Emergency nursing is a specialized field of the nursing profession. In this field, nurses are equipped and trained to deal with patients in critical phase of their illness and injury. Emergency room nurses are capable of treating patients in this phase without any or complete diagnosis.

Emergency room nurses are used to fast paced environment. Since the emergency department of a hospital, is usually overcrowded emergency room nurses can be seen multitasking to balance and prioritize patients and their time. How dangerous is it to be working in a hospital?

With increasing reports of emergency department violence, emergency nurses are placed among police officers and other peace officers. The Massachusetts Bureau of Labor Statistics reported more than 4.000 health care professionals to experience verbal and physical assault while working in the ER (2005).

Different steps are being undertaken to address the escalating umber of violence experienced by emergency room staff. Legislations in increasing the penalty for perpetrators are awaiting decision from the Assembly. Various programs and trainings to resolve violence are commencing in hospitals and other health care institutions.

So what else is dangerous about being an emergency nurse?

According to the International Hazard Datasheets on Occupation as released by the International Labour Organization, there are seven main dangers emergency nurses can be exposed to.

1. Emergency room nurses, as part of their responsibilities; cleans, disinfects and sterilize medical equipment. They may be exposed to agents that may damage the skin, mucous membranes and respiratory system.
2. Emergency room nurses can also be exposed to anesthetic gases, drugs and radiation.
3. Emergency room nurses may be injured by shard objects like needles, blades and other similar objects.
4. They may contact with hot surfaces, faulty electrical equipment and may cause skin burns.
5. Sick patients in the emergency room present a risk of infection from body fluids.
6. Emergency room nurses may suffer from musculoskeletal problems and back pains due to handling heavy patients. Continuous work while standing and walking may cause fatigue and leg problems.
7. Emergency room nurses also may suffer from stress and burnout caused by shift and night work and by other psychological and organization factors.

The Emergency Nurses Association recognizes the increasing number of emergency nurses experiencing stress. The emergency care environment can be very stressful and physically and emotionally traumatic for the health care workers and nurses.

ENA recognizes the following contributing factors in the increasing stress levels of emergency room nurses.

1. Critical incidents that can cause strong emotion and may interfere with the ability to perform the duties. Incidents like mass casualties, disasters, unexpected death of a child or co-worker can be attributing factors.
2. Long term demands can also be a stressor. Long work hours, job insecurity, poor communication and an increased potential for a workplace violence fall under this factor.

ENA sees that unresolved issue of stress can result into absenteeism, sleep disorders, burn out, emotional difficulties and health problems.

So how can these repercussions be avoided?

International Labor Organization (ILO) provided several pointers to keep the emergency department safe for the emergency room health workers. Nurses should comply with all safety instructions and conduct periodic inspection of electrical medical equipment. Keeping all passages clearly visible and uncluttered is also another tip. Following appropriate procedures in infection control and handling and disposing sharp objects is necessary.

To resolve the stress emergency nurses are experiencing, ENA supports the development and utilization of critical incident stress management. ENA also supports the use of personal stress management strategies like relaxation, meditation, exercise, group therapy, guided imagery, massage or humor therapy.

ENA also recognizes the impact of workplace violence and the need for a program which would include education, prevention, appropriate security measures, identification of incidents, reporting and protocols.

Emergency nurses have a very rewarding job and at the same a dangerous one. These are all the sacrifices they have to put up the serve the people.

Forensic nursing is a continuously developing and growing branch of nursing and health care. It could be considered a branch of the judicial system as well since it tackles evidence collection, which is critical to specific criminal cases. Associations that help forensic nurses like the American Nurses Association (ANA) and the International Association of Forensic Nurses (IAFN) help promote the practice and assist their members through the publication of forensic nursing journals.

There is one official journal of the IAFN, which it calls Journal of Forensic Nursing. This comes out on a quarterly basis and is distributed among the members of the association.

