Servant's Heart a Requirement for Nursing Career

What’s the most challenging part of your job?

I think it’s probably taking care of people who are terminal or who have sustained an injury or acquired an illness that alters their lifestyle. You have to see them trying to adjust to a different lifestyle. I’m glad I get to be part of that process of adjustment and help someone find an alternative lifestyle, so it’s kind of bittersweet sometimes.

The patients we get are medically complex. We’re an acute care hospital within Saint Joe. We have medically complex patients who stay with us for a while and we get to know the patients and the families and we become close with them. It’s good when they have a good outcome, but it can be also difficult. If they have a not-so-good outcome, it can be hard because we get to know their families and we get close to the patients.

What skills are necessary to do your job?

I think you have to be a people person. You have to have compassion. You learn the skills you need during your clinicals, but even before that you have to be compassionate. You have to be a servant because we serve patients and their families. You have to have a servant’s heart. I don’t look at nursing as just a job. It’s a calling, and you have to start with a compassionate heart.

Are there any misconceptions that people have about what you do?

I’m not sure. Maybe people might think that nursing is just about passing pills, but nursing is a highly skilled job. You have to be technologically savvy because all the charts and records are on the computer, now. The skill level of nurses is a misconception. There are so many fields in nursing that require a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree, so nurses are becoming more and more educated.