Nurses And Nursing Continuing Education
Michalis "BIG Mike" Kotzakolios
Kotzakoliou, SSA

Many people assume that once a nurse has finished her education and become registered, then that’s it, she doesn’t have to bother with any more learning, she just gets on with looking after patients and soothing fevered brows.

Nothing could be further from the truth, a nurse ensuring her nursing continuing education is kept updated is very important, and is an integral part of maintaining her registration.

A nurse’s life in the 21st century is very fast paced. As medicine and surgical procedures advances and improves, it is her duty to ensure she keeps to the forefront of any major changes and improvements. This can be very difficult especially when she is working very long hours on the wards and clinics. And ensuring her nursing continuing education is kept updated is easier said than done.

A good hospital will ensure they provide everything needed for nurses to continue their nursing continuing education. They should also ensure the education and training a registered nurse needs is provided free of charge. This ensures a lack of funds does not prevent any registered nurse from using the excuse that they could not afford to access the education needed for their nursing continuing education.

Buying nursing periodicals and magazines are an excellent way for registered nurses to keep up to date with their nursing continuing education. Proving they have read articles in relevant journals is essential though.

The best way they can achieve this proof is by keeping a portfolio in which they can document all the training and education they have received since their registration. If they write a synopsis of the article in the nursing journal they have read, and make a comment of what they have learnt from reading the article, they are then showing proof of their commitment to their ongoing nursing continuing education.

One problem with accessing some types of further education is the expense. Nursing is not one of the better paid professions, and for many people higher levels of qualifications such as a degree are often out of reach purely because the nurse cannot afford to access the courses. This type of nursing continuing education should become more accessible to nurses, with perhaps the employer funding courses for the registered nurses in their employ.