Nurses make an incredible contribution to society, helping to keep hospitals running smoothly while giving care and support to their patients. Those drawn to nursing as a career tend to be resilient and intelligent; always eager to learn new things and embrace opportunities for improvement.
If you have a growth mindset and you’re wondering how to be a better nurse, this article will provide tips for moving beyond your comfort zone to become a leader in your field. We’ll also provide advice about:
- postgraduate nursing courses
- finding a professional mentor
- staying up-to-date with new techniques and procedures
- transitioning your career into a specialised field
- improving your communication and critical thinking skills
- how to develop nursing leadership skills.
What makes a good nurse?
Nursing requires a blend of skills ranging from the empathetic to the analytical. Before we get into tips for advancing your career, let’s first take a look at what makes a good nurse:
- Self-discipline: Good nurses tend to be very self-motivated and good at completing tasks without cutting corners or procrastinating.
- Strong communication skills: This job requires you to communicate important information to people from all sorts of backgrounds and ages. You also need to be good at listening and asking questions.
- Effective time management skills: On the job, nurses deal with several patients, each with different needs. You’ll need to make sure that everyone is attended to within a reasonable timeframe.
- Resourcefulness: On-the-spot problem-solving is a big part of being a nurse. This career suits those who are good at quickly finding ways to overcome difficulties.
- Intuition: Having good intuition is about being able to sense when someone needs something before they have to ask for it.
- Judiciousness: Since nurses often have to make decisions quickly and respond to unexpected situations, they need to be able to operate using sound judgement and common sense.
- Compassion: This is about treating all of your patients with empathy and respect when they’re feeling vulnerable and emotional. A good sense of humour doesn’t go astray here, either.
- Energy: Nursing is a physical job that requires you to spend many hours on your feet. It is suited to those who are naturally quite energetic and active.
How to be a better nurse
If you want to take your nursing career to the next level, there are a number of ways you can build on your skills and expand your professional network. The key to success is to seek out learning and development opportunities wherever you can.
This next section will provide answers to the questions ‘How do nurses develop skills?’ and ‘What are self-development activities for nurses?’ so you can stay up-to-date with technological developments within your field, and meet other nursing professionals who are keen to explore new endeavours.
Expand your knowledge by studying a Graduate Diploma of Health (Advanced Nursing)
One of the best ways to improve your professional standing is to acquire a new qualification. Federation University Online offers a Graduate Diploma of Health (Advanced Nursing), which can help you get the most out of your existing nursing skills. You’ll develop advanced clinical reasoning skills, preparing you for leadership roles.
A Graduate Diploma of Health can open the door to a range of exciting new career pathways, including:
- lead nursing positions
- nurse and nurse unit manager
- emergency nursing
- professional nurse educator
- lead nursing opportunities.
The best part about studying with Federation University Online is you can learn on your own terms. Your study can be fitted in around your nursing commitments, so you can advance your career without putting your work life on hold.
More information about the benefits of studying a Graduate Diploma or a Master of Health (Advanced Nursing) can be found in our article, Why you should do a postgraduate nursing course.
Find a mentor
A professional mentor can give you advice and feedback so you can develop your strengths and go further in your career. Mentors are role models, essentially, helping to support your journey to becoming the best nurse you can be.
Finding a mentor could be as simple as asking someone within your workplace. If they’re happy to provide you with guidance, you could arrange a regular time to meet over coffee to have a chat about your experiences on the job. Sometimes all we need to achieve great things is a person in our corner who can provide encouragement and constructive feedback.
If you decide you’d like to gain a postgraduate qualification in nursing, university is an excellent place to receive mentorship. The Online Learning Advisors (OLAs) at Federation University Online are industry leaders who can help you achieve your potential as a nurse.
Stay up-to-date on the latest techniques and procedures
An easy way to stay connected to Australia’s nursing network is to listen to podcasts. The Nurse Break – Australia’s largest open-access nursing blog – has put together a comprehensive list of the best Australian nursing podcasts, making it easy to listen to interviews and stay informed.
Another way you can stay up-to-date is to visit the Australian Government’s Nursing and midwifery resources page to read the latest reports and clinical guidelines, so your knowledge remains current. You can subscribe to the nursing and midwifery newsletter to learn about current health campaigns, find out about upcoming nursing events, receive updates about changes to government policy that affect nurses, and discover professional development opportunities.
