Nursing

What is Nursing

The field of medicine is one field that will continue to exist forever. Medicine is a need for humankind. Healthcare is a basic necessity. Similarly, in the field of medicine, nurses are the backbones of the entire sector.

There are various courses available for nursing. From diploma studies to postgraduate studies, the students have opportunities across various stages. Nursing is a career that most individuals opt for. It provides an opportunity for people to work with the health sector and help and serve people in need.  

Nursing professionals play a prominent role across hospitals and healthcare sectors. They act as the link between patients and doctors. Doctors don't perform all duties; nurses perform pre and post-operation procedures. They also assist doctors in various operations and operations.  They update charts and look after the patients.

The demand for quality of healthcare has been increasing over the years. Nursing students are given sufficient practical training during their course. They are trained to deal with problematic and high-risk cases.

Eligibility Criteria (UG & PG) of Nursing

For Nursing Undergraduates Course

The eligibility criteria for nursing students remain basic to a certain extent. These are some criteria mentioned by most colleges:

• The student should have completed 10th and 12th from a recognised board or institute.

• They should have obtained a minimum of 50% at the 10+2 level.

• The students should be from the science stream. They should have taken Biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics as their core subjects.

For Nursing Postgraduates Course

These are the eligibility criteria colleges look into during admissions:

• The applicants should have completed their 10th and 12th from a recognised board.

• The student should obtain a minimum of 50% at the 10+2 level.

• The student should get a degree in the field of medicine. They should have a B.Sc. degree.

• At the undergraduate level, the student should have obtained 55% or above.

• Entrance exams determine admissions mostly. Hence, students should focus on scoring good marks in these exams.

The common requirements that colleges specify are mentioned here. Students should refer to the college's notices before applying for the courses. 

Entrance Examinations for Nursing

All colleges and universities that provide admission to nursing students conduct entrance examinations. Entrance examinations determine the eligibility of the student to apply for the course.

Here are the entrance exams conducted for nursing:

• NEET- NEET is a national level exam conducted for all medical science students. According to the ranks obtained, the students are given admissions to various courses across colleges.

• ITM NEST- It is conducted for both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. NEST University conducts this exam.

• SAAT- SAAT is conducted as an entrance test at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.  The question paper pattern is usually in the MCQ format.

• AIIMS- AIIMS conducts its entrance exam for selecting nursing students. AIIMS is one of the top medical colleges in our country. The exam is conducted for various courses.

• CET- Common entrance exams are conducted across various states. These exams are held by state governments for various courses.

Various colleges conduct entrance exams for the nursing courses. They are conducted for both Bachelor's and Master's students. Students should have basic knowledge of the subject if they wish to write the examination.

These exams play a major role in deciding the admission of nursing students. A lot of colleges in India provide admissions based on the student's performance in these exams.

Required Skillset for Nursing

The nursing field is greatly dependent on skills. Nurses require certain skills to work in this field. Here are a few:

• Dexterity- Nurses need to have skilful hands. Since nurses have to perform various procedures that require them to be able to work well with their hands, dexterity is important. They should have stable hands and should be able to perform procedures and tests meticulously.

• Physical Stamina- Nurses work a lot more than doctors. They spend long hours at work. Most of the time, they have to stand through time-consuming operations. They are required to attend to patients regularly. For all this, they need physical strength to stand through physically exerting work.

• Strong Mental Frame- Nurses work in an environment that is constantly faced with deaths and other such negative and disappointing happenings. Nurses should be able to work in painful environments. Being the lowest in the chain, they usually hear the brunt of doctors and patients. To survive through all this, they should train themselves to have a strong mental frame.

• Presence of Mind- Most of the work in the medical field are learnt and dealt with spontaneously. Training is usually insufficient to deal with matters that arise in the fields. Nurses should have the ability to react quickly to situations. For this presence of mind is important, they must know how to deal with problematic situations. They are sometimes required to work with patients when the doctor is unavailable also. Hence, presence of mind is important.

• Medical Knowledge- Besides the training that the nurses are provided with, they should have basic medical knowledge. They should be aware of various procedures and methods in the field. This not for them to conduct operations, but so that they are prepared to deal with unexpected circumstances.

• Observational skills- The training during nursing courses is learnt mostly through observing. The nursing students are required to observe the procedures conducted and learn from them. Their entire training is based majorly on observation.

• Organisational skills- Nurses deal with a lot of responsibilities. For them to complete the work assigned to them on time, they need to be organised. They must have the ability to perform their work without making mistakes.

There are various skills that nurses require. They usually develop most of these skills during training. Those interested in taking up the course should analyse their expertise with the respective skillsets.