Top Psychological Traits That Make Great Nurses
Photo by Patty Brito on Unsplash
Nursing is as much a calling as it is a career choice. Some people with great patience, compassion, and emotional strength just seem made for the role. While clinical skills are essential, how you think, feel, and respond in high-pressure situations largely determines whether nursing is a good fit for you. If you’re considering a career in care, here are some of the top psychological attributes that should come naturally.
Empathy
As a nurse, you’ll interact with people who are sick, scared, and in pain. Making them feel seen and understood can help ease their suffering. That’s why empathy is undoubtedly one of the most valuable qualities you can have in this role. If you’re the kind of person who can pick up on other people’s emotions and put yourself in other people’s shoes, this is a positive sign. If you’re considering coming to nursing from another field, you may be interested to look into flexible options like accelerated BSN programs for non nurses online.
Emotional Resilience
In a nursing career, you’ll witness people’s most poignant moments, including births, deaths, life-changing injuries, and miraculous recoveries. You’ll be with patients experiencing pure joy, utter despair, and everything in between, often in the same day. There are also the long hours, and emotional resilience is essential to survive in this environment. This doesn’t mean becoming numb to feelings, but you need to know how to cope when things get tough.
Strong Communication Skills
To be a good nurse, you must be a great communicator. You’ll be required to explain things to patients and their families in a clear, calm way that can be easily understood, bearing in mind they may be distressed at the time. Listening without judgment is just as important. If you can ask the right questions, put people at ease, and make them feel heard, that’s a big part of what nursing is all about.
Attention to Detail
In nursing, a missed note, a wrong dose, or a skipped step can be the difference between life or death. While that sounds ominous, being detail-oriented isn’t about being perfect or never making mistakes. Rather, it means staying alert, double-checking your work, not being afraid to ask questions, and paying close attention even when your department is chaotically busy.
Team Mentality
Nurses are part of a healthcare team that includes other nurses, doctors, support staff, and patients’ families. Being able to work well with others is critical. If you’ve ever been praised for being flexible, dependable, and a great team player, these are all things that would help you in a career as a nurse.
Endnote
For many patients and their loved ones, nurses are superheroes in scrubs. While that may be true, nurses are also normal, everyday people with a particular set of skills and personal attributes. You don’t need to be fearless, flawless, or experienced. However, if you’re empathetic, resilient, and have a good head on your shoulders, you’ve already got the foundation necessary to become a fantastic nurse.
