Building a Nursing Network

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Nurse I am often surprised at nurse leaders who have no contacts outside their own organizations.  When they hit a roadblock in their career, they have no one to turn to inquire about professional opportunities.  The reality about networks is that you should build them before you need them.  Today’s healthcare environment is volatile and having a strong network is part of your professional insurance policy.

The Value of Networking

Informal networks have always been important in the workplace to get things done.  We all know people who are very well connected, and have used this to advanced their careers or help achieve their goals.  Yet surprisingly, few organizations and knowledge workers seem to understand the dynamics of their informal networks and harness their abilities.   A good network outside our own organization can make it possible for us to gain access to and act upon new information faster.  It can save time and energy in a leadership role to have a network of individuals with similar challenges who can provide advice based on their experiences.  Having a strong network can also be invaluable if you are looking for new career opportunities, especially for emerging nurse leaders.  Harvey Mackay, a master networker, advises that you should dig the well before you are thirsty.  This is good advice. Workforce recruiters acknowledge that their best hires are referrals that come from professionals whose judgment they can trust.  Many great career opportunities are never advertised.

Getting Started

Networking opportunities exist everywhere, even in social situations outside work environments.  Professional meetings and events are ideal opportunities to network.  In fact, most experienced nurse leaders attend national meetings specifically to network with their colleagues.  Increasingly, professionals also use social networking sites such as LinkedIn in professional organizations to broaden their networks.

Networking is all about the establishment of relationships.  You can’t establish a relationship with someone that you don’t know, without first taking the time to meet others. Don’t be a wallflower when you attend a meeting, and don’t spend all your time with people you already know.  Networking is an active behavior.  When you attend a meeting, establish a goal to meet at least five new people.  You really never know who has information or contacts that could be helpful to you.  Always bring your business cards with you.

Questions to Ask in Networking Environments

If you are naturally introverted, networking may not come as easily to you.  Fortunately, most people would rather talk than listen.  You can never go wrong asking some questions and establishing common ground.  Some good questions to get the conversation started could include:

  • How did you get started in nursing leadership?
  • What do you enjoy most in your role?
  • What are your challenges?
  • What significant changes are you seeing in your environment?
  • What is the most innovative thing that is happening in your organization?
  • What do you think will happen with healthcare reform?
  • What trends do you see happening in nursing today?
  • What advice would you give to an emerging nurse leader?

Follow-up

If you make a promise to someone that you have networked with (to give them a contact name, send a policy or procedure, provide product information), it is very important that you provide prompt follow-up.  Your reputation and success will depend on whether you are considered trustworthy.  The old adage that “givers gain” is very true. Likewise, if someone that you have met offers to help you – don’t be afraid to immediately follow-up and ask for assistance.  You never know what new opportunities could happen as a result of a conversation.

We live in a very networked world so developing the skill of professional networking will be an important key to your leadership success.  You just never know who you will meet until you extend your hand, introduce yourself and start asking questions.

 

Is Leadership Right for You

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Leadership I believe it is critically important in our careers that we select positions that play to our strengths.  Some nurses are natural leaders but others grow into their roles over time.  What is true is that you cannot be a leader without followers and this trust needs to be earned.  You may be wondering if you have what others look for in their leaders.  If we look at the research that has been done both in nursing and the business world, followers do look for certain attributes in their leaders that help inspire confidence.  So ask yourself the following 10 questions:

1.  Am I seen by co-workers as someone who has integrity?

Integrity is a fundamental leadership attribute.  Nurses expect to be able to trust their leaders.  Followers become very insecure when trust breaks down in the work environment.  When leaders are inconsistent in their expectations or if they don’t role model the behaviors that they expect of their staff, trust is compromised.

2.  Am I empathetic towards others on my team?

Empathy is defined as the ability to be sensitive to the needs of others.  Most nurses have no difficulty being empathetic with patients but may behave very differently with their team members.  Combined with integrity, empathy helps to drive trust.  It gives followers a sense that their interests are being looked after, and this helps to create positive energy.  Followers who sense that a leader appreciates them are motivated to carry out their responsibilities in a more committed way.  Nurse leaders must show that they care for their staff if they expect staff to care for patients.

3.  Do I have the respect of my peers?

It is often said that the essence of leadership is the ability to influence the thoughts and behaviors of others.  To achieve influence, leaders must be respected.  Respect by one’s peers is something that needs to be earned.  In a leadership role, you will be given formal authority but will need respect to win the hearts and souls of your followers.

