The A, B, Z’s of Travel Nursing – Why Sleep Matters
Trying to juggle the demands as a travel nurse can be challenging. For the night shift travel nurse, a lack of sleep, a late-night, insomnia, more than one late night…they can all add up to a tired you. When you are not rested, you are not at your best. That can mean irritability, grumpiness, a foggy head, and possibly poor decision-making when it comes to patients. It’s important to note that sleep is a lot like calories and nutrition. It’s not just about how much you get, but how much quality sleep you get. Here are a few reasons why…
10 Mental Health Tips For Nurses During the COVID-19 Pandemic
This article provided by Medely. During a time that may feel out-of-control for many nurses, it’s important to take control of our mental health and try our best to focus on self-care when away from work. You owe it to yourself to intentionally control how you spend time away from work and where you place your thoughts in-between shifts. After returning home from work, most nurses must quarantine themselves, giving them few outlets to deal with the heavy mental load required of them in the workplace. “I’m scared. For myself, husband, family, my coworkers. I just take it day by…
5 Tips for Travel Nurses to Manage Anxiety
The world has undergone quite a few changes in the past few months. COVID-19, social distancing, and the uncertainty of the present has become a cause of anxiety for many people. According to Anxiety.org, “anxiety is the mind and body’s reaction to stressful, dangerous, or unfamiliar situations.” Our ability to feel small amounts of anxiety keeps us alert and able to react to truly dangerous situations, but for some people, anxiety levels can reach unnecessary and uncomfortable levels. However, the many forms of anxiety that exist can be managed or treated. As a travel nurse, your job requires extremely hard…
Travel Light: How to Stay Fit and Light on the Go
As a frequent traveler over the past eight years, whether for personal leisure travel or business travel as a travel nurse, I have found three mainstays that keep me feeling fit and light no matter where life takes me. Pack healthy snacks The challenge of eating well while traveling is packing light, health, nutrient-rich snacks. If you’re a frequent flyer and dealing with airline meals and unhealthy airport food this can be a challenge. Even once you’re at your destination, the struggle to find healthy restaurant choices in an unfamiliar city is also a daunting task. The key is to…
Mental Health Care: What Is More Effective – Fighting A Depression Or Denying It?
It is undeniable that depression and anxiety (almost 50% of the people diagnosed with depression are also diagnosed with anxiety) can become a real issue for anyone regularly experiencing a lot of stress. If you feel like you are slowly falling into this pit, it is crucial to acknowledge it as soon as possible and start making steps towards a happier life. #1 Stay Connected to The World One thing you have to understand about depression is that fighting it on your own is not only dangerous but also entirely ineffective. This is why the first thing you should do once…
Burnout Prevention Tips for Nurses During the COVID-19 Pandemic
This article provided by MedPro Healthcare Staffing. Every profession comes with its own set of occupational stressors, including psychological requirements, seasonal influxes in business, and varying physical demands. A career in nursing is no exception and has been widely observed as a field at high risk of employee burnout as a result of these factors. The largest union of registered nurses in the country, National Nurses United, describes nurse burnout as “physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion.” While burnout is not a diagnosable psychological disorder, it shares similar characteristics and treatment methods of other mental health illnesses like depression. As caretakers,…
First Take Care of Yourself, Then Save the World
To my fellow Nurses, You are working harder than anyone in the world right now, and you are working on behalf of the greater collective. Thank you for your compassion, for your ability to do 15 things at once, for your clinical skills, expertise, and warm heart. Thank you for sacrificing so much from your life to provide care and to advocate for those most in need. I want to thank you for showing up shift after shift. Thank you for being the cornerstone of medicine and now for being the cornerstone of our global fight against COVID-19. I am…
Best Seaside Countries to Visit with a Toddler this Winter
Traveling with a kid is one thing, but doing it with a toddler is a whole other experience and most of the parent can confirm. After you managed to survive flying with a toddler, you will be occupied with entertainment for the rest of your vacation. It might be a little bit more exhausting, but you can still have the best vacation. Experience tells us that an important aspect is for you to make sure that there is enough time and space for you guys to explore, given the fact that your pace will be slowed down significantly. But hey,…
4 Ways for Travel Nurses to Stick to a Healthy Eating Plan
This article provided by Cross Country Nurses Healthy food choices are a breeze when you plan ahead! Healthy Eating Really is Possible for Travel Nurses with a Plan! Probably the most important part of a healthy eating plan is consistency, and for travel nurses who are always on the go, this can prove a difficult goal to achieve. Your routine is disrupted and rearranged every few months, which can make it easy to fall into the trap of eating whatever’s most convenient. If you’re wondering how to stay on track when you move from assignment to assignment, here are some…
Be Your Own Advocate: 8 Self-Care Tips for Smart Travel Nurses
This article provided by: OneStaff Medical As rewarding as the nursing profession can be, most nurses acknowledge that it can also be very stressful. Self-Care Tips for Travel Nurses In one study by the American Nurses Association, for example, 82% of nurses who responded agreed they were at significant risk of workplace stress. By the same token, 68% reported that they put their patients’ health, safety and wellness before their own. A significant 56-57% reported frequently working through breaks and/or arriving early or staying late to accomplish their work, and 51% reported having musculoskeletal pain at work. “The results show there is…