Satisfying Work
Satisfying work is an engagement that exploits a workers potential to the maximum and is observant on the worker's well-being and dignity. Satisfaction is derived from the accomplishment of set goals with a high rate of efficiency and accuracy and fair and respectful treatment. Satisfying work must consist of a perfect match between skills and talent and the task to be completed (Miller, 407)
Operational Definition
Nursing involves physical examination of patients through tests and psychological analysis through nursing psychology to identify the appropriate remedy for various health conditions. The job is not suitable for the faint hearted as nurse's addresses matters of life, death and every health condition in between. The schedules for nurse practitioners though demanding vary where most hospitals allow nurses to choose the shifts they are comfortable with in advance allowing room for flexibility. There are different specialization in nursing opening the profession to lots of different career paths including but not limited to diabetes nurse, midwife, pain management nurse, and critical care nurse. Duties and responsibilities assigned to nurses are conscious of a person’s specialty.
Nursing Knowledge and Complexity
Nursing is a profession that requires sufficient knowledge due to its complexity. The nursing is dependent on evidence-based practices acquired in the course of learning and research. There exists no room for mistakes in the nursing job as a simple mistake may result in the death of a patient. The satisfaction of nursing work is derived from the nurse’s ability to conserve and preserve life which is an essential factor in human beings and is, therefore, the highest degree of service to humanity. Based on ethical training, nurses do not compromise the patient's safety. They also do not make decisions based on emotions and sometimes inflict pain to their patients for the greater good of a therapeutic procedure for example through injecting patients.
Qualifications and Responsibilities of Nurses
Only trained and qualified nursing practitioner are allowed the liberty to take care of patients to eliminate possible incidences of human errors. Nurses can relieve pain to ailing patients thereby making the life for their clients bearable. Nursing education is a continuous activity as new and improved methods of disease treatment and prevention evolve every day. Nurses bear the responsibility of inventing new and enhanced nursing strategies and also find solutions for undiscovered human conditions.
Definition by Example
Watkins, a critical care nurse, working in an ICU facility at Kentucky attends to patients who are critically ill and in the process of recovering. Watkins works for 12 hours a day from 7:00 Am to 7:00 Pm. Often, she finds herself voluntarily extending her working hours and is rarely late for her schedules (Reid 1). According to her, being a nurse if demanding yet satisfying since in most of the time, nurses are in contact with patients for varied reasons. Sometimes, the patients' health deteriorates, and the notion that the patient needs her for the gift of life keeps her on toes. To prevent any unprecedented event, the unit Watkins works at carries out strict care schedule across the ward. The Keeping of the patient's records is in good order to ensure that change of shifts does not accept care delivery. Most of the time, the doctors are away for long periods of time and nurses are left with the sole responsibility of taking good care of the clients.
Satisfaction in Helping Patients
In the ICU, patients are involved in battles with life-threatening ailments and each day presents new challenges (Reid 2). Helping patients regain their good health is the most satisfying experience of a nurse. Sometimes casualties in the ICU are unavoidable, and grief is always displayed in nurse’s faces when the worse happens. However, when a patient recovers and gets discharged, there is joy in the nurse's heart to see that his or her efforts have borne positive results.
Commitment to Quality Care
While administering any form of therapy to a patient, Watkins carries out a detailed analysis and even consults fellow practitioners while filling the medical charts to ensure the accuracy of treatment procedures. She also takes time to read journals and books related to her line of specialty to improve her knowledge in healthcare service delivery. She also intends to peruse higher education to become a surgical assistant in the effort to broaden her scope of service delivery. The working conditions in the ICU unit where Watkins is based is adequately aerated and fitted with comfortable furniture as a sign of the hospital's commitment to her welfare.
Ethics and Emotional Control
When respected with respect and her safety enhanced, Watkins claims that he never gets an opportunity to get angry or bored with her work. She is comfortable with her remuneration thought she would gladly welcome a pay rise. Nurses have a high degree of ethics which is part of their training, and they rarely become emotional. They also don't hesitate to inflict pain if they believe that it would help their patients, for example, injections are not very desirable, but nurses never compromise on the patients’ health based on feelings and emotions.
Comparison to Other Professions
Just like a teacher celebrates the success of his or her students or as a soldier cerebrates slaying the enemy, a nurse celebrates a successful recovery of patients. A teacher teaches the students to be better and smarter than him or herself because of passion from within (Miller, 395) He employs different teaching strategies to ensure that all students understand the concepts taught. But a teacher with all the kindness and compassion he or she may possess may not gain any satisfaction from interaction with patients. In the same light, a nurse applies all the knowledge, time and resources possible for seamless recovery of the patients. Satisfying work may mean varied things to different people, but into a majority of the people, the definition of the concept is from an intrinsic perspective. Work is, therefore, satisfying based on how they align with a person's interests, values, skills, and talents. Watkins describes her job as challenging but one whose benefits outweigh the negatives by far.
Works Cited
Miller, James S. Acting out Culture: Reading and Writing: “How to Choose a Career That Will Not Get You Rich No Matter What Anyone Tells You”. Bedford/St. Martins, 2008.
Miller, James S. Acting out Culture: Reading and Writing: “The Case for Working with Your Hands”. Bedford/St. Martins, 2008.
Reid, Lyndsey. What it’s REALLY like to be a nurse, one of the most satisfying and in-demand jobs in America right now. https://www.pulselive.co.ke/bi/strategy/what-it-s-really-like-to-be-a-nurse-one-of-the-most-satisfying-and-in-demand-jobs-in-america-right-now-id8266781.html.
