How to Calm Your Patient’s Pre-Surgery Anxiety?

Feeling anxious before surgery is common for patients, as they start to feel nervous and restless, even if it is not their first time going under the knife. Anxious patients suffer from symptom like – 

• Irregular heartbeat
• Increased blood pressure
• Nausea
• Shortness of breath
• Sleep problems

However, this anxiety is not good either for the patient as well as for the healthcare professionals. It can be worrying for patients, especially those with cardiovascular problems. It can have adverse effects on patients’ overall health and post surgery recovery.

It is usually the responsibility of a nurse to calm down the patient before surgery and ease their worries. As a nurse, you would have already studied about such situations at nursing school. However, here are a few tips for you that can help to calm down the patients.

• Be punctual - It is advised not to leave a patient waiting before the surgery. It only fuels their nerves and makes them more nervous. As a nurse, you should be on time, so that you can ease patients’ fears on time.
• Converse with patients - Make conversation with the patient before surgery. Small talk will ease their worries and help you create a therapeutic bond with them. Listen and acknowledge their concerns regarding the surgery to get to know what is really troubling them. Let them know that it is okay to be nervous and they will be well taken care. Your reassurance combined with empathy will reduce their anxiety considerably and they will calm down.
• Be informative - Many patients like to know what will happen before and during the surgery, as lack of knowledge makes them uneasy. You can provide them information and help ease their worries. Educate them about the surgery and instructions to distract them. Such information will help them de-stress and relive the anxiety.Moreover, if they are too nervous to ask questions, take initiative to inform them yourself. You can also show them relevant images or videos to educate them about the procedure.
• Use relaxation techniques - There are a variety of relaxation techniques that are used by healthcare professionals to calm patients before a surgical procedure. It includes focusing on breathing, meditation and muscle relaxation. These techniques can slow down the breathing and control the heart rate. You can use such techniques to calm your patient.
• Music therapy - To ease patients’ pre-surgery anxiety, nurses can use music. It is seen that people, who listen to relaxing music before surgery are relaxed and less nervous.

As per the nurses who are experienced in the profession, there could be more things that can calm patient’s anxiety before surgery. These things can only be learnt with practice and experience while working in a nursing facility. 

If you are a nurse and willing to pursue a rewarding career in nursing in Canada, the best way is to go for International Nursing Programs of your choice. There are Canadian nursing programs that allow nurses to study as well as work in Canada. To know your options, you can explore the nursing courses in Canada for International Nurses offered by INSCOL.

How You Decided Your Nursing Specialty?

A lot depends upon the situation, the needs, the interest and the motivation to choose the field of specialty in nursing profession. From inclination towards patient care and having a rewarding career in future to real-life lessons that inspires many, there is always something that led nurses to move ahead with their choice of nursing specialty.

On a popular website Scrubs Mag, nurses were asked to share the deciding factor that made them to choose their nursing specialty. Some stated to be destined for the profession before leaving the womb, while some others made a choice after going through strenuous life events and tried different careers before landing on their ultimate career. In this piece of blog, we would share those reasons given by nurses in their own words.

Ellen J. - “I don’t think I ever wanted to do anything else. Med/surg makes it easy to help a variety of people. I love it and have for many, many years.”

Luciana W. -“I had a miscarriage and was all alone in the hospital when I met this nurse who made such an impact on me. She took the time to talk to me. She also gave me a hug. At that moment I thought to myself, ‘I want to do the same for other people, give comfort and show compassion in the most vulnerable time of their lives.'”

Sharon H.- “I am a recovering alcoholic, and as a young, intoxicated female, I was treated pretty badly by a lot of people. When I got sober, I wanted to work with other alcoholics, and so I tried to get training as a CD counselor. Nothing worked. Every door I tried got slammed in my face, and someone kept saying, ‘Why don’t you try nursing?’ So I went to the local college and applied for their nursing program, and doors started opening right and left. In 25 years as a nurse, I have tried other fields, and I always come back to mental health. It is my home!”

Rita D. -“I donated a kidney to a friend and went into nephrology!”

Lee B. -“I always wanted to be like Mary Ellen Walton and wander around the countryside on Old Blue, seeing my patients…I have been a community nurse consultant for 21 years. I wander around the back roads of our county seeing my patients…in an old Saturn.”

Sally C. – “I was affected by a child fatality and ever since have worked in pediatric operating theaters! Making a difference, caring for children and their careers is 110 percent job satisfaction!”

Renata B. -“The hospice where my sister made her grand transition gave me the inspiration to make a transition of my own. My sweetest days come when I help a family assist a loved one cross on to that next stage.”

Selecting the field of specialty in nursing depends on individual’s choice. Just as the reasons mentioned here above of different nurses, you too might have one. You can share with us in the comments below, we will be happy to read what your story is. 