4.  Do I demonstrate emotional intelligence?

While it has always been important for leaders to be knowledgeable about their work, the importance of emotional intelligence in leadership is now considered to be equally important.  Emotional intelligence (EQ) can be described as self-mastery or the ability to understand and control what we feel (our emotions) and the way we act (our response to these emotions).  It is about self-awareness, self-management, social-awareness and relationship management.  It is also about maintaining a keen sense of awareness of the emotions of others.  This is not always easy to do in high stress environments but leaders with a high EQ are more effective.

5.  Can I create a vision that lends direction to the work of the team?

Members of high performance teams want to be led by leaders who have a clear sense of direction in their work.  Cohn and Moran describe visionary leaders as “good storytellers who are capable of weaving together interesting connections”.  In nursing, this vision should include the ability to see the connections in the system of care rather than simply focusing on the impact on one unit or department.

6.  Do I have good judgement?

Good judgement means that leaders are able to make good decisions.  We know how important critical thinking and the ability to respond rapidly to crisis situations are in clinical settings.  These same traits are important when making leadership decisions.  Although good decision making may sound simple enough, the origins of how and why people make the decisions that they do is often very complex.  For nurse leaders, good decision making is the ability to zero in on what is important in a situation and take decisive action in a timely manner.

7.  Do I have the courage to face conflict?

Conflict is an inevitable part of work-life and this is especially true in health care settings where the level of stress can be very high.  Being a leader means being on the frontline of those conflicts.  If you are like many nurses, you may tend to avoid conflict.  Avoiding conflict can lead to the escalation of problems.  Leaders need to learn to confront conflict directly and develop strategies to effectively mediate conflict.

8.  Am I a Self-Starter?

In a staff nurse role, your day is often drive by the many tasks that need to be done to care for patients.  Nurse leaders have considerable responsibility and accountability but their time is not structured in the same way as it is in a staff position.  For many new nurse leaders, this is one of the most difficult parts of the transition to a leadership role.  To accomplish your goals, you must not only be organized but you will also need to be a self-starter who tackles the issues that are presented.  You cannot expect to always wait for direction from those higher in authority.

9.  Can I stay positive and resilient in a changing environment?

Health care today is in a constant state of change.  This is a global phenomena and is unlikely to change.  Nurse leaders must be able to live with the ambiguity that inevitably occurs when there are rapid changes in the environment.  There are often not clear cut answers to questions that staff and patients may have about the future.  The ability to remain positive and keep your team focused on the mission and goals of the organization are critical skills.

10.  Do I have a passion for nursing and can I inspire that passion in others?

A leader’s passion or drive is important because it creates positive energy.  Nurse leaders should be professional advocates.  They also need to look for ways to inspire their team.  Marcus Buckingham in his well-respected book ,First Break all the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers do Differently, outlining research with 80,000 managers observed that great leaders are able to find what is unique in each of their employees and help them to use their gifts to do great things.

 

Knowing When to Leave

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When I was growing up, my mother often told me to be sure to leave the party before I was asked to.  Although the advice she gave was meant to be applied in social situations, it is equally applicable for our professional endeavors.  There are times in everyone’s career when it is time to move on either to a different position or to retirement.  Quitting can be very challenging because it does involve many losses.  This is because we spend almost as much time at work as at home.  Nurse leaders are usually very invested in their work even when things are not going well.

Whenever one of my graduate students calls me for advice in this area, I advise them to write down the pros and cons of their current position.  This can be a very helpful as a first step in assessment.  There are times when the cons may far outweigh the pros, making the decision easier.  Ask what if anything you could modify in your current position to keep you more engaged.  The following questions can also serve to guide you in your decision making:

 

