NURSING AS A CAREER CHOICE IN NIGERIA

NURSING AS A CAREER CHOICE IN NIGERIABYREV. SR. MARY. JOY ORGU M.Sc, PGDE, B.Sc, RN, R.M, PRINCIPAL, SCHOOL OF NURSING AMAIGBO, IMO STATEANDUNEGBU, MAGNUS CHUKWUDUZIEM.MNLA.MLIS, B.Sc/ed, NDLS, LIBRARIAN, SCHOOL OF NURSING AMAIGBO, IMO STATEINTRODUCTIONIn Nigeria today, there exist a variety of career opportunities that offer individuals their means of livelihood. Career is the aggregate of one's working positions and experiences in one's life. It amounts to a number of jobs or occupations a person engages in during the person's working life.Iwuama (1999) sees career choice as a developmental process spanning almost throughout a person's life time and it is one the most complex and important decisions one has to make in one's life time. Career choice therefore is the process whereby an individual makes up his mind in favour of a particular career at a given time after due consideration for other alternatives career. Hence there is need for care in choosing one's career. Choosing a career is like choosing a life partner in view of their implications for one's happiness or otherwise in future. It is not a trial and error exercise. Unagha (2008) quoting Holland states that Career choice constitutes selection of a career out of several existing careers. Such selection is influenced by such factors as interest, societal perception, gender and other factors that influence career choice. The planning and readiness for a career is one of the most pressing developmental tasks of an adolescent. In the past, one had to work based on the professions of the parents, and consequently, career choice appeared to be ‘hereditary'. Children learnt work skills from parents and had little or no say in the choice of career. Be that as it may, Otto, 1989 maintains that due to the changing nature of learning and work, career education and guidance is now assuming more importance on the public agenda than ever before. In the same vein, a structure has emerged in which education and employments are to a large degree mutually dependent; one works to learn, one learns to work. They depend on each other. In Nigeria, at present, it is pertinent to note that career choice is still not well guided. Thus, career guidance and counseling in schools is usually done in haphazard manner. Many a time, the youth make choices based on the influence of peer group, culture and religion, model, family socio-economic status, needs, values and prestige attached to it. Prestige in this context includes both the material, monetary, social, psychological, rewards/benefits and satisfaction got from a situation or position (Iwuama 1999).The number of career choices are increasing and can be overwhelming for high school students. Nursing is a career that is being recognized in Nigeria. It is a multifaceted profession with a great deal of opportunity for growth and development. Some misconceptions about the field may be that nursing is very traditional, is virtuous and caring, and is only for women. The reality of nursing is very different. Nursing is the largest health care occupation today. To this end, it should be re-emphasized that choosing a career in essence is a decision on a path of personal development and fulfillment. It should be done with the utmost caution and guidance especially in view of its consequential implications in one's future life – socially, psychologically, physically and economically. REASONS TO CHOOSE NURSING AS A CAREERVariety of Roles:People usually think of nurses as working in hospitals. A large percentage of nurses are employed in hospitals, but the number of nurses in other settings is increasing. Nurses work in many community settings such as clinics, health departments, physician's offices, outreach programmes, and even institutions, industries, factories and schools. Educational settings include public primary schools, colleges and universities, and community programmes. For the nurse who likes independence and individual contact with patients and families, homecare is also a growing field. Occupational health nurses ensure that health care is available to the employees of various businesses and industries. Nurses work for insurance companies to review benefit claims. Some nurses work for pharmaceutical companies to get information on new drugs to health care providers and patients. More nurses are working on research to improve healthcare practice. Even in the hospital, nurses are becoming more specialized in their practice area as advances in medicine redefine healthcare.Skills Involved:Nursing has grown into an exciting and demanding profession that is heavily dependent on knowledge of health sciences (anatomy, biology, physics, genetics and chemistry) and behavioural sciences (psychology and sociology). Nurses use a variety of skills such as caring, prioritizing, organizing, leading, communicating, researching and teaching. Many changes in healthcare policies and law are influenced and supported by nurses. Basic nursing skills such as wound care and Intra-Venous (IVs) require good hand-eye-coordination. Unagha (2008) sees occupational satisfaction as opportunity to use ones own ideas, freedom in working out one's own method of doing things, feeling of personal achievement and opportunity to make full use of one's knowledge and experience. According to Umar (2006), Nurses are known as caring people whose focus, understanding, is on helping others, there is a deep and rewarding joy in caring for people. However in order to care for others effectively, nurses must first know how to care for themselves and this seems to be a simple enough truth. Caring for oneself in order to be able to care for others more effectively is not only common sense but also, a psychological principle that is even found in scriptures. You are encouraged to love your neighbour as yourself. To Tijani and Aneni (2009) caring includes or reflects, compassionate attitudes and feelings of the care givers towards the client as they perform tasks that are essence of caring. They further identified some of these dimensions of caring through creative nursing, research as knowing, being with, doing for, enabling and maintaining belief. The nurse can provide caring care by virtue of a caring consciousness that pervades her practice. Kozier, Erb, Berman and Snyder (2004) describe caring as the moral ideal of nursing; it involves the will to care, the intent to care, and caring actions. Caring actions include communication, positive regard, support or physical interventions by the nurse.  