Consider transitioning into a specialised field
If you feel you’ve reached a point in your career where you’re ready for a new challenge, perhaps it’s time to transition into a more specialised field of nursing.
Let’s take a look at some of the options for specialising as a nurse:
Perioperative nursing
Perioperative nurses work in operating rooms, providing care to patients before, during and after surgery. If you’re interested in accelerating your professional standing and expertise in this field, a Graduate Certificate in Health (Perioperative Nursing) will help you tailor your pre-existing perioperative nursing experience and develop your clinical skills.
This course will give you advanced-level skills and knowledge, so you can forge ahead as a leader in the perioperative nursing field.
Emergency nursing
Emergency nursing is another pathway you might like to consider. If you’ve already had experience working as an emergency nurse, and want to expand your knowledge, the Graduate Certificate in Health (Emergency Nursing) at Federation University Online is a great option. Here, you’ll gain advanced skills in emergency nursing, including providing life-saving care and working with patients facing challenging situations such as accidents, trauma, or sudden illness.
Intensive care nursing
Finally, intensive care nursing could be a suitable direction if you have experience in this area and you want to become a leader in the field. A Graduate Certificate in Health (Intensive Care Nursing) provides advanced level theoretical knowledge and clinical reasoning for the care of critically ill patients while helping to develop your skills in leadership, communication, and evidence-based practice.
Consider joining a nursing organisation
If you’re wondering how to be a better nurse, you could also consider joining the NurseTalk networking organisation, where you can find out about nursing events happening near you, and meet other nursing professionals either online or in person.
The Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association (APNA) is another great organisation you can join if you work in primary healthcare (i.e. any medical service that’s provided outside a hospital – such as in a general practice, aged care, schools, or community health). APNA members get access to education and resources, the latest industry news, expert advice, communities, insurance, advocacy, and other perks.
To find out about other organisations relevant to the nursing workforce, head over to the Australian Government’s list of nursing and midwifery contacts.
How can you develop communication skills in nursing?
Great communication skills are fundamental for being a good nurse. During any shift as a registered nurse, you’ll be required to communicate clearly and effectively with a whole range of different people, from debriefing with doctors to passing on information to your fellow nurses, to translating medical jargon into ordinary language to the patients in your care.
Here are some tips from our Learning Advisors on how to develop communication skills in nursing:
- Tailor your communication to the needs of your patients
- Learn how to be a good active listener
- Show empathy and compassion
- Respect the confidentiality and privacy of your patients
- Allow people enough time to ask questions and voice their concerns
The Nursing & Midwife Support organisation has useful resources on communication skills to help nurses maintain good relationships with their colleagues, avoid conflict, solve problems, and create better outcomes for their patients. Another great resource is the Ausmed guide to communication skills.
How can you develop critical thinking skills in nursing?
Studying at postgraduate level is one of the best ways you can develop better critical thinking skills. The suite of nursing programs at Federation University Online is designed to advance your ability to think critically, so you can pursue leadership roles within your field.
For example, the Inquiry and Analysis of Literature unit aims to help students refine their academic writing skills through conducting critical reviews of literature related to health science research. Learning how to be an excellent researcher is extremely valuable for a successful career in health care since it sharpens your ability to process information, and then communicate your findings to a wider audience.
If you’re wondering how to develop critical thinking skills in nursing, it might be worthwhile reading a book on the subject that draws on examples from medicine and science. There are many critical thinking books out there that can help you build upon your existing skills.
How can you develop leadership skills in nursing?
If you’re interested in learning how to develop leadership skills in nursing, this article on important nurse leadership skills has a lot of great tips. These include working on becoming a more self-aware person, setting goals, finding opportunities for continuous learning, seeking out additional responsibilities within your workplace, and always keeping the needs of your patients at the forefront of everything you do.
Again, the range of nursing programs at Federation University Online are all designed to help you become a more confident nurse and a better leader. If you would like to advance your career to a more senior role, a postgraduate qualification doesn’t just give you knowledge, it gives you the sense of accomplishment that comes from completing a challenge. This is what great leaders are made of.
Feeling inspired?
Discover a whole new world of opportunities with Federation University Online’s Graduate Diploma of Health (Advanced Nursing). You can download a brochure to learn more about the course or get in touch with one of our helpful Course Consultants page to chat about your options.
You can also apply online today to dive in and get started!
