Enrolled Nurse
What the work is
Provides nursing care to patients in a variety of health, aged care, mental health, welfare and community settings under the supervision of Registered Nurses.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Performs physical exams, including checking patients' pulse, temperature, and blood pressure
- Records and interprets clinical observations, including temperature, pulse and blood pressure, urine tests, blood glucose and other tests used in specific areas of practice
- Provides basic wound care in line with an agreed patient care plan
- Assists with the administration of medications under the supervision of a Registered Nurse
- Provides patients with personal care activities such as bathing, dressing, grooming and eating
- Provides first aid in medical emergencies
- Works with Registered Nurses, doctors and other Health Professionals to create patient care plans
- Participates in health promotion activities and community education
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a general medical ward in a fictional regional hospital, on an afternoon shift. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- A patient who arrived frightened goes home walking and thanks you by name
- You notice a small change in someone and your early report makes a difference
- A shift where the ward runs smoothly and the team laughs at the handover
Hard days
- A shift where every bed is full and every call bell seems to ring at once
- Being asked to do something you are not yet signed off to do
- Saying goodbye to a long-term patient who will not be going home
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 441131, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.