Nurse - Child

You would look after sick, injured or disabled children and teenagers. You’d help them with practical and medical care. You’d comfort them and their families when they are distressed.

You’d care for children and young people up to the age of 18 with a wide range of conditions. You’d need to gain the trust of the children and parents and reassure them in stressful and upsetting circumstances.

Because children are not always able to fully explain how they are feeling, you would use your skills and knowledge to interpret their behaviour and recognise when their health has deteriorated.

You would:

• Work with doctors to assess the needs of ill, injured or disabled children

• Decide what level of nursing care is required

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

• Teach parents or carers how to care for their child at home

You would also provide practical nursing care. For example, you would:

• Check temperatures

• Measure blood pressure and breathing rates

• Help doctors with physical examinations

• Give drugs and injections

• Clean and dress wounds

• Give blood transfusions and drips (intravenous drips)

You’d use hi-tech medical equipment. You’d work closely with other professionals including healthcare assistants, doctors, social workers and hospital play specialists.

With experience, you could go on to specialise in an area such as burns and plastics, child protection, cancer care, neonatal nursing or intensive care.

Most jobs are in the National Health Service (NHS) however there are also roles in the private sector.

You can see more about this role in the National Health Service on the Children’s nurse page on the NHS Scotland Careers website. See the Learning and development section for information about career structure, progression and rates of pay.

• Disclosure Scotland – more about the Protecting Vulnerable Groups Scheme

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

• NHS Education for Scotland – Training for the healthcare workforce including higher education and professional development