INSCOL - Opening the Doors for Nurses to Study & Work in Canada

For internationally educated nurses who are looking for options to pursue higher education along with opportunities to work in Canada either on permanent or temporary basis, INSCOL is the place to resort.

Since decades, Canada is considered as one of the most preferred destinations for healthcare professionals, nurses and aspiring medical students, as it provides numerous benefits in the form of best education system, generous laws for the immigrants and number of prospects to grow in the career. Moreover, Canada is regularly employing internationally educated nurses from around the globe These reasons has made Canada the first choice among nursing professionals, which has become one of the strongest benefit for Canada’s healthcare industry’s success.

Thus, if you are a Registered Nurse and looking for an opportunity to study and work in Canada, INSCOL in collaboration with renowned colleges of Canada offers wide range of nursing courses that aim to transform internationally educated nurses into Global nurses.These courses has been developed according to the worldwide best practices in the healthcare industry, to enhance skills equivalent to the levels of their best-trained international counterparts.

Here are the nursing courses offered by INSCOL in Canada -

Name of College	Name of the Course	Course Duration	IELTS Requirement	Intake
Niagara College, Welland Campus, Niagara	Post Graduate Certificate in RN - Critical Care Nursing	1 Year	6 Bands overall with no component less than 5.5 bands	Jan'16 May'16 Sep'15
Niagara College, Welland Campus, Niagara	Post Graduate Certificate in Palliative Care	1 Year	6 Bands overall with no component less than 5.5 band	Jan'16 May'16 Sep'15
Niagara College, Welland Campus, Niagara	Post Graduate Certificate in Gerontology	1 Year	6 Bands overall with no component less than 5.5 band	Jan'16 May'16 Sep'15
Seneca College, Markham Campus, Toronto	Post Graduate Certificate in Coronary Care Nursing	1 Year	6.5 overall with no component less than 6 band	Feb'16 May'16 Sep'15
Seneca College, Markham Campus, Toronto	Post Graduate Certificate in Nursing Leadership & Management	1 Year	6.5 overall with no component less than 6 band	Jan'16 May'16 Sep'15
Georgian College, Barrie	Acute Complex Care Post Graduate Program for Internationally Educated Nurses	1 Year	6.5 Bands overall with no component less than 6	May'16 Jan'16

To know more about these nursing courses in Canada, please visit the website http://www.inscol.com/canada/academic-courses/

What Would You Achieve By Joining a Post Graduate Coronary Care Program in Canada ?

Let’s Start by Knowing the Basics – Coronary Care

Coronary Care or commonly referred as Cardiac Nursing is one of the nursing specialty which sustains highest demand and greater scope of career growth. This field of practice involves dealing with patients suffering from different kinds of cardiovascular diseases as well as in their treatment and care. 

A coronary care nursing professional assist a cardiologist in the treatments of patients with ailments like cardiac dysrhythmia, coronary artery disease, unstable angina, stroke, high blood pressure and all other imbalances in the cardiovascular system. 

Education – To Become a Cardiac Nurse

To practice as a cardiac nurse, a four years bachelor’s degree or a three year associate degree is required. After completing the degree program, you need to clear the licensing exam in order to become a Registered Nurse. Once you become an RN, you become eligible to pursue a Post Graduate Program in Coronary Care. 

INSCOL offers EXCLUSIVE Nursing Programs in Canada for Diploma/BSc Nurses. You can enroll in a 1-year Post Graduate Program in Coronary Care through INSCOL to study in Seneca College in Toronto, Canada. 

The course aims to equip students with complete understanding of coronary care nursing and further emphasizes on gaining knowledge pertaining to various concepts such as ACS (Acute Coronary Syndrome) and Cardiac Dysrhythmias as well as the exposure to practice in acute coronary care setting. 

Job Potential & Job Options

As per the reports by Center for Disease Control, heart diseases is among the primary cause of death in USA wherein 1.5 million people are suffering from heart attacks each year.

Number of patients suffering from cardiovascular diseases is increasing at a staggering rate across the world, resulting in huge demand for nurses who specialize in coronary care nursing. To deal with this, trained nurses are needed. 

Nurses who specialize in Coronary care have a lot of job choices, they have the option to work in many different environments such as CCU (Coronary Care Units), ICU (Intensive Care Units), CVICU (Cardiovascular Intensive Care Units), operating theaters, rehab facilities and cardiac medical wards.

So, if you are thinking of a career in this field, there are lots of opportunities for career growth. All you need is to take on a specialization program like Post Graduate Program in Coronary Care, offered by INSCOL in partnership with Seneca College in Toronto, Canada.

Please Note: These courses are not available through agents and are specifically designed to widen the professional horizons for nurses and transform them into Global Nurse. 

For more information: http://www.canada.inscolacademy.com/courses/post-graduate-certificate-coronary-care-nursing/