Our strengths are the things we are most affective in. They are usually what we are known best for. Too often in nursing we forget to acknowledge our own skills that make us great. I think the ability to recognize our own strengths can help us to overcome our weakness. There are some of my individual strengths that I would like to share with other people.
Communication is an essential to all nursing roles and in all nursing settings. I think that I have good and effective communication skills. This means that I can easily communicate with patients, their family members and other health providers. I do show respect and great interest in my patients concerns during their recovery time, listen to them, and always provide clear and useful information during their discharge time.
Respect goes a long way. I am a very respectful person. I respect patients’ wishes, traditions, and cultures. I always show an interest in their cultural and religious background by asking questions about the traditional food, holistic medicine and health beliefs. I also respect nurses and other health professionals.
Nursing is a stressful job. Keeping my head cool in crisis and having a calm attitude always helps me to stay focused in almost any emergency events. I have the ability to respond quickly and effectively in emergency situations. In the recovery room, I must always be prepared for the unexpected because things can go wrong very quickly.
Last but not least, I am very detail-oriented person. I pay a great attention to details and very careful not to skip steps and not to make errors especially in our profession. I think even a simple mistake can trigger a big tragedy. In my working place, I must document everything I do on patients’ charts, listen closely to a patients’ description of symptoms, ask the right questions, and administer medications at the correct time. Attention to details can literally be the difference between life and death. Therefore, being detail oriented is crucial for all nurses.
