Nurses - 5 Ways to Stay Energized Throughout Your Nursing Shift

Nurses are indispensable to the Medical World, but working a 12-hour shift is definitely a challenge for most nurses. Nurses deal with emotional and physical stressors on a regular basis, and it greatly depletes their energy.  
Here are some of the factors that determine how demanding a nurse’s shift is: 

• Personal health status
• Shift schedule
• Documentation
• Patient load
• Acuity levels
• Handling patient assistance devices

With so many factors at play, getting through the day becomes challenging for nurses. Here are five ways to stay energized as suggested by a panel of clinical health and wellness experts.  

1. Control what you can control - As a nurse, you don’t have any control over patient load or acuity. However, to lighten the load, you can make use of any assistance device available to you. You may not enjoy the liberty of choosing your work shifts, but you can maintain a regular routine. You can also control some aspects of the environment that you work in. For instance, you don’t have a say in choosing the flooring at your facility, but you can invest in a good pair of running shoes. The idea is to use your energy only on the things you can control. 
2. Limit caffeinated drinks - Caffeinated drinks are beneficial when consumed in limited amounts. When limited, caffeine can lift your mood, energy level, and concentration. On the other hand, consuming too many caffeine drinks boosts your caffeine level and leads to undetermined effects. Therefore, nurses should focus on staying hydrated through their shift. They must drink a minimum average of 10-12 glasses of water. 
3. Focus on eating and movement - To keep energy levels high throughout the day, nurses should pay attention to their eating habits and movement. Besides regular meals, nurses should eat energy boosting snacks between meals such as fresh fruits, juices, nuts, and cheese. To boost energy levels, you can also take a short break and perform some physical exercises that de-stress your body. You can do some yoga poses at your workstation; some stretching exercises while seated on the chair, or while strolling in the garden.
4. Make breaks count – A nurse’s work shift is often 12 hours long. In addition, their ideal break schedule is approximately every three hours throughout their shift. To keep themselves energetic during breaks, they should remove themselves from the work environment. It is good to move outside the break room and into an open space. When you step outside the enclosed environment, it gives you a mental break. To keep yourself rejuvenated throughout the shift, taking small breaks is necessary.
5. Reinforce your team – A good understanding between co-workers is important for the success of a shift. When one nurse has downtime, another should help the other team members and later, these efforts should be reciprocated. This team spirit strengthens the flow, despite highs and lows throughout the shift.

To excel in your nursing career, you can opt for specialization courses offered in countries like Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and the USA. INSCOL provides top nursing study programs for internationally educated nurses, that give them the opportunity to study and work abroad.