  1. Have I become negative or unhappy about my job?– It is important to assess your personal feeling about your job.  Have your professional concerns spilled over into your personal life.  Your job may be negatively impacting both your health and relationships with friends and family.
  2. Am I still passionate about the work that I am doing?– You will want to consider whether you are still passionate about your work. In asking yourself this question, you may find that you are no longer passionate about the work and have begun to feel burned out.  As we age, it also makes sense to consider our energy level and whether we can sustain the pace that may demanded in our role.
  3. Is this organization still a good cultural fit for me? – Whether we like it or not, the culture of an organization evolves over time in response to leadership changes and environmental pressures.  You may no longer feel a congruence between your values and that of the leadership that you work with.
  4. Are my ideas being heard or have I lost influence?– Chemistry is important on teams.  When leadership changes, you may discover that your opinions are not as valued as they once were.  For some leaders, the first sign that it is time to leave may be when they discover that they are being left out of key decision making meetings.      
  5. Is my pay today commensurate with my responsibilities?– No one wants to feel undervalued for their work.  In organizations today, leaders often find themselves taking on additional responsibilities with no increase in salary.  They may also learn that their organization is paying a higher salary to newer members of the team with less experience.
  6. Are my skills being utilized to the fullest?– Self-development is important to work satisfaction.  All of us want to continue to grow in our work through stretch assignments and unique development opportunities.  If this is not happening, you may feel your career is stalled.

The decision to leave a position can take courage.  Most leaders err on the side of waiting too long.  If you do decide to leave, planning is key.  It is always easier to seek a position, (unless retirement is the next step) while you are still employed.  Once they do make a decision, my experience is that most leaders tell me that they only wish they had done it sooner.

 

Negotiating Salary for Leadership Roles

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Leadership One of the most difficult parts of applying for that first leadership role can be negotiating your salary.  I recently had a student ask me what she should do if the salary offered was less than what she thought she was worth.  I have found in my research that one of the factors that lead staff nurses to reject nurse leader roles is the realization that they will make less money.  With a few overtime shifts and shift differentials, the salary of many staff nurses exceeds that of their manager.  With the incredible responsibilities placed on managers and work weeks that easily exceed 40 hours, it is not surprising that many capable staff nurses say no to leadership roles.  Many health-care agencies are struggling with this issue.  But the bigger question for the individual nurse who seeks a leadership role especially for the first time is what is a fair salary for the work.

Salary should not be your only criteria

There are many things to consider in the salary negotiation/acceptance process.  I have personally never turned down a job strictly on the basis of salary.  The opportunity needs to be evaluated within the context of your long-range career goals.  Beginning nurse leader salaries are often not commensurate with the responsibilities but as one climbs the career ladder, senior nurse leaders are often very well compensated for their work.  It is important to ask yourself what you can learn in this job, how well will you be supported and will the organization pay for your leadership development.  Full tuition reimbursement for a graduate program might be a key factor in a beginning leadership role.  A bigger contribution to a 401K or stock options could more compensate for a lower starting salary.

Learn to negotiate – In most organizations, nurse leader salaries are negotiable so learning how to negotiate is important.  Some key points from the health-care experts that I have spoken with on this topic include the following:

 Let them know that you are interested – it can be frustrating when candidates have no real interest in the position but continue to negotiate for salary, get what they ask for and then say no.  Be authentic about your intentions in the job search.

Don’t give an immediate answer to salary offer  – give yourself time to think and reflect on it.  Asking for as specific time-frame to think about and consider the offer can send a very powerful message.

Know the market value of the position – it is important to do some due diligence as to what comparable positions pay in your community.  In the case of my student, she had done this and told me that the offer was almost $8000 less than the lower end of the scale in her community.

 Speak to the value/contributions that you will make in the role and to the organization – be very clear about your value and contributions and what you can bring to the role that will help the organization to achieve better outcomes.  If it is your first role, speak about the depth of your clinical experience, ability to engage with others, focus on customer satisfaction and passion for excellence.  Talk about the energy that you will bring to the job and the skill sets that you already have.

Ask for the offer in writing – any unwillingness on the part of an organization to do this is a red flag.  Having the terms in writing will avoid misunderstandings at a later point in time.

Recognize when you need to say no – sometimes you will not achieve your goals in salary negotiation and feel the offer is well below what you are worth.  It can be very disempowering to start in a role and not feel good about your compensation. Employers may offer to revisit the offer in six months but HR experts advise that your best opportunity for negotiating a salary is at the time of the initial interview. You may need to say no if you find yourself in this situation.

Whatever you do in the negotiation process, always maintain a professional demeanor.  If you do receive an offer even if it is below what you expected, it means that someone is demonstrating confidence in your abilities. And if  you can’t successfully negotiate a salary that is acceptable to you, always be very gracious, thank the employer for the opportunity and don’t burn your bridges.

 

Why would Nurses want to be Led by You?

