Fully Dedicated to Helping Others

The key to making the profession attractive: Health care workers and nurses and their vision of the nursing profession of the future.

A demanding area of responsibility, an increasing need for people in health care and nursing and the question: What is the key to attracting as many people as possible to the profession and keeping them in it? A study by FH Campus Wien¹ provides insight into the topics of starting a career and motivating graduates of three-year programs.

Appreciation as a Motivational Engine

It goes without saying that graduates start their careers immediately after completing their bachelor’s degree. After one to three months, 97% are in everyday working life, most of them in their preferred field, such as inpatient surgery, child and adolescent care and intensive care.

Satisfaction rises and falls with a good working atmosphere. If the health and nursing staff experience recognition and appreciation from their managers, this has a positive effect. Good interprofessional teamwork is perceived by those starting out as a further motivational plus, and by this they primarily mean the cooperation between the professional groups of medicine and health care and nursing.

Characterized by professional care practiced during the degree program on the basis of scientific knowledge, further training and career opportunities play a major role. Most graduates of FH Campus Wien would like to start a part-time master’s degree after working for two years.

Professional Care is Enormously Multifaceted

In personal discussions with students and health care and nursing staff from the field, terms such as “fair remuneration” and “a personnel ratio that corresponds to reality” are often used as framework conditions that make the profession more attractive and more satisfying for those who are already practicing the profession. The correction of false job profiles is also a wish that is expressed.“Thanks to my professional training combined with my interpersonal skills, I can provide individually tailored care and support to people who are in different stages of illness or phases of life,” says teacher Theresa Maria Binder. This requires extensive evidence-based knowledge, practical skills and appropriate personal skills.

“The commitment that health care and nursing workers bring should not be taken for granted," says Anna-Isabella Rose, Health Care and Nursing Specialist and Academic Staff Member.

The Framework for a New Understanding of Care

“Not everyone can provide care”, says student Heidemarie Haslinger, and she names the personality development associated with the profession as a personal attraction. “We are not only responsible for personal hygiene and personal matters, we have a lot more responsibility,” adds Anna-Isabella Rose, who works in a geriatric psychiatric ward and teaches at FH Campus Wien. She appreciates the challenges in her job, because no two shifts and no two people are alike. This requires flexibility, individuality and creativity. Keep moving, both mentally AND physically” is Theresa Maria Binder’s motto. Medicine and care are constantly changing, regular training measures and the development of new professions, such as community health nurses, are essential. “Nursing has a role to play in public health care. If society perceives this work as significant, then parents will also encourage their children to do this job.”

¹ Mogg, Christina, Engel, Roswitha (2022). Expectations and General Conditions for Career Entry of Graduates with a Bachelor’s Degree in Health Care and Nursing – Results of a Long-term Study.

Degree programs in the department Applied Nursing Science: