Page 4 - National Nurses Week 2020

4M CELEBRATING NATIONAL NURSES WEEK SUNDAY, MAY 10, 2020 • ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO THE ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE
NURSING
PROFILE
Gabriel Gartman
Registered nurse
Conway Regional Health System
Conway
Q: How long have you been a nurse?
A: I graduated in December 2015 and started working at Conway Regional in the critical-care unit shortly after that.
Q: What made you want to become a nurse? A: I previously worked in the health care field as the administrator of a pediatric clinic and as a coordinator for clinical research studies. Nursing is a field I had always been interested in, so I decided to go back to school to get my nursing degree.
Q: What is the most rewarding part of your job? A: There is no way I could even begin to describe all of the rewards I receive on a daily basis from my patients
and their families: the love, compassion, gratitude, support. I could tell stories for days of the positive impact that patients, families and co-workers have made on my life and rewarded me with.
Q: Who in your career field inspires you?
A: My sister is a nurse, and she inspired me to go back to school and become a nurse. The stories she told of her patients, their families and the impact she made in their lives — I decided I wanted to do that. I am also greatly privileged to work alongside a group of amazing nurses in the critical-care unit. We are truly a team, and I am inspired daily by them — their knowledge, compassion, love, determination, drive — they are exceptional.
Q: What education/training have you had
for your job?
A: I was initially a biology major in college, received a bachelor’s degree, then went back for my nursing degree. I complete yearly competencies for my job specific to critical care. We also have areas that require more frequent training/in-services.
Q: What are your career goals?
A: My career goal is to continue to learn and be challenged while providing exceptional care to patients and their families; to maintain high standards both for myself and my peers; to always strive to do better; and to do what is right, even if it’s not always easy.
Specialties within nursing
Nursing can be a prolific and prosper- ous career. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Outlook Handbook states that job opportunities in nursing are expected to continue to grow at a rate faster than the average throughout all other professions. Couple that with nursing shortages, and qualified nurses will likely have the prover- bial pick of the litter when seeking jobs.
Both registered nurses and licensed prac- tical nurses can choose to work in a variety of specialties within the nursing profession. Just about every discipline within the health care industry has a need for qualified nurs- es.Hereisalookatjustafewofthemany subspecialties of nursing.
“When you are in a specialty setting, [members of] the medical team that is working with those patients are more prepared and knowledgeable about that specific care set,” said Jacque Sweeten, a registered nurse who works in pre/post operation orthopaedics and pediatrics at Unity Health in Searcy. “Specializing in an area increases your knowledge and skill set for those specific patients so you are able to provide more advanced care.”
Karen Ball, interim director of inpatient rehab specialty care at Unity Health said specialization allows nurses to become experts in their field. While nursing school provides a broad understanding of how the human body works, specialization can give nurses a new level of confidence, improve patients’ outcomes and better serve communities.
“It’s a good idea to try out different de- partments and see what suits your person- ality,” Ball said. “Find the specialty you are passionate about because it will make every day seems less like a job and more like a career.”
• Emergency care: Trauma or emergency nurses work on the front lines at hospitals or medical centers. The majority are registered nurses who serve very important functions under high-stress conditions. Lifesaving pro- cedures, triage, setting up rooms for medi- cal procedures and performing intubations are all in a day’s work for emergency-care nurses.
• Obstetrical care: Nurses who work in an obstetrical capacity handle patients who are seeking to become pregnant, are already pregnant or have recently delivered or lost children. It can be a demanding field but one that is quite rewarding as well.
Scrub nurses work alongside doctors to assist with patient care before, during and after surgeries.
• Pediatric care: Nurses who work in pediatric functions are typically employed in private pediatric practices. Nurses check vital signs, administer vaccinations, offer in- formation on child health and development, and work with the staff physician.
“We look for nurses who are kid-savvy and dedicated to having tea parties as a part of their daily work,” said Amy Huett, a reg- istered nurse who holds a doctorate and Nursing Professional Development Board Certification and is director of nursing ex- cellence at Arkansas Children’s Hospital. “Couple this passion and dedication with a commitment to our core values — safety, teamwork, compassion and excellence — and this is an ACH nurse. We look for nurses who hold safety in the highest regard, who enjoy building collaborative relationships, who understand what our patients and fam- ilies are going through, and expect nothing but the best from themselves and others.”
• Surgical care: Surgical nurses, also known as theater nurses or scrub nurses, assist with patient care before, during and after surgeries. Most of these nurses require extra training to this end, and there are sub- specialties in the field.
“When you are in a specialty setting, the medical team that is working with those patients is more prepared and knowledge- able about that specific care set,” Sweeten said. “Specializing in an area increases your knowledge and skill set for those specific patients so you are able to provide more advanced care.”
The field of nursing is a versatile one that can suit qualified nurses with varying inter- ests and skill sets.
— Courtesy of Metro Creative, with contributions by Cody Graves, creative services writer