Qualifying as a Health Visitor - Personal Statement Example

I was fascinated by the way the nurses gave special care to the patients, interacted with them, and utilised their knowledge and skills to improve their health status. I admired nurses for their contribution to society and I wanted to be like them (Chancellor and Fairclough, 2005:3).

One day as I was volunteering as a youth worker at a local hospital, I noticed an advertisement on the notice board that was encouraging nurses to enroll in a health visitor training programme. It had text and pictorial illustrations that showed nurses moving from one home to another assisting different families especially women and children, by providing advice and care to help them improve their lifestyle and health. I instantly knew that this was the career path that would assist me in gaining the required skills that would see me achieve my goals and aspirations. I immediately recognised that this was the best way for me to make a significant contribution to society by acquiring nursing skills and knowledge, which would help me render lifestyle advice, health education and care to people in their homes and in the streets (Freshwater, 2003:7). I knew that being a health visitor would help me reach out to many people in society, therefore, making a bigger impact by improving the health of many people in society.

The thoughts of making a significant impact in society by qualifying as a health visitor motivated me to work hard in high school and I obtain good grades that helped me enroll in a nursing school. For an individual to become a health visitor he or she had to qualify as a registered nurse and receive training in a specialized programme (Graduate Prospects, 2013). As I studied through my nursing programme, I was keen on my studies and took the training courses very seriously. I undertook clinical placements in both hospital and community settings, which would be very helpful in my work as a health visitor. I particularly enjoyed my placements with the district nurse in the community. I had the opportunity to experience the situation in the field.

As I graduated from nursing school in December 2013, I felt that I had acquired the basic skills and made a huge stride towards achieving my aspirations as a health visitor. The health visitor’s job entails a lot of community work; therefore, the training and the experiences that I received were very resourceful. However, I am a newly qualified nurse and I do not have any post-registration experience. I am fully aware of the fact that I will need more skills and specialized training programs to successfully become a health visitor (Luker, 2012:4). In order to obtain these skills, I have to undertake a health visitor course at the master’s level, which will also hone my skills and prepare me to be a competent health visitor (Thornbory, 2009: 2). After completing this stage of my educational journey, I will be able to fulfil my dreams by making a contribution to society as I visit different homes with the aim of ameliorating people’s lives.