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Nurses Why would anyone want to be led by you?  That is a question that nurse leaders rarely ask themselves.  If leaders are brutally honest in reflecting on their own strengths and weaknesses, they can probably find many reasons why nurses might not want to be led by them.  Developing yourself as a leader is a process.   You can and will make lots of mistakes.  Reflective questions like this one are important to help you frame your leadership journey so you become the kind of nurse leader that no one wants to leave.

What do Followers want in a Leader?

Successful leaders are unable to achieve goals without inspired and motivated followers.  We have all probably observed nurses who have been placed into leadership positions and had the formal title of leader but are not successful in capturing the heart and soul of those they lead.  John Maxwell in his book 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership makes the important point that leadership is above all the ability to influence others.  We know from research is that key qualities that nurses look for the in their leaders include:

  • A commitment to excellence
  • Passion about their work
  • A clear vision and strategic focus
  • Trustworthy
  • Respectful
  • Accessible
  • Empathetic and caring
  • A commitment to developing others

Seeking Feedback from Followers

So how am I doing?  This is a pretty brave question to put out there to your followers when you are not sure what the response will be.  The only way that you will learn and grow as a leader is to ask your followers to give you feedback about what you could do differently.  Here are four good questions to ask your followers for feedback about your leadership style, communication and performance:

What should I keep doing as a leader?

What should I do more of as a leader?

What should I do less of as leader?

What should I stop doing as a leader?

If you receive enough feedback, you will see the trends in what you currently do well and where you need to improve.  The key here is to take the feedback and try to use it in a constructive way instead of trying to justify why you do what you do.  Leadership does not happen in a vacuum.  Goffee and Jones from the Harvard Business School who study followership offer good advice.  They point out that successful leaders are those that are able to modify their behavior to respond their followers  and the circumstances while simultaneously remaining true to who they are.

 

Your Professional Legacy

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Professional Legacy I often hear nurse leaders in my generation talk about the importance of their legacy.  They want to leave their mark on the world and be remembered for their work.  Some seek a tangible symbol of something they have left behind such as a scholarship in their name or a book they write.  In today’s rapidly changing world, there are no guarantees that your ideas will remain relevant into the future.  John Maxwell in his book The h21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership noted that ” Our ability as leaders will not be measured by the buildings we built, the institutions we established, or what our team accomplished during our tenure. You and I will be judged by how well the people we invested in carried on after we are gone.”  Ultimately, legacy is about an investment in those will carry the work on.

In their international best selling book The Leadership Challenge, James Kouzes and Barry Posner identify enabling others to act as one of the five key practices of exemplary leaders.   Leaders they note can’t do it alone nor should they. Enabling others to act happens through building trust, fostering collaboration and strengthening others.  Enabling others to act should be a very intentional part of leadership but often, it is not.  Many leaders are too insecure to strengthen their teams members and worry that they could be displaced.  I often hear nurse leaders say that there is no one to pass the torch to but I have not found that to be true.  What I do see is many leaders who have the mistaken belief that there is only one torch and fail to light the torch of others.   Kouzes and Posner offer the following suggestions to enable others to act:

1.  Create a climate of trust and be the first to trust others

Mutual respect and trust is what leads to organizational achievement.  Lighting the torch requires trust and a recognition that there are many different ways to accomplish goals.

2. Demonstrate genuine concern for the work of others

To enable others to act, you must recognize that work is all about relationships with others.  You want to build supportive relationships and ask what support is needed.

3.  Share your knowledge and information

Some leaders intentionally withhold important information from their team because they worry about losing power.  To enable others, you must share what you know.  To do otherwise is to sabotage and undermine team efforts.  The interesting outcome is that the most powerful leaders are also often the most generous with their time and knowledge.

4.  Structure projects to promote teamwork

Most leadership accomplishments are the outcome of a team effort.  To enable others, you need to structure work so that it promotes teamwork and not team dysfunction.  The ability to work effectively on teams is a skill that future leaders need and increasingly, these teams should be interdisciplinary.

5.   Foster self-confidence

In my work with Generation Y nurses, I have found that there is a real fear of failure among this group.  It is important for current leaders to promote realistic self-confidence with constructive feedback.

6.  Build a culture of accountability

Despite whatever happens with health reform, one aspect of the leadership role will never change and that is the need to accept accountability.  Harry Truman often said “the buck stops here”.  Effective leaders don’t duck the accountability and responsibility even when the outcomes are not good.

