Roles & Responsibilities of a Nurse

1. Caregiver/ Care provider – the traditional and most essential role

• functions as nurturer, comforter, provider
• “mothering actions” of the nurse
• provides direct care and promotes comfort of client
• activities involves knowledge and sensitivity to what matters and what is important to clients
• shows concern for client welfare and acceptance of the client as a person

2. Teacher – provides information and helps the client to learn or acquire new knowledge and technical skills

• encourages compliance with prescribed therapy.
• promotes healthy lifestyle
• interprets information to the client

3. Counselor- helps client to recognize and cope with stressful psychologic or social problems; to develop an improve interpersonal relationships and to promote personal growth

• provides emotional, intellectual to and psychologic support
• focuses on helping a client to develop new attitudes, feelings and behaviors rather than promoting intellectual growth.
• encourages the client to look at alternative behaviors recognize the choices and develop a sense of control.

4. Change agent- initiate changes or assist clients to make modifications in themselves or in the system of care.

5. Client advocate- involves concern for and actions in behalf of the client to bring about a change.

• promotes what is best for the client, ensuring that the client’s needs are met and protecting the client’s right.
• provides explanation in clients language and support clients decisions.

6. Manager – makes decisions, coordinates activities of others, allocate resources, evaluate care and personnel

• plans, give direction, develop staff, monitors operations, give the rewards fairly and represents both staff and administrations as needed .

7. Researcher – participates in identifying significant researchable problems

• participates in scientific investigation and must be a consumer of research findings
• must be aware of the research process, language of research, a sensitive to issues related to protecting the rights of human subjects.

Expanded role of the nurse:

1 Clinical Specialists- is a nurse who has completed a master’s degree in specialty and has considerable clinical expertise in that specialty. She provides expert care to individuals, participates in educating health care professionals and ancillary, acts as a clinical consultant and participates in research.
2. Nurse Practitioner- is a nurse who has completed either as certificate program or a master’s degree in a specialty and is also certified by the appropriate specialty organization. She is skilled at making nursing assessments, performing P. E., counseling, teaching and treating minor and self- limiting illness.

3. Nurse-midwife- a nurse who has completed a program in midwifery; provides prenatal and postnatal care and delivers babies to woman with uncomplicated pregnancies.

4. Nurse anesthetist- a nurse who completed the course of study in an anesthesia school and carries out pre-operative status of clients.

5. Nurse Educator- A nurse usually with advanced degree, who beaches in clinical or educational settings, teaches theoretical knowledge, clinical skills and conduct research.

6. Nurse Entrepreneur- a nurse who has an advanced degree, and manages health-related business.

7. Nurse administrator- a nurse who functions at various levels of management in health settings; responsible for the management and administration of resources and personnel involved in giving patient care.