Bedside Nurse vs Non-Bedside Nurse: Compare & Contrast

What is bedside nursing?

In short, bedside nursing is direct patient care. Bedside nursing takes place in a range of clinical settings, such as hospitals, homes, and residential care facilities.

Bedside nursing is a common route that students take after graduating with nursing diplomas or degrees. By administering bedside care, newly registered nurses can gain valuable, high-impact experience by working directly with different doctors, patients, and cases.

What bedside care involves

Nurses who deliver bedside care have a range of duties and responsibilities, including the following:

• Assessing and recording patients’ symptoms
• Observing patients’ conditions
• Administering medicine
• Taking patients’ vitals
• Updating patients’ records
• Operating medical equipment
• Performing diagnostic tests
• Educating patients about at-home treatment plans
• Working with doctors to diagnose illness and deliver care

Nurses must possess core skills to effectively deliver bedside care and improve patient outcomes. Common bedside care skills include the following:

• Communication skills. Bedside nurses must be able to convey diagnoses and treatments to help patients through difficult illnesses. They must also be good listeners to understand patients’ needs and concerns. Additionally, nurses collaborate with doctors and other nurses to deliver care and work with families to help manage care and continue treatment at home.
• Mental/emotional skills. Nurses must be able to process and cope with the difficult situations they encounter at the bedside. Emotional resilience and compassion are key to performing in high-stress and emergency situations.
• Critical thinking skills. Bedside nurses must be able to think on their feet and quickly assess changes in a patient’s condition. They should also be able to record and analyze complex patient data to help physicians develop optimal treatment plans.
• Organizational skills. Bedside nurses may work with multiple patients at a time and should therefore be able to manage various illnesses, patient needs, and treatment plans. They must also keep patient records organized and up to date.

Bedside nursing vs. community health nursing

Future nurses, and those interested in advancing their careers, should understand the difference between bedside nursing vs. community health nursing. Each career path provides unique challenges and advantages.

While many nurses start out in bedside nursing, community health nursing can provide a fulfilling career opportunity for those looking to branch out beyond the bedside.

What is community health nursing?

Community health nursing, or public health nursing, is the practice of working with specific populations to identify health issues and educate residents about how to treat and prevent illness. Community health nurses also advocate for the health of their communities, working with healthcare providers or government programs to improve access to healthcare resources or create new programming. For example, community health nurses may help communities mitigate pollution that causes health problems or help elderly residents sign up for Medicare.

Nursing beyond the bedside

Nursing professionals may pursue roles in nursing beyond the bedside as they advance their careers and seek greater autonomy in the workplace. If they want to contribute to the medical profession on a broader scale, for example, they may decide to work for a research laboratory, a pharmaceutical company, a government organization, or an educational institution.

1. Clinical research specialist

Clinical research specialists conduct research for different medical facilities and organizations to improve patient care and outcomes. They work with their teams to build and deploy research projects and analyze and report results. A clinical research specialist should have at least a high school diploma and previous experience working in clinical research.

2. Nurse educator

Nurse educators are responsible for educating the staff of a medical facility, such as a hospital or clinic. These nurses build programs and techniques for evaluating health providers’ and administrators’ education. They may also create presentations, training manuals, and policies based on gaps in employee knowledge or updated regulations.

3. Legal nurse consultant

Legal nurse consultants work for insurance companies to maintain legal records related to medical cases, uphold compliance standards, and avoid potential legal risks. They also work with litigation teams to analyze medical records and prepare case files. Legal nurse consultants should gain RN licensure and have paralegal training or experience.

4. Nursing informatics specialist

Nursing informatics specialists manage data, implement new technology systems, and optimize digital record-keeping for healthcare facilities. Nurses in this role should have at least an associate degree or a bachelor’s degree in nursing or nursing informatics and experience in the information technology field.

5. Nurse administrator

Nurse administrators are responsible for managing operations for healthcare facilities. Their responsibility includes managing patient cases, hiring new talent, coordinating training programs, and ensuring that employees comply with company policies and government regulations. A nurse administrator should have at least a bachelor’s degree in nursing and be an RN.

Differences between Bedside Nurse & Non Bedside Nurse:

1. Patient interaction: Bedside nurses have frequent, direct patient contact; non-bedside nurses may have limited or no direct patient contact.
2. Work environment: Bedside nurses work in clinical settings (hospitals, clinics); non-bedside nurses work in offices, classrooms, or research institutions.
3. Skill set: Bedside nurses focus on clinical skills; non-bedside nurses develop skills in leadership, education, or research.
4. Scheduling: Bedside nurses often work variable shifts, including nights and weekends; non-bedside nurses typically work regular business hours.

Similarities:

1. Both require strong nursing knowledge and skills.
2. Both involve collaboration with healthcare teams.
3. Both require ongoing education and professional development.
4. Both contribute to improving patient outcomes and healthcare systems.

Transitioning from Bedside to Non-Bedside Nursing:

Reasons to Transition:

1. Burnout and compassion fatigue
2. Desire for new challenges and opportunities
3. Career advancement and leadership roles
4. Improved work-life balance
5. Personal and professional growth

Transferable Skills:

1. Communication and interpersonal skills
2. Leadership and management abilities
3. Critical thinking and problem-solving
4. Time management and organization
5. Emotional intelligence and empathy

The Future of Bedside Nursing

The role of bedside nurses continues to evolve with advancing healthcare technology and changing patient needs. Modern bedside nurses are increasingly incorporating:

• Digital health technologies
• Telehealth capabilities
• Evidence-based practice
• Patient engagement tools
• Preventive care strategies

REFERENCES:

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3. Herdman, T. H., Kamitsuru, S., & Lopes, C. (2024). NANDA International Nursing Diagnoses – Definitions and Classification, 2024-2026.
4. Ignatavicius, D. D., Rebar, C., & Heimgartner, N. M. (2023). Medical-Surgical Nursing: Concepts for Clinical Judgment and Collaborative Care. Elsevier.
5. Liu X, Liu J, Liu K, Baggs JG, Wang J, Zheng J, Wu Y, Li M, You L. Association of changes in nursing work environment, non-professional tasks, and nursing care left undone with nurse job outcomes and quality of care: A panel study. Int J Nurs Stud. 2021 Mar;115:103860. doi: 10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2020.103860. Epub 2020 Dec 29. PMID: 33517080.
6. Bedside Nursing and Beyond: The Other Side of Nursing, retrieved from https://nursing.maryville.edu/blog/bedside-nursing.html

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