7.  Adopt the role of coach

Sports coaches know that they will not be out on the field playing the game – they need to light the torch of their team members so they can perform at their highest level.  Ask two simple questions – What can I do to help you get the most out of this experience?  and What can I do to help you to sharpen your talents and strengthen your skills?

8. Structure roles to allow latitude and growth

In every role, there should be an opportunity to grow one’s leadership skills.  You need to identify for staff how they can do this within the context of their work.  It might be participation on a unit council, task force or committee.  It may be serving as a preceptor or chairing a community event.

Kouzes and Posner  in their discussions about leadership legacy make a strong case for leaders to think beyond their own achievements and to appreciate that others will inherit what we leave behind.  They recommend that we ask, “What can I do to ensure that their experience will be better than mine?    It all begins with recognizing that for most of us, our true leadership legacy will be what invested in others.

 

Nurse Character Traits – How Important are They?

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Nursing I welcome you to this short but insightful read on Important Nurse Character traits.

Reading this piece to the end will equip you with the attributes the best nurses have and how these aided their successful careers.

Specifically, we’ll shed light on:

The important qualities of successful nurses

The organizational skills of good nurses

The soft skills great nurses possess

Overview of Nurse Character Trait

If a nurse wants to be recognized and respected in the medical field, they must possess some traits to make them stand out.

In this article, we will cover just what those traits are and why they’re necessary.

When you’re looking for a new job or thinking about advancing your career, it’s important to know which traits are needed to suit the job functions.

There are many different responsibilities a nurse must fulfill during their day-to-day activities, making some traits more obvious than others.

However, do you know what traits make an excellent nurse?

You will find out here!

Below are some important characteristics of distinguished and renowned healthcare professionals:

Empathy

Empathy is when you put yourself in another person’s shoes; you want to see an issue from their perspective.

A good nurse will put herself in her patient’s condition to know how they feel.

When a patient rings you, they shouldn’t wait endlessly without getting the needed attention.

It doesn’t matter if you attend to other patients; the patient will feel neglected and unloved.

Such a treatment has adverse effects on the psychology of the patient.

A good nurse will stop momentarily and assure the patient that help is on the way.

The statement will make the patient feel relaxed and loved; it makes them understand that you’re preparing quality care for them.

Most patients are vulnerable, and you’ll need empathy to accurately predict and meet their needs.

Please don’t assume that a patient understands that you’re busy and will soon attend to them.

You don’t know what the patient is going or has gone through.

Fortunately, empathy is a character trait nursing students can learn while in nursing school.

Most educators emphasize empathy during nursing education because they know how indispensable it has been since the days of Florence Nightingale.

Effective Communication Skills

One of the qualities of a good nurse is the ability to communicate effectively.

Registered nurses liaise between patients, doctors, physicians, and family members.

They also collect and relay essential data to stakeholders.

The healthcare industry is a highly delicate field; many things will be affected when you make errors.

Some common errors caused by communication deficiency include failure to list life-threatening allergies in a patient’s chart, wrong transcription of medical orders, and missing information on discharge papers.

These errors inflict unnecessary pain on their victims.

Your written and spoken communication skills must be articulate.

You also use communication skills to build therapeutic relationships with your patients.

Experienced registered nurses will tell you how they healed some of their patients with reasonable utterances and positive body language.

You can make patients more relaxed and willing to open up through your communication skills.

Healthcare providers can perform their job better and improve patient outcomes when communication flows freely among stakeholders.

Patients panic when they don’t have enough information about their illness.

They may be resistant to care and make difficult decisions about their health instead of asking questions that make them appear uninformed.

Please don’t assume that a patient doesn’t need a piece of information; tell them everything they need to know.

Let them know about their health status.

Be courteous in your communication and make the healing process enjoyable for the patient.

You’ll quickly build trust when you proactively communicate with patients.

Healthcare providers need this skill in their daily interactions with colleagues, patients, and relatives.

Critical Thinking Skills

It is the ability to assess situations and reach an objective and logical conclusion.

Critical thinking helps healthcare providers interpret data, troubleshoot demanding clinical scenarios accurately, and prioritize patient care.

Your decision-making skills must be accurate and objective.

You should think critically and own up to your actions in every situation.

You’ll be easily overwhelmed by high-pressure situations if you can’t think objectively and make far-reaching decisions.

Critical thinkers prevent burnout, attend to issues based on their merits, and ensure stability in the work environment.

If you’re not a critical thinker, learn this skill before going far in your nursing career.

It’s one of the character traits of the best nurses.

