What is Rehabilitation Nursing?

I came here to do some research because I'm going into this kind of job that I will be handling for the first time. At first, I was reluctant to work in the rehab even though I don't have a choice, but after I had been through seminars like what most of the people here were talking about, I felt better. Being a rehab nurse is kind of a tough job but is rewarding when fully accomplished.

Where do physical therapists enter this story? Why would there be a specialization for nurses who makes or attempts to take on the work of physical therapists?

Is it one way to make nurses more employable or a way to steal the jobs of other classes, such as physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy? Each in its proper place!

My mom worked as a nurse for many years before specializing in rehabilitation nursing. There is a shortage of nurses and it seems like nursing and rehabilitation homes often have a hard time finding good people for these positions.

She really likes the individualized care she is able to give a patient working as a rehab nurse. She has even more one-on-one contact than she did when she worked on the floor at the hospital, and this is the most rewarding part of her job.

It helps if a rehab nurse has had some psychology classes, as much of what you are doing involves knowing how to get people motivated. A rehab nurse can know what to tell someone, but it is just as important to know how to get them to do it.

@sunshined - You are fortunate that the whole team of rehab nurses who helped your mom were so helpful.

My sister has had some mental health issues after receiving a brain injury from a car accident. She has worked with many rehabilitation nurses through her recovery, and while many of them have been very helpful, some of them should be working in a different field.

As far as being qualified to do the work, they meet the qualifications, but they certainly don't seem to have the right personality for the job.

My sister certainly has her favorite nurses, and there is no comparison to the way she responds to them compared to those who don't seem to care.

I wonder if they is any type of screening involved when someone is interested in becoming a rehabilitation nurse?

It is one of those areas that is not for everyone, and it would be nice if someone knew ahead of time they weren't very suited for that type of work.

I have a lot of respect for the rehab nurses who worked with my mom after she suffered a stroke. These nurses were part of a home health care team who came in several times a week and worked with my mom.

After the stroke, she had trouble performing many daily living activities and their goal was to get her so she could live at home by herself again.

This took many months of persistent work and was not always easy - for my mom or for the nurses. The nurses showed a balance of compassion and firmness that was needed.

It would have been easy to give up many days, but they were the ones who kept encouraging her and knew just what to help her with each time they came.

Some days the help seemed to be more social and encouraging, and other days it was physical. If it weren't for the quality of rehab nurses who worked with my mom, she wouldn't be where she is today.

My daughter is a rehabilitation nurse in a rehab facility that is part of a local hospital. She has found this to be a very challenging, yet rewarding career.

One of the most important things a rehabilitation nurse provides a patient is hope. In addition to helping them improve their quality of life, they are showing them things can be better than they are right now.

I think that can mean just as much to a patient who is in rehab than anything. It also takes special people to be a good rehab nurse.

Most anyone can go through the training and perform the specific duties, but it takes the right personality to be good at this day after day.

Many times the patients they are working with can be despondent and overwhelmed with the situation they find themselves in. A rehabilitation nurse can make all the difference in how fast and how well they recover.

@fify-- It does depend on where you get your certification from. The association I received my CRRN (Certified Registered Rehabilitation Nurse) certification from did have requirements.

You either had to have two years experience as registered nurse, or one year experience plus one year graduate level education.

So in that case, you are qualified but your friend is not. She'll need to work for two years and then apply. But two years is really not long.

Another thing to think about is that these certification exams usually take place once or twice a year tops. So find out the dates for the exams beforehand. You don't want to miss them and you might want to take some time to prepare too. Good luck, I'm glad you're considering comprehensive rehabilitation nursing. It's a rewarding career!

I'm a registered nurse and have only been working for 2 years. Am I qualified to apply for a rehabilitation nursing certification?

Is there a prerequisite for nursing experience or can any registered nurse apply? I also have a friend who's a recent graduate and she's interested in becoming a rehab nurse as well.

If anyone can give us any information on this that would be great!

I think that rehabilitation nurses do far more than what we realize and have a huge impact on the psychology of a patient after injury or illness.

Even if the patient isn't dealing with a psychological ailment, many patients feel depressed and become less sociable and negative after illness. The role of a rehabilitation nurse is not just care for them physically, but also to give them encouragement and hope for the future.

At the hospital I work, I've seen many cases where the rehabilitation nurse was able to get a child to speak again after a serious illness. They're usually the first ones to see patients smile again. I have great respect for rehabilitation nursing. What they do is so valuable.

This article has been very helpful for my research writing assignment. Much appreciation for the effort.