In a field like nursing where mistakes can mean a lot more than just money or time lost, communication is even more integral than it is in a lot of other occupations. There are many different nursing paths to take, and some require very unique skills, others require the ability to perform under heavy pressure, and some require constant communication with a team of fellow healthcare professionals to ensure the tasks at hand are completed to perfection.
Here is look at 5 jobs in the nursing field best suited for individuals who have expert communication skills.
Nurse Educators
Any and all types of education start and end with communication, and nursing is no exception. With evolutions in online nursing school, more opportunities for educators also exist. If you?re a nurse who likes the thought of educating and also enjoys utilizing technology, there are a lot of job opportunities in online education.
For brick-and-mortar educators, verbal communication is very important, and on the other hand, written communication is the most common in the remote classroom setting. All students learn differently, so educators need to know how to deliver their messages in multiple ways, and being able to evolve your communication styles to match students is paramount for nurse educators.
Nurse Writer
Nurse writers provide content for websites, educational organizations, hospital newsletters, training manuals, and pretty much anything else involve nursing terminology. As the entire job is communicating to a large audience via text, top-notch grammatical prowess is a must in this field. If you?re someone who likes writing and posses a BSN, this hands-off nursing career can offer you a lot of flexibility and the median salary is upwards of $70,000 in the United States.
Hospice Nurse
Hospice nurses provide care to terminally ill patients, and provide a bridge between the patient and their family, explaining the processes that their loved ones are going through on a day to day basis. The best hospice nurses have the ability to truly engage their patients and show them kindness and compassion in the face of death. Being engaging and providing someone with a friend has been proven to extend the lives of these individuals.
In addition to patient care, communication with families is also a daily part of this kind of nursing, so with both in mind: person-to-person communication is very important for hospice nursing.
Nurse Midwife
Nurse midwives do a lot more than help deliver children, and as important as communication is in the delivery room, nurses in these positions have to form relationships with expectant parents long before a child is actually delivered. Thus, being able to communicate with people from all walks of life is very important. A focus on cultural awareness is important for midwives, as pregnancy and childbirth brings with it many idiosyncrasies from one culture or religion to another. Being able to instill confidence in your patients is another important part of the communication process for midwives.
Public Health Nurse
A position that was very important during the COVID pandemic, public health nurses communicate policies and health threats to the public via speeches, TV appearances, and online content. With this, public speaking skills are important, as is an ability to answer difficult questions.
Other Options
There are almost 3 million nurses in the United States, and these individuals fill an almost countless number of roles. Though communication is a big part of almost every nursing field, there are, indeed, options for people who don?t like having too much human contact in the workplace. If you?re just getting into nursing, you should definitely consider the types of communication you?re the best at, and how much communication you want in your day-to-day life when you choose your focus.