Rediscovering a passion for nursing after experiencing burnout

I have been a registered children's nurse for more than 10 years, and recently I have struggled with my confidence around nursing. I have experienced issues with what could be seen as burnout and negative personal events, which coincided with the pandemic but were not directly related to COVID-19. I moved jobs after 6 years, around the start of the pandemic, transitioning from clinical practice into remote patient assessment. I believed this change would be an interesting opportunity to gain experience in a different field of nursing and offer a new challenge.

Initially, the role seemed to fulfil my aspirations for a change of pace and environment. However, after working in remote assessment for 8 months, I faced a personal tragedy that altered my perspective profoundly. In December of that year, I was unwell with COVID-19 and isolating when I received a call from a friend and neighbour of my father. They informed me that my father had been unwell for several days. As a nurse in remote assessment, I encouraged those with him to phone the local service for advice and support. Tragically, he was not assessed properly by the nurse who handled the case, with key questions being missed during the call. By the time assistance eventually arrived, he had gone into peri-arrest and passed away in his home.