Nurse - Child

Are you a caring, compassionate person who enjoys working with children? If so, you may be interested in a career as a children's nurse.

You'll look after sick, injured or disabled children and teenagers – helping them with practical and medical care. It's important that you gain the trust of the child and their parents, so you're able to reassure them in stressful and upsetting circumstances.

Children are not always able to fully explain how they're feeling. This is why children's nurses have specialist skills and knowledge – they can interpret young people's behaviour and recognise when their health has deteriorated.

Your tasks might include:

• working with doctors and other healthcare professionals to assess the needs of ill, injured or disabled children

• giving medicine to children, as well as cleaning and dressing wounds

• checking children's temperature, blood pressure and breathing rate

• helping parents and carers cope with having an ill child in hospital

• teaching parents and carers how to care for their child at home

• giving blood transfusions and intravenous drips when required

Once you've racked up some experience, you could specialise in an area you're particularly interested in. For example, you could specialise in burns and plastics, child protection, cancer care, neonatal nursing or intensive care.

Most children's nurse jobs are in the National Health Service (NHS). Although, there are also roles in the private sector.

• Disclosure Scotland – more information about the Protecting Vulnerable Groups Scheme

• Nursing and Midwifery Council – details of the standards for training set by the NMC

• NHS Scotland Careers – how to become a children's nurse