The Simple Reason Nurses Should Put Themselves Before Their Patients

There is nothing to give if you start out on empty.

from The Huffington Post

I’m a critical care nurse who works the night shift, so sleep and I have had a precarious relationship in the past. There’d be yelling; there’d be tossing and turning; there’d be wistful glances at the alarm clock to count down how many hours I wouldn’t get restful shut eye that night. There’d be even more tossing and turning, followed by a pleading apology to the sleep gods for whatever misdeed I’d done to deserve such a sleepless existence. Thankfully, during my five years on the job, I’ve learned a thing or two about trying to snag a good night’s sleep in a high-stress, chronically sleep-deprived profession.

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Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Fuel Career Satisfaction with Evidence-Based Practice

Thoughts on how to rectify chronic burnout and fatigue for nurses.

from Nurse.com

Recently, I visited my postop wife at the hospital, looking like every other family member. When I told a nurse, Linda, that I was a nurse as well, she said to me, “I’m sorry.” What I believe she meant was that she was sorry I was trapped in a lackluster, sad profession, like she was, and Linda was commiserating. This wasn’t the first time I heard this reply from a nurse.

As a nurse who is enthused about nursing, I angrily said, “Why would you say that to me?”

She told me she had been a nurse for 30 years, doing the same job in the same old way, and she was just tired and probably burnt out.

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