Pediatric Nurse

What is a Pediatric Nurse?

The following responsibilities are common for Pediatric Nurses:

• Identifies any changes in a child’ symptoms and intervenes when necessary
• Maintains confidentiality and privacy between the patient and themselves
• Analyzes and anticipates and problems or issues in the patients status
• Evaluates child for any signs of neglect or abuse
• Provides supportive care to children and family of patient

A Day In The Life

Pediatric nurses give assistance and care to ailing or injured children.  They work as part of a healthcare team that includes physicians, nurses and other healthcare professionals to assess, plan and provide care for the child that may be suffering from a varying degree of illnesses or injuries.  Their specialized training allows them to provide young patients and their families with both emotional support and medical care.

These individuals have a multitude of daily tasks.  Their responsibilities vary greatly and are different depending on the patient and the patients needs.  They will take care of the children before and after any operations and surgeries that the child may need.  As well as administering any medication that child may need, including medications, blood transfusions or IV fluids.  They also spend the majority of their day monitoring the patients by taking their blood pressure, temperature, pulse and resperations.

Typical Work Schedule

Most of the pediatric nurses follow a full-time working schedule for 8 – 12 hours 5 days a week. They usually have to rotate around shifts in order to provide care around the clock including weekends and evenings. Accordingly, the job can get more stressful compared to most other jobs and does not provide much space to maintain life/work balance. However, some nurses working in community services organizations may follow more traditional working hours. In addition, working in clinics or private offices will generally restrict the working hours to daytime only although recently more pediatric sites are offering extended evening and weekend hours.

Projected Job Growth

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment of registered nurses in general, including pediatric nurses, is expected to increase by 7 % from 2019 to 2029. This is higher than the average growth for all other jobs during the same period. There are currently around 22 nurses per 100,000 children representing around 13% of all registered nurses. There is actually shortage of available nurses in general and pediatric nurses in particular in the country. Specializing in pediatric nursing and gaining the necessary certifications will likely provide job security because pediatric nurses are highly sought by many employers and different children hospitals making this job quite rewarding.

Gaining experience and having enough credentials in a high demand area like pediatrics can give you an edge in finding a rewarding position in this career. Additionally, you may consider working in rural and medically underserved areas which is usually more financially rewarding.

Typical Employers

According to the Institute of Pediatric Nursing, the most common employer for pediatric nurses are primary care outpatient clinics where around 50% of them are working. They can also work in subspecialty clinics and hospitals. Additionally, you may also choose to work in schools and home care providing support to children with disabilities or special needs. Another option is to work in academia where you develop new methods and guidelines for nursing.

Career Progression