“Are you trying to question my orders”? Mr. Fred said with his hands folded against his chest.
“No sir, I don’t mean to…” Vanessa had barely finished her statement when Mrs. Fred cut her short.
“Don’t be silly little girl, we might not be your parents but we want the best for you, you are to study nursing after high school, the earlier you make up your mind, the better for you” Mrs. Fred said, picked up her car keys on the dining table and left the house walking past Vanessa and almost pushing her down.
Vanessa didn’t want to be a nurse, no that’s not it, she doesn’t even know what to study, she is practically clueless and that was why her guardians had to choose nursing for her.
“Okay now, where do I start,” she thought, slumping on the red sofa just behind her.
She has always wanted to go to the university but it never occurred to her that she was to choose a field of study, all thanks to her rural village school.
She decided to meet the lady ‘living next door to see if she could help her explain what nursing as a field of study entails.
“Good day ma” she greeted when she got to her neighbor's place.
“Hello Vanessa, good day, how are you”? She said still looking in the mirror on her hand.
“I am okay, please aunty you attend a university right”? She asked with all curiousness.
“Emm...Yes, why” this time Nora was looking at her to understand why she would be asking such questions.
“aunty please, what nursing science “? She asked.
Now, Nora dropped the mirror in her hand and called Vanessa to sit by her side.
“I am a nursing student” she started and paused to see the reaction on Vanessa’s face. Her eyes glittered and she truly anticipated hearing the rest of the things she has to say.
“Nursing as a field of study is an elementary science; it deals with healthcare systems, healthcare policy, and general improvement on the patient, family, and community wellbeing health-wise. Nursing science is a basis for professionalism while practicing nursing.” Nora started while Vanessa was glued on her sit with her hand supporting her chin as she tried to understand.
“Nursing science comprises of two major aspects, the theoretical and practical aspect of it.
Nursing science as a field of study is a course offered in all levels of tertiary institutions, ranging from universities to schools of health.
One can pursue various levels of nursing degrees which include:
Associate Degree in Nursing –AND
Bachelor of Science in Nursing – BSN
Master of Science in Nursing – MSN
“And how long does it take to acquire all these?” Vanessa asked not wanting to spend so much time before becoming a nurse already.
“Well, it takes 6 years approximately to obtain a doctorate in nursing, an ADN will take like 2 years to be completed, a BSN will take 4 years but if one already has an ADN certificate then it might take at most 2 years, then if you have an ADN or BSN, getting an MSN will take 1year+ or 2years.
“Aunty, please what exactly do nurses do?”
Nora smiled.
“Well, as a nurse, what I and other nurses do are quite a lot but basically, we take care of patients, we educate them on how they can take care of themselves too, how they could stay healthy and prevent contracting some diseases, and we nurses also rescue our patients, we want to see the survive and become healthy again”.
“wow, so I would begin to save people’s life and become a superhero like a superman?” Vanessa said, raising her shoulder with pride with excitement written all over her.
Nora couldn’t help but imagine how a 16-year-old could be so naïve.
“poor girl,” she thought and let out a smile.
“Will I only be working in the Hospital”? she asked again.
“oh yes. You will be working in the hospital although you can also set up a private firm, you could work as an emergency nurse, maternity nurse, public health nurse, school nurse, operating room nurse, travel nurse, home health nurse, and lots more, there are so much Job opportunities for nurses everywhere.
“Okay ma’am, I offered sciences in high school, asides from chemistry, biology, and physics, what other course do I need?”
“well, with the English language, you are good to go, and again, you will need to be good at effective communication if you must scale as a nurse, because you will be working with thousands of patients throughout your lifetime and you need to relate well with people to care for them enough”
Nora made to stand up from her seat, it was 2 p.m. and her group discussion starts at 3 pm.
Vanessa grabbed her hand, “one last question aunty Nora, who should become a nurse”
“if you have the passion to save lives, you could become a nurse, you just need to be smart, strong, and have empathy for people, again, having a good relatable character will help you thrive with taking absolute care of your patients”
“Thank you, aunty, now I will go tell my guardians that I love them for choosing a wonderful course for me,” she said and left.
Writer Details:Odiga Judith
Location:University Of Nigeria,Enugu State,Nigeria🇳🇬
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