Confidence is vital in every part of life but is especially important in your career. If you’re nursing without confidence, you might be more apt to make foolish errors, and you’ll certainly doubt yourself whenever you go in to work. You may dread your work hours, wondering if you’ll know what to do for your patients.

What would you say if you found out there was a way to become more confident in your emergency room nursing? Of course, there are some things you can work on personally to become more confident in your nursing practice. However, a great way to build confidence is to take an advanced training course that certifies your competence.

The Trauma Nursing Core Course, called TNCC, does just that. This course is designed solely for registered nurses who work in emergency rooms or in hospital or clinical areas that provide care to trauma victims. Even if you don’t work only in the emergency room, this can still be a great course for you if you work in a critical care setting or provide nursing care as a first responder. It will definitely help to sharpen your skills so that you can respond quickly and correctly to any patient scenario.

An old saying tells you that “knowledge is power.” Nowhere is this more evident than in the field of nursing. When you have more knowledge related to your career, you’ll feel more confident in your everyday work and will be more prepared to care for your patients. Finding out that you made the wrong decision or feeling unsure of what you should do for your patient can quickly leave you feeling unsure of yourself. While asking questions of your coworkers and supervisors is certainly a smart move, taking the TNCC course can answer many questions for you in only a two-day period.

What you most need especially if you’re a new nurse in the emergency room setting is the knowledge of how to respond to traumatic injuries to any body system in all types of patients. You will see patients of all ages and with all types of acute and chronic diseases come through your emergency room’s doors. Your ability to decide quickly what should be done can mean the difference between life and death.

Of course, there are many other steps you can take to increase your confidence in the emergency room. Try to find an older nurse or someone who has worked in the department for a while who you can look up to and view as a mentor. This person can listen to your concerns and just may have some great advice to help you boost your confidence and take your practice to the next level. You can also practice the following tips.

  • Stop comparing yourself to your coworkers.
  • Work on improving your communication skills to sound more confident.
  • Ask questions when you’re unsure of the answer.
  • Realize that confidence-building can take time if you’re a new graduate.

The capstone on all of these great confidence-building techniques can be your TNCC course. This course will give you the knowledge and skills to triage your patients wisely, to choose the correct care, to prevent further complications and to know when to call a physician. You will learn which symptoms are the most concerning, understand external and internal injuries, learn what to do during disasters and know how to care for special populations, such as pregnant or elderly patients.

This two-day course is certainly intensive, but if you’re dedicated to improving your skills and boosting your confidence level in the emergency room, it’s an obvious choice for you. Plus, you’ll earn continuing education hours for renewing your nursing license and will receive a TNCC provider verification card that lasts for four years. Consider Project Heartbeat for a TNCC program approved by the Emergency Nurses Association.