Nursing seminars and conferences

Nursing Seminars and Conferences Some people enjoy getting away from everyday work, and attending, well, anything but work. Seminars and conferences are occasionally offered to nurses, and while many turn down the opportunity to go, they may very well be making a mistake.

Reasons to Attend a Seminar A seminar is generally a form of continuing education. That means that when you attend a seminar, you may get credit for doing so, but if not, you still get the benefit of more education and learning.

Common Nursing Seminars - Beginning a nursing career- these seminars are often offered around nursing schools and colleges. They may charge a fee to attend the seminar, however some are free of charge. These seminars are essentially a preparation course for your job search and for what to do after getting that first job. This is not a very valuable seminar if you have already received this in school. Many nursing schools end the semester by preparing you for a job search, and starting a new job.

If, however, you don’t get the opportunity to get the training through school, it may be worth a seminar to prepare you. You may get training in preparing a resume, and how to interact on an interview.

There is likely to be demonstrations, and practice interviews to prepare you for your job search. The trainings may make you more comfortable on those first interviews.

- Some nursing seminars focus on new and innovative medical topics.

These seminars can offer state of the art information, and you could receive training on new techniques or equipment, prior to others. The negative aspect of this type of seminar is there are often sales people attending as well to promote their medical products, so some of the talks may be geared toward a particular company.

- A seminar that focuses on a particular topic can be beneficial if you are working with patients that have conditions within the topic covered. A seminar on Down Syndrome could shed light on a subject many may not be aware of, or provide more information to a nurse already working with Down Syndrome patients. You may receive continuing education credits for a seminar that covers a particular subject.

Related: How to Express a Complaint or Concern

Conferences Conferences are different than seminars in most cases. This is generally a gathering of nurses that are already gainfully employed. New information will be offered in the form of trainings, but there will also be participation from attendees, you may be asked to share information based on your skills.

Common Conferences - Alzheimer’s is a common subject at conferences. It will general cover the forms of this disease and include dementia. This can be beneficial for anyone working with patients suffering from this condition. If you have tips or advice be prepared to share your information if invited to.

- Nurse Burn out is a very popular conference subject, which is understandable. This often includes a discussion among attendees, sharing ideas and thoughts on the subject.

- New and innovative medical information may be a topic of a seminar.

Although it won’t be training, you may be introduced to it prior to others that you work with.

The main benefit of a conference is the networking. It is a social gathering of nurses, sharing stories, information, and experience. It can be interesting meeting nurses from other areas, and other hospitals. Exchanging information, email address’ and phone numbers can be of great benefit should you ever search for a different employer. Knowing someone at another hospital can be a way of getting your foot in the door and getting an interview with a recommendation from a person you meet at a seminar.

Other benefits of attending a seminar is that it demonstrates your desire to further your learning, and to benefit your nursing expertise at your job.

Seminars may cover quite a bit of information you already know, there is often one or two things that you may learn or be exposed to that will be of benefit.

Related:

Recognizing the signs of Burnout

Seminars are more for training and learning purposes, and are most beneficial for new nurses. While conferences are aimed toward networking and socializing, there is a learning process included there as well. Attending either a seminar or conference can help you in your current position, or in the event that you seek employment elsewhere.

Related:

International Nurses Association

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