The main goal of this journal is to help in the advancement of the science of forensic nursing by sharing information about so many cases related to forensics that have been handled by experienced forensic professionals. This journal includes manuscripts that serve as a rich source of knowledge for beginners or even those who have already started their careers.

These manuscripts are submitted by the members and extensively reviewed by the board before they get published. This is to make sure that the information will truly benefit the members who will read them and refer to them when they need to. The requirement for a manuscript to see publication is for it to be original and has never been published yet.

There are also certain guidelines to follow for those who wish to have their work included in the journal. All the details including the photographs, tables, and references should strictly conform to the standards set by the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.

Forensic nursing, which has gained momentum in 1992, is the practice of applying nursing science to legal proceedings. Forensic nurses provide health care services directly to patients who are victims of violent crimes. They also assist people in treating trauma and in handling death, or abuse of any kind.

Forensic nurses deal with the following cases:

• Domestic violence
• Sexual assault
• Abuse or neglect of child or elderly
• Psychological abuse
• Human trafficking
• Occult- or religious-related violence
• Forensic mental or psychiatric health
• Nursing in correctional establishments
• Legal nurse consultations
• Automobile or pedestrian accidents
• Suicide attempt
• Work-related injuries
• Disasters
• Administration of patient care
• Service accidents/injuries
• Check for environmental hazards
• Detect drug or alcohol abuse
• Check illegal abortion
• Tissue and organ donations or charity
• Homicide cases
• Suicide cases
• Suspicious deaths

IAFN and their plans

Since IAFN is an international organization, members to this association are scattered around the world. The organization doesn’t only include forensic nurses as members, but also other professionals who provide support and complement the work of the forensic nurses.

The organization has initiated the journals to reach its goal of disseminating information about the science and its growing number of practitioners. As the leader in the development of forensic nursing, the IAFN holds the following goals close to their principles:

• Try to prevent violence as much as possible by helping solve crimes faster
• Make improvements on the current standards in terms of evidence collection and forensic nursing practice per se
• Promote sharing of information within the professional circle to help each other grown in the practice
• Establish ethics in the practice of forensic nursing
• Educate the up and coming forensic nurses

These goals are all aligned in the forensic nursing journals that are being published to develop forensic nursing in the United States as well as in other countries around the world.

Those who decide to pursue a career in the medical field as a Nursing Assistant set out to show compassion and help others. Their hearts are in the right place, but they may soon find their minds and bodies suffering from burnout. This is the result of continually feeling like you can’t meet your work requirements. Soon you find you are completely drained and exhausted due to feeling overwhelmed. Often, the result is losing the motivation that lead you to take on that role in the first place.

The role of a Nursing Assistant is a demanding one. One of the biggest complaints from them is that they have too much to do, and not enough time to get it all done. Burnout is dangerous because it affects individuals emotionally, physically, and mentally. It is tough to see bright, compassionate Nursing Assistants leave the medical field because they have come to resent the role they have taken on. It no longer serves a purpose for them. What was once a positive experience has become a nightmare.

The stress of burnout on a Nursing Assistant can lead to problems with their health as well as lead to depression. Often, they either quit their job or they are fired. This leads to financial difficulties and many times issues in their relationships. Nursing Assistants report burnout in their profession is common because they are overworked, unappreciated, confused about work expectations and priorities, worry about job security, they are overwhelmed by the number of responsibilities, and they do not feel their pay is sufficient for the amount of duties that they are required to perform on an ongoing basis.

It is important that Nursing Assistants understand burnout, and the havoc it can reap in their professional and personal life. Understanding what burnout is, why it happens, and the signs of it can help Nursing Assistants deal with the situation before it spirals out of control. The first step in avoiding burnout is to take care of yourself physically and emotionally.

Signs you are experiencing job burnout or soon will be include no longer finding enjoyment in areas of your job you once really liked, becoming cynical or bitter about your job, and you are starting to experience problems in relationships with co-workers, friends or family as a result of the conflicts of your job.

