When I became a nurse I quickly realized that the roles I held were many, and that the expectations for the duties I performed far exceeded what I had expected. Suddenly I was confronted with this multitude of hats that I was to wear when performing my job as a nurse, and although I was honored I’ll admit that I was also overwhelmed.
Indeed in Nursing the expectations of performance are high, and while that’s understandably so it is also difficult to say the very least. Over time, though, you begin to understand that being a nurse is much more than listening to heart tones or coming up with the perfect nursing diagnosis like they taught in school. In fact nurses hold multiple roles, and the title or job description that they could go by are plentiful. Here’s just I few I came up with off the top of my head.
1. Helper
2. Healer
3. Cook
4. Waitress
5. Maid
6. Friend
7. Motivational Speaker
8. Interim Physician
9. Physical/Occupational Therapist
10. Addiction Counselor
11. Social Worker
12. Lifesaver
13. Mindreader
14. Spiritual Guide/Minister
15. Psychologist
16. Babysitter
17. Mediator
18. Relationship Counselor
19. Masseuse
20. Hairdresser
21. Teacher
22. Security Guard/Bouncer
23. Entertainer (maybe this is just me)
24. Nutritionalist
25. Advocate
26. Investigator
27. Dental Hygienist
28. Biomedical Engineer/Electrician
29. Information Technology (IT) Specialist
30. Banker
31. Podiatrist
32. Comedian
33. Phlebotomist
34. Case Manager
35. Drug Dealer
36. Personal Assistant/Servant
37. Apothecary
38. Politician
39. Researcher
40. Customer Service Representative
41. Interpreter
42. Infection Control Specialist
43. Secretary/Receptionist
44. Life Coach
45. Miracle Worker
As you can see by the above list that’s a lot of hats for one person to wear. Some of those mentioned above are actual titles of other professionals, and for their hard work I’m eternally grateful, but when they cannot be at the bedside then nurses are willing to try and fill their big shoes. I can only hope we do the roles justice.
With so many duties involved in the healthcare field and necessary to perform quality patient care it’s hard to come up with just one description to encompass everything required, but I guess they did pretty good when they came up with the title Nurse.
So be sure to thank a nurse today for all they do!