How to Build Your Nursing Network

Nurses interested in career advancement must keep their clinical skills sharp and their medical knowledge up to date. These practical nursing skills aren’t the only ingredients essential for professional development, however. Building a robust nursing network, including meaningful connections with other professionals in the field, is also valuable.

Nurses looking to advance their education and careers can benefit from cultivating these competencies and learning how to foster the kinds of relationships that lead to ongoing professional growth.

What Is a Nurse Network?

A nurse network is the group of peers that nurses connect with for knowledge, resources, and emotional well-being. Nurse networking can occur through professional associations, local study clubs, and nurse conferences. Social media can also be a valuable tool for building a nurse network.

Nurses who engage in networking do so to hone their own skills, become more aware of advances in the field, and explore potential avenues for career transition or growth. While networking benefits nurses, it can also benefit patients by providing even higher standards of safety and care.

What Are the Benefits of Having a Nurse Network?

Those who work in the nursing profession can reap numerous benefits from deliberate and consistent networking.

Career Advancement

Getting to know other nurses in a face-to-face setting or even forging a meaningful online friendship can be crucial for nurses who hope to change roles. A nurse network can be a catalyst for a career change to nursing and may even open the door to nonbedside nursing jobs .

Encouragement and Support

Working as a nurse can be hard in more ways than one, from the physical toll of working long shifts to interactions with difficult patients. One reason to build a network is simply to explore opportunities to seek emotional support.

Skill Development

Spending time talking with other nurses may also yield insights into different methodologies or new techniques, all of which can lead to more efficient patient care. Networking can be an especially good way to get tips for new nurses .

Progressing the Field

Having a nurse network is not only an opportunity to receive but also a chance to give back. Nurses who engage in a network can share their own wisdom, perspective, and experience to the benefit of other professionals within the same field.

Tips for Cultivating a Nurse Network

No blueprint or special formula for developing a network exists, and often the best connections happen organically. However, some tips are available that can help nurses create more opportunities and leverage the ones that come their way.

1. Show Up to Events

Nothing is more important than actively pursuing opportunities to mix and mingle with other nurses. From professional conferences and seminars to local study clubs, there are always events worth seeking out. Consistently going to these events is one of the best ways to establish a meaningful nurse network.

2. Join Professional Organizations

Becoming a member of professional organizations is a helpful way to remain in the loop about conferences, events, and opportunities for advancement in the nursing profession. Options include general organizations, such as the American Nursing Association (ANA), as well as more specialized ones, such as the Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses (AMSN).

3. Volunteer

Using clinical skills in a volunteer setting, even if that just means working for a couple of hours a month at a community vaccine clinic, can be an important way to meet different people and forge connections beyond the day-to-day work environment. Organizations like the American Red Cross provide numerous opportunities for nurses to volunteer in clinical care and leadership roles.

4. Use Social Media

Social networks can be important avenues for building a profile, demonstrating thought leadership, and sharing subject-matter expertise. Simply exhibiting an interest in medical advances and industry developments can be helpful for cultivating a sense of professionalism. LinkedIn can be an especially good platform for connecting with location- or industry-specific nursing groups.

5. Consider Cross-Training

Seeking ongoing training in different disciplines or specialties can be another important way to broaden professional horizons and be better prepared for any new career opportunities that do emerge.

Start Developing Your Nurse Network

There are a number of important steps toward career advancement in the field of nursing. Most important is to build an expansive personal network by seeking out relationships with other nursing professionals.

A strong education is also important, fostering clinical competencies as well as leadership abilities. To pursue an advanced education in the field of nursing, consider The University of Tulsa’s online Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) program. With tracks in Leadership and Innovation, Education and Elevation, and Public Health Global Vision, the MSN degree can be tailored to your specialized interests.