Hello all,

My question is whether a registered nurse can work in specialized fields of nursing without acquiring any additional formal education. For instance: Pediatric Nurse, Nurse Anesthetist, etc.

Thank you!
NG

As far as I am aware you don't need specific speicalized courses for pediatrics, otherwise things like the OR/ER/ Nurse Anesthetist etc need further study-usually after a year of actually working depending on your facilities policies. Check with your local hospitals and see if you can tailor your nursing education towards your goals.
Good Luck

A lot is dependent on are area of work, you will often get employment in an area. However you will be expected to get some kind of qualification if you are going to continue after about a year, or move into a more senior position. The whole idea is that they want nurses to stay within a section, instead of loosing you after few years.

You need to check with the relevant facilities as to their policy on required qualifications.

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'Think not of yourself as the architect of your career but as the sculptor. Expect to have to do a lot of hard hammering and chiselingand scraping and polishing. - BC Forbes'

I would think it depends on the geographical area you are in and the area of work. In the UK, while you can get a job in paeds or mental health without additional qualifications, you couldn't progress in that field without them.

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Julie
http://www.lifeinthenhs.wordpress.com