What does a nurse educator do?

Answer 1

A nurse educator teaches nursing students how to become a nurse. Some of the things involved follow:

• Drawing blood
• Changing bedding
• Administering medications
• Assessing pain
• Working with doctors

Answer 2

Nurse Educators working in nursing schools or in hospitals with students often must start with very basic information, and systematically teach nursing principles and protocols to build and shape a student's beginning body of knowledge. In addition, Nurse Educators teach nursing values and ethics, and serve as direct role models throughout the student's return demonstrations of nursing skills. A nurse in the position of Educator must possess a substantial body of knowledge and experience, as well as know where and how to quickly check for up to date information. Besides just 'teaching', they inspire nurses to be better nurses and more professional practitioners.

By way of examples:

Classroom Activities

Classroom Nurse Educators bring years of experience into book learning. Classes are not just about pouring facts into nursing students' minds, but to teach them to think and act like a nurse, as their 'first nature'.

Most older nurses vividly remember learning from doing nursing tasks on the proxy real-life doll-patient called Mrs. Chase. Though an article "Remembering Mrs. Chase" by Eleanor Krohn Herrmann, EdD, RN, FAAN, only describes Mrs. Chase's adult-size mannequin lifespan from 1910 to 1981, Mrs. Chase was still in use in 1983 when I graduated school. Under our instructors' keen observations and timely interventions, my classmates and I learned how to 'speak to', touch, wash, perform range of motion, and do complete-assist transfers with Mrs. Chase. I hear there are now Sim-Men® for students' ministrations, but Mrs. Chase was still our finest first patient and patient 'instructor'.

Nurse Educators also teach more technical roles, such as using microscopes with perfected lab protocols to identify--well, everything 'microscopic'. Our 2 to 4 hour lab sessions were packed with highly detailed information which we truly were expected to know, inside and out. The attention to detail from our lab experiences helped tremendously when learning other technical nursing skills, such as how to read an EKG and how to interpret cardiac enzyme shifts. (I recall my shock when our nursing instructors informed me that I had the first perfect test score for interpreting EKGs; they hung my test on the wall in the hallway outside their offices for everyone to see. I went into that test all nerves, certain I would fail ! Instead, I put myself back into the classroom and tried to 'hear' my instructors' teachings-- and I aced the test!)

Student nurses are under the watchful eyes of Nurse Educators during rotations through many specialty areas of the hospital and when on general med-surg units. Every skilled nurse action performed for the first time on a living patient includes a Nurse Educator observing, guiding, correcting and helping if needed. Student Nurses are graded on these Return Demonstrations and on the student's written Care Plans and Patient Charting. Throughout, Nurse Educators dispense knowledge and experience intended to promote a stronger, more mature student nurse capable of entering the work force as a Graduate Nurse and a Registered Nurse after sitting for the Board Exams.

Nurse Educators guide and provide educational and supportive 'counseling' to students who struggle-- which nearly every student will go through at least once during school. While instructors must weed out students who do not demonstrate the knowledge or skills to advance through a nursing program or degree, Nurse Educators also help strengthen competencies in more successful nursing students so they can continue through an arduous learning process. Nurses must 'know what we know' (and know when to seek help from Nurse Educators or other resources) before caring for patients on our own.

Hospital and Facility Settings

Nurse Educators are not relegated to classrooms only. They work within hospitals and other facilities to provide managerial oversight and education to Registered Nurses. Besides in-services, an R.N. can contact a Nurse Educator-Manager whenever the nurse is unsure about performing a skill. Nursing is so broad that sometimes certain tasks are not frequently performed. A nurse is required to know his/her strengths and deficits and contact someone with more knowledge for procedures the nurse has not done recently. Nurse Educators will also help a struggling new R.N. to polish skills and professionalism so patients are not put at risk. When an R.N. has an "incident report" in which the nurse displayed sub-par nursing skills, a Nurse Educator will certainly be part of the nurse's remedial corrective plan.

Nursing as Educators

At their best, schools and universities offering nursing degrees teach student nurses how to also act as educators. Registered Nurses 'teach' every day on a variety of topics, whether to patients, families, or peer nurses. In programs where student nurses learn the value of teaching, students begin to understand how a Nurse Educator serves as a vast resource in nursing settings. After completing a BSN, many Registered Nurses seek a Masters and Ph.D. to become Nurse Educators themselves.

At every level, everyday nursing involves nurses educating others. However, Nurse Educators take their knowledge, skills, and experience to the finest levels as recognized degreed "Nurse Educators".

See also : Herrmann, E. (1981). Mrs. Chase: A noble and enduring figure. American Journal of Nursing, 81:10, 1836.

Answer 3

To provide accurate medical advice since they have advanced degrees in medicine compared to the patient who probably doesn't have advanced medical training.

Answer 4

Educates the public on how to eat right and the effects of nutrition on the body's health.