nurse in hospital

November 8, 2019 2 min to read

A day in a life of a nurse in the UK – how to get through a 12-hour shift

Category : Career

It’s not easy to work as a nurse. The job entails a lot of major responsibilities such as attending to the needs of a patient, providing medical assistance before and after an operation, administering medication, and assessing care requirements.

Shift usually lasts for at least 12 hours depending on the current number of staff on board and the patients needing medical attention.

If you’re having a hard time lasting through your 12-hour shift, we created a list of practical and simple to follow tips that can help you.

Hydration is the key

If you’re assigned on placements, you will most likely have plenty of 12-hour work shifts. To prepare yourself for the long schedule, we recommend drinking plenty of water.

You can bring a large water bottle that you can refill all throughout your schedule. You can put it in the fridge or place ice in it to encourage yourself to drink more.

Drinking water will prevent your throat, lips and skin from drying up most especially during a hectic day. Try to drink more than eight glasses a day.

Bring snacks with you

Energy bars and drinks may be able to give you a temporary energy boost, but they do contain high amounts of sugar that can cause trigger multitude of health problems in the long run.

Instead of consuming energy snacks, hardworking nurses like you need to bring nutritious high-energy and high-protein snacks.

Because nurses rarely get long meal times, it’s ideal to bring snacks to help you last the day. Focus on bringing tiny bits of snacks that you can munch on when you get the chance.

Work on your sleep cycles

Most nurses struggle in managing their sleeping habits. Sometimes, they wake up way too early and feel too tired and drained the entire day because they didn’t get enough sleep.

We recommend using a mobile app that lets you monitor your sleep cycle. Check how many hours you go on a “light sleep” and try adjusting your sleeping time. Find the right sleeping schedule that will best suit your preference.

Invest in comfy shoes

Because you spend a lot of time walking and running around your assigned stations, you need to consider investing in a pair of comfy shoes. Check the quality of the material and consider the thickness and softness of the sole.

Some of the famous brands used by many nurses all over the world include Dansko, Alegria, Sketchers, Klogs and Crocs. When you purchase a pair of shoes you should consider the following factors…
 
Continue reading the article and learn more about nurses’ lives on Tammy Broccas’ blog.
 
 

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