There’s always been a demand for nursing, especially in developed countries. This is why labor migration on the field of nursing is always high from developing countries like those in Asia. Although, nursing does offer a lot of benefits the downsides of a career in nursing may not be always known or are not highlighted for people, like college students, to consider. There are a number of reasons why people get attracted to becoming a nurse. Those in developing countries chose a nursing career to find jobs in the US, Canada, or Europe where the pay is a lot higher than what they will be receiving if they stayed on their home country. That is one of the ultimate goals of people who take nursing courses: to get rich, as fast as possible. Or at the very least, have more than enough money to support themselves, and their families back home.
Others chose nursing as a career because they get to help people. They love the interaction with people, with their patients, and even their colleagues. They love that feeling of personal satisfaction every time they help a patient. The bonding they get is what they see as one of the fulfilling benefits of the job.
Another, issue is job security. Because nurses are in demand, one will have the opportunity to work practically anywhere provided, of course, that they pass whatever licensure exams required. The employers themselves are becoming more liberal and flexible in treating nurses’ schedules, and employee benefits. They know they need good nurses so they make the schedules as flexible as possible and provide great health benefits especially if you’re working in a hospital.
There’s also always an opportunity to learn more, because nurses can specialize in various fields like doctors as well. This means you can always more to another field if you feel stiffened by your current specialty or if you just felt bored.
However, depending on where you’re coming from, you might want to quit or not continue nursing because of several downsides that fail to agree with your values, standards, and work ethics.
Although, the schedule in hospitals is quite flexible, nurses are always required to come in during the holidays. The hospital doesn’t sleep and doesn’t close. The number of staff should always be adequate enough to meet the hospital’s demands. Your holidays will often be spent in the hospitals with the patients rather than your own family. You can be assigned on days and nights and weekends, so be prepared for that.
Another thing, even though nurses do have fun with colleagues and patients alike, the scenario is not always like that. Being around with sick and even the dying might get to you causing some psychological or emotional trauma which will take time to heal. That’s another thing that you need to be prepared for.
Also, don’t think that getting there is easy. Nursing courses are often difficult and require medical knowledge, keen sense of observation, ability to react decisively and logically for oftentimes they are part of a team who’s responsible for people’s lives. The responsibility is huge and should not be taken likely.
Some hospitals and even doctors provide the downsides of a career in nursing. Hospitals and doctors treat nurses like their secretaries, not acknowledging their efforts. There are doctors that act like that, unfortunate as it may seem.
But that the reality that nurses have to face in attending their everyday duties and responsibilities.
