and therapeutic ways.
Attention to detail
Paying attention to minute details is important in the Nursing profession, especially when you have a lot on your plate. You must document everything you do on patients’ charts, listen closely to their description of symptoms, ask the right questions, and remember to bring medications at appropriate times. It’s critical to remember even the smallest detail amidst all of the commotion. At the end of the day, one small slip-up could become a fatal mistake.
Physical Endurance
You encounter many patients with lifestyle-related disorders. With this in mind, a basic understanding of the role physical fitness plays in prevention and rehabilitation is key. You can be a positive influence on patients who have to make lifestyle choices if they see you’ve made good choices. If you stay fit, you not only feel good, you’re a great role model for your patients.
Physical fitness improves your ability to effectively perform the physical tasks you do every day. One study of 146 Registered Nurses, over a 12-hour shift, found they covered an average of 4 to 5 miles per shift. I’m sure you’re not surprised by this information!
Desire to continue learning
Medical knowledge and technology are advancing rapidly. As a great Nurse, you know the importance of working on your professional development and skills, and learning new things.
SENSE OF HUMOR
This is imperative! A joke and a few laughs can take the edge off of a tough day and…it feels good. Need we say more?
It takes many great qualities to be a good and effective Nurse. What are traits you would add to this list? Please comment below!
