Skills Every Pediatric Home Care Nurse Should Have

Pediatric Home Care Nurses need to possess certain hard and soft skills to succeed and give their patients the best care needed. If you are interested in becoming a Pediatric Home Care Nurse, here are seven skills you should have. 

Basic Foundation of Nursing Skills

Pediatric nurses need to have strong clinical skills when working with their patients. The responsibilities of these nurses include carrying out medical orders, administering emergency care, monitoring vitals, therapy oversight, and providing patient health assessments. Pediatric nurses are required to pass their state Nurse Certification Board Exam (CPNP-PC) before they can begin working as nurses. Through education, training, and clinical experience, aspiring pediatric nurses will be ready to provide care to medically fragile children. 

Knowledge in Childhood Development

As a pediatric nurse, you will monitor the developmental stages of your patient. Because of this, it’s important to have an understanding of childhood development as a whole so you can follow your patient’s different health milestones. Are they receiving the nutrients, exercise, and care needed? Each child grows differently, and having a general sense of their development will help alert you to changes in their medical condition. At Thrive SPC, our Pediatric Home Care Nurses celebrate all of our patients’ milestones.  

Empathy 

Pediatric Home Care Nurses care for children during a vulnerable stage that can deeply affect their patients, parents/caregivers, and other family members living in the home. Simultaneously, there are many situations where this stage could be amplified; these could include complex family dynamics, non-conventional family structures, sensitive developmental stages, and more. 

A pediatric nurse provides both clinical care and emotional care for patients. It’s important to have a genuine understanding of what medically fragile children are going through and offer support. Exhibiting empathy for patients and their families will remind them they are not alone. There are many ways to show empathy through active listening, conflict mediation, and de-escalating intense situations. 

Time Management

Pediatric Home Care Nurses have many responsibilities throughout the day from performing administrative tasks, visiting patients, and updating patient records. Nurses might also be seeing multiple patients in a short period of time. To balance all of these tasks successfully, it’s important to stay organized and manage time effectively. Checklists, spreadsheets, and flowcharts can help prioritize tasks. 

Adaptability

When working as a Pediatric Home Care Nurse, each day will be different. A nurse must be adaptable and flexible to their patient’s changing medical needs and behavior. This means modifying plans when situations change and showing patience when outcomes aren’t always positive. Nurses at Thrive SPC make a difference in their patients’ lives by offering support on a child’s bad days and celebrating good days and big milestones. 

Understanding Patient Ethics & Confidentiality

Pediatric nurses receive sensitive information regarding their patients. These records could include medical info, family info, and any other important matters. Nurses are legally obligated to share this information only with authorized parties. 

HIPAA is a standard within the medical industry, and must always be followed with patients. The law of HIPAA includes the following requirements for all nurses:

• Ensuring patients are treated fairly
• Providing patients with accurate information
• Understanding patient autonomy 
• Making decisions with the patient in mind
• Always accepting responsibility for ethical breaches

Do you have the skills needed to be a great Pediatric Home Care Nurse? Apply to Thrive SPC today.