Nursing is a rich and varied career option, with many different niches under its overall umbrella. The list of specialties you could choose to pursue once you’ve qualified as a general registered nurse could run to one hundred. Here are just a few of the possibilities available to a dedicated nurse that wants to advance their career.
Trauma nurse
As the name suggests, a trauma nurse specializes in emergency treatment for disturbing, distressing, and often life-threatening injuries. You’ll need to keep a level head in stressful, challenging circumstances, make fast, effective diagnoses, process information, and communicate clearly with colleagues. A trauma nurse will work as part of a team to stabilize and treat patientsefficiently.
Psychiatric nurse
A psychiatric nurse practitioner may work in a wide array of mental health treatments. As a certified advanced practice nurse, you’ll be able to pursue additional specialties within this field. This may include focusing on eating disorders or substance abuse, setting up as a counselor, or moving into the research side of things.
Psychiatric nursing requires a great deal of compassion and empathy and the ability to remain detached and dispassionate when necessary. You’ll work alongside doctors to diagnose and prescribe, as well as creating treatment plans tailored to a patient’s individual needs and case history.
Family Nurse Practitioner
Being a family nurse practitioner (FNP) involves working with patients of different ages and with a wide variety of needs. You’ll get to know them intimately and will work to provide support, informed advice,and access to the treatment they need.You can take an online degree to qualify as an FNP, either at RN, Masters, or post-graduate level.
Certified nurse-midwife
A midwife is an advanced practice nurse specializing in childbirth and maternity care, monitoring, advising, and treating the mother before, during, and after the birth. They may work in a hospital or as part of a clinical practice or attend private homes or birthing centers. Nurse-midwives work with patients may go far beyond ensuring a safe and healthy birth and could extend to holistic care, for instance, during menopause. A midwife will also be trained in caring for the newborn child and help male partners with relevant issues.
Pediatric Nurse Practitioner
This nursing role covers working with children from infancy to early adulthood. As such, you’ll be a caretaker and educator,and a primary care provider, communicating and negotiating with families and your young patients. Pediatric nurses may set up their own practice, working independently to diagnose, prescribe medication and administer treatment.
Gerontological Nurse Practitioner
A GNP is trained in dealing with all aspects of aging, from the physical to the mental, emotional, and social. As such, this requires a multidisciplinary approach and involves working with patients at every stage of their life journey. Those wishing to specialize in the challenges facing older people could become a nurse in geriatric care.
These are just a few of the options available to nurses in the US. Most positions are in high demand, and qualified practitioners can expect a potentially rewarding career.