Other important signs to watch for are looking for excuses to not go to work, calling off or asking to go home early on a regular basis, becoming easily annoyed with co-workers, envious of those who do enjoy their work, and not caring if you do a good job or not. It is likely you will start to experience physical and emotional exhaustion.

Being a Nursing Assistant can be stressful. However, stress and burnout are different. They are often confused because they signs and symptoms of the two are very similar. The defining factor is stress comes and goes, so the signs and symptoms do as well. With burnout, the feeling doesn’t go away, so the signs and symptoms linger ongoing.

As a Nursing Assistant, you can’t eliminate stress, but you can help control and reduce the effects of it. It is important to get plenty of rest and take care of yourself. Since most of us stretch ourselves too thin with too many commitments, see if there are areas you can cut back in. If you have solutions to issues at work, write them down. Ask to meet with your supervisor. Explain the problems, then offer solutions. This will show that you are interested in resolving the issues rather than just complaining.

It is very important to take time for yourself. Relax with a warm bath or read a good book. Too often we take care of everyone else’s needs at work and at home, leaving nothing of ourselves for us! Since the healthcare profession is the top contender for employees suffering from burnout, Nursing Assistants need to really take head of this advice and put it to good use early on in their career. This will help ensure they continue to enjoy their work, offering patients the best possible care.

Travel nursing is becoming one of the fastest growing professions nowadays. This is no surprise since this career offers good-sized pay while you are given the opportunity to travel and see new places while practicing your profession. If you are a licensed nurse who loves to travel and takes pleasure in new experiences, then this is the job that fits you.

Travel nursing allows you to stay on vacation for two to six months in free lavish accommodations while at the same time earning top dollars in hourly wages. But despite all these advantages, some travel nurses shied away from the traveling profession because of bad experiences to some traveling nurses recruiters like they are being underpaid or they have been deprived from benefits.

Also, many travel nurses have complained because of inadequate housing or recruiters who were not pro employees. This has resulted to nurses jumping from one recruiter or agency to another.

With this issue, it is important to choose the right traveling nurses recruiters that are willing to help nurses find their desired job locations, compensation, and good benefits. So how can you actually find the right travel nurse recruiter? Because recruiters and agencies are the keeper of the keys for travel nurses, they should be able to offer lucrative and exotic travel assignments.

Traveling nurses recruiters have contracted with healthcare facilities across the country to provide qualified and experienced nurses within their medical facilities. This normally lasts for a 13 week assignments. With many travel nurse positions to fill, recruiters are required to attract qualified nurses to fill these needs.

In this situation, since you are in demand, you will be offered with good benefits. With the tight competition among the travel nursing agencies, the perks are always upgraded so as to lure you and encourage you to work stay with them.

But you see, it is not just the benefits that are upgraded but more importantly the service that they are going to offer you. You play a great role for all traveling nurses recruiters. You are their lifeblood since without you, they will not exist.

So what are the vital factors to be considered in choosing traveling nurses recruiters? Well, first, it is important that you “hitch your wagon” to the winner. This is necessary since the travel company you choose will be your employer throughout your assignment.

So what is the edge of a winner? It is basically how they take care of you and assist you to all your needs. Do they listen to your personal ambitions and targets? Do they provide you with good options that you are exactly looking for?

When it comes to assessing traveling nurses recruiters and agencies, it is important to note that the real deal is on how they handle your concerns. Things just happened no matter how well you have planned your travel.

This is where you can measure up the dedication and concern of your recruiter – from handling your concerns to ensuring your welfare. This is the ultimate quality of a “keeper”. Make some background check to know the reputation of your prospect recruiter.

Ask those who have already gone thru this recruiter, ask the company for references from travelers who have already been with them, and ask how was their experience with them. How was the housing, basic expenses, or was the paycheck was timely? If the answers are all positive, then you have just found the traveling nurse recruiter that you need.