Pediatric nurses have many roles. They help children and their families
cope with illness, promote health and prevent sickness. Pediatric nurses assist
physicians during treatments and exams, administer medications, and assess
and record symptoms and patient progress.
"You have to like people and be willing to always learn and teach. Enter
each day with the commitment your patients deserve," says Roger Sanders, director
of nursing for a hospital in Greensboro, North Carolina.
These nurses can work in hospitals, private offices or home health-care
agencies. They can work in well-lit medical facilities or a small child's
bedroom. They may work a 9-to-5 shift or they may have to work nights and
weekends.
"Just because my hours are 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. doesn't mean that I'm able
to leave at 7 a.m. If a child is unstable or if I have to do paperwork, I
need to stay until I am completely finished with my work," says Corey Fritz,
a pediatric nurse in Atlanta.
The nursing profession is stressful -- both physically and emotionally.
Children and their families may be extremely distraught. Pediatric nurses
also face some physical hazards -- including the risk of contracting anything
from a simple cold to hepatitis.
"As was said at my graduation, the job of a nurse is more dangerous than
a police officer's. There are many diseases that are out there, only a finger
stick away, such as HIV and hepatitis," says Fritz.