Nurse Writer in a Nutshell
By: Seethal Sara Thomas, FNP-BC
Nursing is a profession built on ethical principles and skilled training. The ethical principles include autonomy, beneficence, justice, and non-maleficence. More have been suggested over the years, but these are the founding four. In brief, these principles are a responsibility given to nurses to safely let patients make their own decisions, promote goodness, avoid harm, and treat all patients fairly and equally [1]. These principles paired with the skills to assess and critically think are why nurses are at the forefront of patient education. In 2023, a global analytics and advisory firm using public opinion survey for research, Gallup, has found for the 21st year in a row that nursing is the most trusted profession [2]. As nurses continue their education into advanced degrees; writing, research, and leadership are additional skills engrained in the training and used in daily practice.
Nurses are the backbone of the health system and have a lot to offer in the world of writing. Nurses have opportunities to gain expertise in multiple specialties throughout their career and work with many different types of people. Nurses are lifelong learners and have a strong foundation in science to be able to provide care in several diverse specialties. Working in different healthcare institutions and with multidisciplinary teams gives nurses unique, firsthand insights and knowledge. In a nurse, you have an expert who is repeatedly in various parts of the health process and can bring together pieces of the pie to give the reader better understanding.
Substantial writing skills are baked into the nursing profession. Nurses need to provide organized and clear verbal and often written instructions to their patients. Offering professional recommendations comes with diligent research and astute ability to assess a patient’s need. To do this a nurse needs to know how to connect and communicate with various people and teams as well as advocate for any changes they believe will benefit their client. Further robust training is acquired in writing, research, and leadership for advanced practice nurses, but this is all structured from nursing fundamentals.
To describe a real-life example, I’ll tell you a little about myself. I have been in the healthcare environment since I was in 8th grade, but my professional nursing experience accumulates to about 8 years. My specialty fields are orthopedics, primary and urgent care, and neurosurgery. Topics that I am specifically interested in researching and writing about include: AI in healthcare, remote health and heath tracking, and mental health and wellness. Previously, I have prepared research presentations, patient-facing education materials, and orientation training guides. I continue to create written material to help create digestible, accurate, and engaging content.
If you’d like to know more about nurses as writers or my skillset, I encourage you to contact me.
References:
[1] Haddad LM, Geiger RA. Nursing Ethical Considerations. [Updated 2023 Aug 14]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2023 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK526054/
[2] Brenan, M. (2023, January 24). Nurses retain top ethics rating in U.S., but below 2020 high. Gallup.com. https://news.gallup.com/poll/467804/nurses-retain-top-ethics-ratingbelow-2020-high.aspx