Why You Should Attend Nursing Events and Seminars Busy shifts, patient care, paperwork and emergencies makes every nurse’s life so busy that there is absolutely no time to continue learning. Getting past the cliché “monkey see, monkey do” is useful in jobs that are less impactful. Given that your job directly influences health outcomes of patients under your care, it is a mandatory requirement that you are aware of recent developments in the field of nursing and medicine. Seminars and events provide a useful opportunity to get hold of new information. But, is this all that seminars and events do? Can you derive more career changing benefits merely by acing your attendance scores at such events? Here is a list of benefits.. 1) Medical updates: Our understanding of health and disease is in a state of constant flux and so it is not surprising that the norms of yesterday are more passé today. Diagnostic criteria change, management algorithms change, age old drugs seem to make way for new ones and there is always something that can be done better to improve diagnosis and recovery of patients. The internet can feed you updates but it is not often that such updates interest you more than Instagram and Whatsapp! 2) Networking: Yes, attending events rekindles nostalgic moments when you meet your school buddies, ex colleagues and frenemies. This is also a huge opportunity to find out which hospitals are hiring, what skills they are looking for, which specialty of nursing is showing a boom and which fellowship you should chase! Interacting with attendees and organizers gives you additional information that never gets communicated. Stay clear of gossip and rumours that may also use the same mode of transmission! 3) Courses, fellowship and further learning: Academic events are perfect to get first-hand information about additional courses that you may be interested in. Information on social networking sites and the like may not paint the right picture all the time, but it is worth the effort to find out more before deciding to take the proverbial leap. 4) Career fairs: Annual events have booths and kiosks specific to employment opportunities. You will need to do the dipstick test to find out your worth in the cluttered yet competitive market. Why pass on a free opportunity? 5) New technologies: Healthcare is becoming increasingly dependant on devices and automation. Learning the practical pearls of using new devices/ technologies is definitely useful. Why not leverage your attendance at such events to try out these new simulations? Being updated on new developments gives you the edge in the rat race of competition. 6) Jail Break: Yes, this is a relevant reason to attend events as your brain needs a reboot once in a while to size up new updates. Busy and repetitive shifts can make your work boring and changes help rejuvenate your brain and focus. Who knows, you may end up performing much better with a well deserved break from monotony. 7) It’s the new norm: With the healthcare system trying to evolve itself in becoming more outcome-based and efficient in functioning, it is much imperative that the workforce is well trained and competent. Attending such events provides the management an economical option when getting nurses trained on relevant updates. The hospital may also want you to attend these events.
Annual congresses and similar events are much more than the gathering of parties. You will have to leverage opportunities here to improve your chances for a better role, better patient outcomes, and yes improve healthcare! Please follow us on Facebook, Linkedin, Pinterest and Twitter