Job Security:Many jobs have come and gone as scientific advances in medicine have changed the way things are done. Nursing as a profession has been in existence since the 1800's and is continuing to grow and change. Nursing profession has been experiencing more registered nurses now than before. The rate is expected to continue as the demand for registered nurses increases.  As the general population increases so does the population of Registered Nurses (RN's). The increasing age of the registered nurses population will result in the retirements and positions that need to be filled. The Occupational Outlook Handbook (2004) predicts that registered nursing jobs will have more jobs created in the future than any other occupation. Iwuama (1999) adds that security factors include, earning high enough for a reasonable standard of living, no unusual hazards to health or health dangers, assured steady income and certainty of continuous employment. Flexibility:A career in nursing typically allows for flexibility in working hours. The need for nurses who work part time, full time, or only occasionally is common in healthcare settings. Many employers have a variety of shifts which need to be covered by nurses. Nurses also have flexibility in the setting or area they work. Nursing is a profession that also allows for a lot of variety in terms of lifestyle. If you are interested in regular hours during the week, an outpatient clinic may be the setting for you. If you hate mornings and like days for yourself, working afternoons and evenings may be what you are seeking. If you have always wanted to travel and see the world, the opportunities in travel nursing give you that chance. In this aspect social rewards are involved. According to Iwuama (1999), there are satisfactions to be gained from helping people.Job Satisfaction:Job satisfaction is important when considering career. Many people find nursing to be a satisfying career. The satisfaction comes from more than just having the knowledge and skills to help others. The variety of opportunities presented by nursing provides satisfaction. Nurses are in a unique position to move between settings while continuing to work with similar health issues and are in a position to make beneficial changes in health care and people's lives. Although many people come into the profession because their parents or relations are in overseas and therefore when they finish their training they will join them there and be earning enough money from their work places. Unagha (2008) asserts that salary or income will be above the average of the community; work requiring intelligence rather than the physical strength and work that will be recognized in one's business circle. According to Leddy and Pepper (1998) job satisfaction is also an issue causing high rates of nurses. Higher level of satisfaction could also be attributed to the fact that nurses have higher opportunity of controlling their workday. Nursing, a traditionally female dominated profession, is becoming more diversified.  This is because nurses care for a wide variety of people, they are exposed to a variety of cultures through co-workers, patients and educational opportunities. Many employers are seeking RNs from diverse backgrounds to enrich the work place.Variety of Education Entry LevelsThe nursing profession allows for several levels of education and training prior to licensure. In some parts of the country, diploma graduates complete three years with a particular hospital, delivering direct patient care as they learn the sciences needed to successfully become a licensed Registered Nurse. RN degree programs prepare the student for direct patient care roles. Bachelor of Science degree (B.Sc) programs generally take five years to complete the program. These programs are located in colleges and universities. Bachelor Programmes (B.Sc or BNS) provide information on both theories and practice of nursing. These programs provide students with the opportunity to learn direct care such as utilization of research, basic management, and leadership. Nurses with Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Nursing Science can work in direct patient care and also in entry level management and leadership positions. A Bachelor Degree is also required to enter a Masters Degree Program. Nurses with Masters Degree are found in leadership roles, educational roles and more independent roles such as nurse practitioners and nurse researchers. Many nursing schools are developing programs and working in collaboration with Colleges and Universities to allow nurses to move through the educational process from RN to bachelor's degree. This is in line with Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria reform of 2005. The collaborative roles allows for greater opportunity in pursing education for the RN. CONCLUSIONCould nursing be the career choice for you? It is possible that you may find that nursing is something you would like to do because of the variety of opportunities, skills utilized, job security, flexibility, job satisfaction, diversity and variety of education levels for entry into the profession. Nursing is a multifaceted profession with a great deal of opportunity for growth and experiences.REFERENCES Iwuama, B.C (1999), Career Information: A Blue Print for all. Owerri: Joe Mankpa Publisher. Kozier. B, Erb. G, Berman. A, and Synder. S, (2004) Fundamentals of Nursing: Concepts, Process and Practice. (7th ed), New Jersey. Pearson Prentice Hall Leddy, S. and Pepper, M.J. (1998) Conceptual Bases of Professional Nursing, Philadelphia, Lippincott Raven PublishersOccupational Outlook Handbook (2004-2005 ed). (2004), Indianapolis,  JIST Publishing. Otto, L.B (1989), How to Help your Child Choice a Career. Florida; State Department of Education (ERIC document reproduction services No ED336 506) "Reforms in Nursing  Education" (2005) Nursing Digest, Monthly ed.3 Nov. 2007. Umar, M. (2006) "The Application of Holistic Care for the Caregiver in the area of practice" In West African Journal of Nursing. Vol. 17, No.1, May. Unagha (2008) Some Career Variables Influencing Choice of Library and Information Science in South-East and South-South Zone of Nigeria. (Ph.D Thesis, University of Uyo, 2008). Why This Career Choice. Available at http://www.urbanlibraries.Org/IMLS/5pdf. Accessed 17/8/09.