A nurse spends considerable time learning clinicals skills in a bachelor of nursing program. Learning clinicals skills and gaining practical exposure through clinical rotations help a nurse prepare for their licensure exams for NCLEX. After completing the nursing program and clearing the boards, a person is known as a registered nurse or an RN. 
Need for Continuous Education in Nursing
The scope of a good nursing program can teach all the prerequisites to clear and become a nurse. However, nursing education is a continuous one and does not stop after becoming a qualified RN. Keeping oneself abreast with the latest developments and learning the objectives of niche space on the clinical side, helps nurses advance in their careers. But considering the occupational pressure, a working nurse will find it very difficult to go back to an in-person classroom for additional course credits. Many universities and nursing communities have realized the practical need for online nursing courses that can help them clear certifications or gain additional knowledge in a new area of expertise.
How Can Online Nursing Courses Help Working Nurses?
With evolving technology nursing education is available at the fingertips and can be accessed through smartphones. If a new nurse is not able to recall a clinical procedure and there is no senior to refer to, she can go online and search for videos explaining the procedure in detail through simulation graphics for better understanding and experience.
Nurses looking to upskill and learn a new niche or improve their knowledge of existing areas of expertise can register for an online nursing program. The ease of access, with smart AI-driven tools like chatbots that conduct interactive smart quizzes and flashcard retention techniques, can help a nurse retain the concepts even after a busy day at work.
Nurses located in remote areas without access to a college or learning facility find online courses a boon for their continuing education requirements. Also, nurses who stay current with their knowledge are more focused and a preferred choice for clinical headhunters.
After iterating on the importance of online nursing courses let us look at a few of the platforms or places that offer some promising ones:
1. Lecturio
Lecturio online nursing course is revolutionary in terms of what AI and ML can do in clinical education addressing all the current barriers and increasing the scope of utility for students. These courses cover a range of topics with multiple videos that cover end-to-end concepts in easy-to-understand interactive methods.
Students find the platform very functional as the platform helps them organize their study plan if they are not sure where to begin with. With free cheat sheets, smart quizzes that help nurses recall, and additional questions for comprehensive understanding, this medtech platform is an ideal fit for nurses looking to learn a new topic of interest.
2. University of Glasgow
The online courses offered by the university are ranked as one of the tops by students. Currently, they offer an online course that covers palliative care and is named the end-of-life care course. It covers the challenges and measures to aid palliative care to help aging patients. With an increase in patients who need hospice care, nurses looking to specialize in this area will find many opportunities, specifically one that matches hospital-at-home programs.
3. University of John Hopkins
John Hopkins school of Medicine and public health has always pioneered bringing the best measures in patient care. They have come up with several initiatives that address the current needs of the healthcare industry.
The university has designed an online course to help nurses keep up with standards for patient safety and quality with project deadlines that follow budget guidelines. Students learn about the sustainment of the process in patient care. The latest tools that help in improving the efficiency of the delivery model, policy changes like PDGM that need to be incorporated for home care, learning about healthcare capitation, and other necessary points are important for nurses. Students learn change management and due diligence procedures to ensure the success of a project.
4. Columbia University
Nurses looking to specialize in pediatric care have a lot of essential topics that need to be covered. While most context-related cases offer a lot of learning and enhance the abilities of a nurse in pediatric care, there is always a need for someone who can take care of critical cases like pediatric HIV nursing. Columbia University has designed a self-paced online course that lasts 8 weeks for nurses looking to add the coursework credits to their resume
5. American Nurses Association
ANA is a community of nurses that advocates for the upliftment of professional nurses and offers a platform to exchange ideas and learn the latest considerations in the clinical and medical fields. ANA offers many free online courses apart from a lot of accreditation and certification programs that can prove to be very helpful for nurses. The coursework is designed by the best in the field and experienced nurse practitioners and instructors.
Apart from clinical courses, ANA helps with non-clinical topics like mastering mindfulness as an online course that is essential in facing the challenges of difficult but noble professions like nursing
Conclusion:
Nurses often choose the profession to address a calling. It is a very humane decision to battle the requirements of being a nurse and maintain semblance to strive to be a nurse. The profession involves the concepts of both art and science. The art of managing emotions and respecting human dignity while simultaneously addressing a patient’s clinical needs calls for dexterity that nurses learn over time and master. Nurses accomplish different feats while maintaining high standards of professional ethics.
To be self-sufficient as a practicing or a working nurse, it is imperative to keep oneself abreast of as many changes and special certifications as possible. Online nursing courses that are self-paced, well structured, and allow students access from phones are extensively increasing their prominence and can be considered by enthusiasts to streamline their learning curve.