Problem Solving Skills

The ability and willingness to solve other people’s problems is known as compassion.

It is the cornerstone of nursing and makes all the difference in patients’ lives.

Patients should see you as kind, caring, patient, and gentle.

It will help if you devise strategies to solve problems in unexpected scenarios.

If you help an angry mother combs her hair before the arrival of visitors, she will feel you are compassionate and helpful.

A good nurse will allow grieving couples to mourn at their pace instead of taking them out of it. Let everyone that comes to you feel helped and relieved.

All these character traits are essential to your success in the nursing profession.

It’s a highly-regulated sector, and these traits will help you play according to the rules.

You can learn all the skills we discussed in this article.

You shouldn’t feel lazy about them because they distinguish between a failed and a successful nurse.

A nurse without a good character will be a nightmare to patients and colleagues.

Bad behavior affects competency.

Keep working hard to distinguish yourself from the rest!

 

Nursing Cover Letter: How to Make it Outstanding in 2023

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Cover letter Hello and welcome to our guide on writing and polishing your nursing cover letter for your job application.

Stick with us to the end of the article, and we guarantee you will be able to put together a cover letter that can push you in the direction of your dream job.

In this article, we will cover the following topics:

  1. What is a nursing cover letter?
  2. What are the parts of a nursing cover letter?

Without further delay, let’s uncover top nursing cover letter tricks and tips!

The cover letter is a letter to the hiring manager or person in charge of choosing the hire amongst the applicants for a job opening.

The perfect cover letter allows the receiver to envision you in the new job as part of their nursing staff, helping them understand that you are an excellent technical and cultural fit at the healthcare institution.

In this letter, you speak to the hiring manager to explain why you are an excellent fit for the job.

Where the resume covers the objective skills that the applicant must have, the cover letter offers a peek into the personality and thinking process of the candidate.

Sometimes, it could also act as a tie-breaker document if there are many applicants and only one or a few open positions.

In any situation, you should take advantage of the opportunity and create a registered nurse cover letter that will change your mind and lead you to the job you want.

If you have written a letter meant for the post before, you should be familiar with the typical letter template.

The nursing cover letter, similar to cover letters made for other industries, has the following parts:

Header

The header includes the address of the hiring manager and their contact information and ends with today’s date.

Include the address of the recruiter‘s office and phone number.

Salutation

Also called the greeting, here is where you address the person who is meant to read this letter – the hiring manager who determines if you get the job or not.

Ideally, you will have the name and designation of the hiring manager and use that for your salutation – if you do not have a name, it is good to do some research about the hiring team and find a name you can safely address.

It would be best if you only used “Dear Hiring Manager” – which can come off as a bit impersonal – when you do not have any name you can address to.

Introduction

The opening paragraph is dedicated to introducing yourself to the hiring manager.

The first paragraph of any letter is critical to grab the attention of your reader, but in the case of cover letters, it’s fine just to state your name, your current position (or school if you are a fresh entry-level graduate), and the position of interest.

If you started with a different career before nursing or have an unexplained gap in your resume, the cover letter is a great place to address this issue briefly.

You can quickly address any misconceptions and questions your resume may have raised.

The person in charge of hiring will appreciate this transparency.

Key Experiences and Qualifications

Give a quick rundown of your work history and the nursing skills due to these years of experience.

Since you have the resume to talk about your hard skills, take this opportunity to talk about soft skills that are extremely important for working in a nursing position, like:

  • patient care,
  • problem-solving,
  • communication skills,
  • teamwork, and more.

You can use this portion to show off the hiring manager’s strengths in their team.

No matter your expertise and department, if you are in pediatric or oncology or work in the ICU, relating your soft skills to your experience thus far can help visualize your capabilities and additions to the team.

If you have a specific accomplishment relevant to the position, you might want to tell that story quickly and what the achievement meant for your previous team.

This is especially helpful for entry-level applicants who might not have much experience to show off just yet.

Career Goals

This section can talk about how your professional and personal goals align with the institution’s own vision and mission.

Show that you have done your research and due diligence about the team and institution and that you can contribute to their continuing success.

You can share some of your future goals – becoming a nurse practitioner in the run of your career, for example – to show that you are dedicated to your mission and are an excellent fit for the organization.

Closing

A fundamental way to close the cover letter is to explain how everything you have mentioned makes you the ideal candidate for the position.

