Advantages of Being a Nurse

We nurses have opportunities that are rare in other professions. The benefits which we receive are not easily measured, nor are they limited to our paychecks and employer’s benefit packages.

LPN Career Benefits

LPN's are able to enter into professional careers much faster than people who choose many other job paths. Many facilities offer tuition reimbursement for LPN's who want to further their careers. A good salary may be earned while obtaining more education.

Many health care employers offer well rounded, substantial, benefit packages which LPN's may take advantage of. Most facilities and agencies offer health, and life insurance. Some offer short and long term disability packages. Paid sick leave, vacation time, and personal leave is offered by most health care employers. Some employers offer discounted gym and day care facility opportunities. Employers may offer discounts for community services, uniforms, and retirement plans. The dollar amount of a benefit package may add thousands of dollars to a compensation plan for LPN's.

Flexibility for Life, Family, and Work

LPN's are able to choose work schedules which meet their needs. When my children were little, I worked the night shift so that I could be home and available when the children got home from school.

Few careers offer the flexibility to work part time and per diem. Nursing is one of the few professions which consistently offer benefits packages to part time employees.

Being nurses, we may choose to work in a great variety of settings. Some of us provide home health care. Others work in doctor’s offices, hospitals, or extended care facilities. We work with people of all ages. Our tasks vary greatly as well. We may focus on disease prevention and health care promotion, or rehabilitation. We are fortunate to have so many career options. If we tire of one type of nursing, we have the opportunity to choose vastly different opportunities to explore.

Meaningful Work

The benefits of nursing are much more than the personal, strictly job related career benefits. We are privileged people who have the opportunity to comfort people; whether their distress is physical, emotional, mental or spiritual. As nurses, we share humanity’s most intimate moments. It may be in the form of assisting young parents to care with a child with special health needs, or participating in a bedside vigil with the family of a dying patient.

We nurses are powerful people. Our keen powers of perception are used to promote comfort and relieve strife. Many times we are gifted with the privilege of seeing rapid results of our caring actions. The true benefits of nursing are felt in our minds and hearts.

A patient’s statements of “I am glad that you are my nurse today” or “I feel much more comfortable since you put my pillow in that position” are benefits which heal the patient and warm our hearts as nurses.

Our work is not meaningless repetition. It is challenging, hard work which is often exhausting and frustrating. Yet, we have the satisfaction of knowing that our work and very presence is important. We empower our patients.

Nursing professionals are a tightly knit group of people.  We comfort each other and pick each other up when the stresses of care giving are overwhelming. I consider it an honor to be part of the nursing family.

Greater Gifts

As nurses we know suffering. We are fully aware of how precious each moment of life is. We learn to live well.

Nurses are grateful people. Some people only learn about these essential spiritual qualities from traditions of worship. We learn compassion, love, peace and more by performing our daily work.

Nurses are constantly reminded of the necessity of valuing the dignity and worth of every person. As a result, we become better people. Our souls are healed. We develop communication skills and open hearts which make us more loving members of our own families. We become tolerant, and appreciate the diversity of all of the people on this earth. Perhaps that is the biggest benefit of being nurses. We become more caring, and honorable people. See the nursing core values.