A Nurses Guide To Nursing

Nurse Practice Act is a set of state laws that govern specific aspects of the nursing profession. The statutes are generally grouped with a chapter of state laws, referred to in its entirety as the Nurse Practice Act “the Act”.Individual state legislatures’ determine the Acts content, so “the Act” may differ a bit from state-to-state. Nonetheless, many acts address common issues such as establishing the composition and scope of authority for the board of nursing; defining the practice of professional, practical or vocational nursing and advanced practice nursing; setting the requirements to obtain a nursing license; limiting use of the title, “nurse” and listing the grounds for discipline against a nurse’s license.

Most public libraries should have a copy of the state statute books which should have a copy each individual states act. However, be sure to get a copy of the most current version and check for the latest amendments that may not be included in the format you’re using. It also wouldn’t hurt every licensed nurse to have a personal up-to-date copy of “the Act” available for easy reference.

Median annual earnings of registered nurses were $48,090 in 2002. The middle 50 percent earned between $40,140 and $57,490. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $33,970, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $69,670. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of registered nurses in 2002 were as follows:

Employment services - $55,980
General medical and surgical hospitals - $49,190
Home health care services - $45,890
Offices of physicians - $44,870
Nursing care facilities - $43,850

Many employers offer flexible work schedules, childcare, educational benefits, and bonuses.

Most nurses work in well-lighted, comfortable healthcare facilities. Home health and public health nurses travel to patients’ homes, schools, community centers, and other sites. Nurses may spend considerable time walking and standing. Patients in hospitals and nursing care facilities require 24-hour care; consequently, nurses in these institutions may work nights, weekends, and holidays. RNs also may be on call - available to work on short notice. Office, occupational health, and public health nurses are more likely to work regular business hours. More than 1 in 5 RNs worked part time in 2002 and nearly 1 in 10 held more than one job.

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Nurses are in high demand and that demand has created an excellent opportunity for those in the health care field. It’s not only a chance for better wages than ever before; it’s also an opportunity to choose your benefits. That means that you’ll look more closely at the individual companies and what they can offer.

So what benefits can you expect as a nurse? Take a look at some options you’ll find from the various nursing agencies and health care facilities.

Favorable working conditions and hours - While there’s no doubt that more nurses and other health care professionals are constantly in demand, many companies and facilities are offering nurses and technicians time off as an incentive to work for them. These companies do whatever it takes to keep working hours to a reasonable level, including hiring temporary workers from other companies. This means that there’s less demand to work overtime, leaving even nurses time for themselves and their families. The goal is two fold. Not only do these companies want to attract and retain quality employees, they also realize that nurses and others health care professionals are more likely to be at the top of their game when they’re handling reasonable working hours with adequate backup staffing.

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Yes, Nurses can be entrepreneurs. In today?s market place nursing has a unique service to offer not only to hospitals but nursing homes, private care and doctor offices. We as nurses have the skill, knowledge and motivation to be successful entrepreneurs. Nurses are tired of being told how much our services are worth. The economy is ripe for the nurse entrepreneur. Why wait? The nursing shortage is just beginning and there doesn?t appear to be a quick fix in the near future. Much of the nursing workforce is coming up on retirement time, which is only going to compound the lack of skilled nurses to deal with the oncoming baby-boomers.
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The nursing profession has witnessed tremendous changes in the last five decades. In this continually changing environment, it is important to study the trends in nursing jobs in order to determine a successful career path. Today the demand for Registered Nurses or RNs has increased considerably, because of two factors. Firstly, relatively less fresh enrolment down the years since the turn of the century along with retirements of extant RNs has led to a shortage of trained nurses. Secondly, there is an increase in a nurse’s range of function, with rise in the number of the elderly due to improved healthcare systems and the introduction of community-based preventive projects.
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Many hospitals, under pressure to lower costs, are using licensed vocational nurses (LVN’s) in place of registered nurses wherever allowed.

California LVNs work under the supervision of physicians and registered nurses in jobs that require medical knowledge and technical training. They take patients� temperature, pulse and blood pressure, change dressings, draw blood for testing, and give intravenous fluids.

An increase in the aging population needing long-term care is fueling the need for more LVNs. To meet the demand, training for this career is offered at vocational schools and many community colleges.
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It�s no secret that the United States has a nursing shortage, one that promises to grow to alarming proportions. Too many nurses are retiring, and too few are entering the profession. To compound the problem, within the next 5 to 10 years, over 76 million Baby Boomers are scheduled to retire from the workforce, with only about 44 million Generation X’ers available to pick up the slack. This will soon place unprecedented demands for services on a health system that is already stretched thin.
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Nurses wake up and take advantage of this extraordinary opportunity. Are you tired of having no input in your career, little money in the bank, lack of respect for your profession and little compensation for the long hours and years of dedication? Independent RN Contractor is a great way to renew your interest and rejuvenate your nursing career. As An Independent Nurse Contractor you will increase your choices as to when, where and how often you work, substantially increase your income and most of all gain professional autonomy.
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