You should reiterate your interest in the role and express your openness to the next steps of the application process.

This helps establish your enthusiasm and readiness to work and learn from the team – but do not overdo it as it may look unprofessional.

Toward the end, you can thank the hiring manager for their time and consideration of your application, and you look forward to furthering communication.

 

Struggling to Define Caring in Correctional Nursing

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Correctional Nurses Correctional nurses face a daily struggle to care for their patients while delivering much-needed healthcare in a restricted environment. How can correctional nurses truly care for and care about their patient population? This is a question many of us in the specialty deeply consider as we try to elevate the professional status of correctional nursing. Caring has been described as the essence of professional nursing practice, therefore we must establish the characteristics of this concept as it is carried out in the criminal justice system.

Weiskopf studied nurses’ experience of caring for incarcerated patients and discovered a number of limitations in our setting .  Nurses in this study described the need to negotiate boundaries between the culture of caring and the culture of custody to establish relationships with custody staff in order to be effective. One interesting finding of the study was the extent to which the negative attitudes and behaviors of other correctional nursing staff affected nurses who were attempting to provide compassionate nursing care.

Many nurses working behind bars feel an obligation to care and often struggle to find ways to do this in a security environment not primarily healthcare-focused. Yet, developing a structure and process for caring may be the core defining characteristic of our specialty. Here are some suggested ways nurses exemplify caring behaviors in corrections:

  • Educating patients about their health conditions and self-care principles
  • Maintaining a nurse-patient relationship that is within the helpful zone of professional boundaries
  • Advocating for the health care needs of a patient when necessary
  • Showing compassion and respect
  • Being non-judgmental
  • Listening to what the patient is saying
  • Following up – doing what you say you will do

Correctional nurses are confronted daily with an organizational culture convinced that we should not be caring ‘too much’ for our patients. Caring for justice-involved individuals often takes courage and perseverance, and perhaps a more serious definition of caring than the superficial application of a warm positive emotional response or empathetic word. Sometimes, our caring in correctional healthcare involves ‘tough love.’

Consider these unusual ways that correctional nurses care for patients:

  • Not accepting a gift from a patient
  • Letting a patient know that you know the rules and they should not ask you to violate them
  • Asking the patient to complete a sick call request for the rash they want treated during pill line
  • Being diligent with mouth checks during pill line

All of the examples above constitute an action or activity that is helpful for the patient; whether it avoids penalties, provides boundaries, or prevents self-harm. Caring seeks the best for the other in any situation.

 

Tips For Writing Your Nursing Cover Letter

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Cover Letter Some people are more intimidated by the cover letter than the resume.

Here are some cover letter tips to help you make a great first impression and pre-interview with your potential employer.

Remember you are writing to a person

A letter is something that you address to another person.

You must tailor your letter to the hiring manager for the posting.

You should not be robotic as if you are writing for a program that scans for it.

You should do one thing before you start writing to learn more about the person you are writing to.

Do your research on the manager’s position, role, specializations, and values.

You may be able to find some of their pages and blog posts, which could reveal something unique to them.

Find a way to play to their interests subtly – but even if your research comes across as evident, you may be praised for your diligence and paying attention to the entire application process.

Try using a cover letter builder

Technology has taken us to the point where you can use websites to put together parts of your resume and pump out a decent cover letter.

If you’re stuck with your writing and need some inspiration, free online cover letter builders can help you keep the process moving.

They may even have some nursing cover letter examples for you to check out and consider as you are trying to finish your document.

However, it is not advisable to take these letters at face value – you should always read, check, and improve the writing of the resulting cover letter.

Note that since others may be using the same resume builder as you, there’s a high chance that your cover letters may look and read in a similar manner – which is not a good look.

Always check and personalize any cover letters you submit during your job search.

Check spelling and grammar

Unlike the resume, which comprises bullet points that are carefully organized to tell the story of your experience and qualifications, cover letters depend on your writing and communication skills.

It reveals how you write, which may indicate how you speak, how you relate with other people, and how you think critically.

A simple spell check and reread can catch any errors that could throw off your potential employer.

Conclusion

All application processes may not require the nursing cover letter, but it’s a great way to connect with the hiring manager on a human level and explain who you are as a registered nurse and as a person.

The resume and cover letter go hand in hand in painting a picture of your character to a team that has not met you yet.

It is ideal for making a good and robust impression through your cover letter, which adds to your credibility as a reliable nurse and desirable addition to the team.