Any time stress is the topic of the discussion and there is a nurse participating, the nurse will definitely have a lot to contribute. Nurses seem to be continually working under pressure. Heavy workloads, overtime, night shifts, and other important elements, proudly add to the stress amidst the nursing community.

It is not easy to manage stressful situations and in the meantime provide the best health care service to the sick people. Although nurses participate in several stress management training courses, it still seems that stress is difficult manage.

Considering the fact that this is a very popular topic of discussion for the medical environment, there is a considerable number of studies performed in this regard. Psychologists have been organizing a number of case studies in order to understand the mental reaction occurring in nurses’ minds whenever undergoing a stressful situation and also their actions during such. The results have been showing that despite the desperate efforts from the nurses to distance stress from work performance, it still reflects on their actions and performance.

One of the key contributors to stress on the job appears to be time. Nurses are always running out of time. Despite all the efforts, still they find themselves crashing amidst multitasking, making it unbearable at times.

Further in this article, provided will be the most effective ways for nurses can manage their time and avoid unnecessary stress on the job.

• Pro- active communication
• Management
• Visit the health care centre psychological adviser
• Prioritize
• Ask for support

Each of these methods can be combined altogether for an increased level of efficiency. Anyways, still even the application of one of them can improve general time management and decrease stress levels.

Pro-active communication

Our society is mainly based on communication. This natural tool provided and enriched across centuries, has made it possible for our civilization to further enlarge its boundaries, mentally, spiritually and scientifically. During these last few decades, communication has been an important area of experimenting and studying. Communication experts and other interested parties have been performing different case studies and experiments in order to have a deeper insight on the communication process. Based on this, they have reasonably highlighted the importance of pro- active communication.

The pro- active communication strategy is the kind of tool that can improve overall handling of any troublesome situation. If nurses learn how to effectively apply this communication approach during their daily work routine, it will be easier to manage difficulties that may arise from miscommunication. The basis of pro- active communication is clear and explicit information provisioning to any of the interested parties. Which means, once a nurse provides clear and immediate information to the sick patient, there will be no need to explain everything again. Pro- active communication happens when both parties are engaged in a question – answering process.

Management

Management is not related to the position. You can manage no matter the job position, the place or the situation. As far as you have a managing approach, you can organize everything in your place of work. