How to survive and thrive in a nursing career
How to survive and thrive in a nursing career
The primary role of nursing is to care of the patients to enable them to recover from their medical condition. Nursing can be hectic due to long shifts and working in stressful situations. These are difficult situation nut part of the job and should not prevent a nurse from surviving in the position and thriving.
Tips For Surviving and Thrive In a Nursing Career
Nursing can on certain occasions feel incredibly stressful, but there are ways for a nurse to combat the stressors and make their work to be more fulfilling.
Be positive
Staying positive about the job is one of the helpful ways for nurses to reduce stress levels and improve their mood. It is not difficult as it seems and is still very important because most of the experiences in life and reactions towards some conditions are beyond control. The way to handle experiences that are beyond is to change perception on them and improve the overall happiness. Having a positive attitude helps to pull through the difficult issues even when you do not have an immediate solution.
Set realistic goals
There is much to struggle about nursing especially for newly hired nurses. A useful way of adapting to nursing life or shift is to set small, realistic goals. Setting achievable goals helps to simplify the completion of tasks and builds confidence. Try to set a target that enables you to learn something new each day. Learning a new fact or task helps a nurse to feel successful rather than feel defeated for failing to understand some things.
Learn to prioritize
A nurse taking care of a high acuity patient or a few with different needs can be overwhelmed. These are everyday situations in nursing, and both lead to a multitude of tasks necessary to take care of the patient. It is essential to break down a shift into hourly portions. Start by determining the critical and least important task to complete within an hour. It is a method that helps in organizing tasks are reacting appropriately if something unexpected happens.
Create a rapport with coworkers
Take time to know new colleagues and interact with those you know. Memorize their names and make a habit of exchanging greetings. The habit enables you to develop a relationship over time and create a network of people you can trust. You fellow nurses will be supporting you during the difficult moments and emergencies which are essential for survival in nursing.
Ask questions when in doubt
One of the best ways to learn in nursing is to ask questions especially when you are new to an area of practice. It is natural to fear to ask questions because it is an admission of ignorance, but nobody knows everything. The courage to ask helps to increase the knowledge in a nurse. You can write a list of all questions you have when the situation does not allow deviation such as an emergency from the task at hand and ask them during downtime.
Create time to relax
Do not think about work when you get time off. Use the time to de-stress by relaxing to eliminate the fatigue accumulated over the working days. Engaging in a hobby or pursuing relaxing outdoor fun activities such as hiking helps. It is better if you can hang out with non-nursing friends who are unlikely to discuss your work.
You can survive and thrive in a nursing career if you organize your work well to prevent burnout, create relaxing time and develop the right attitude.
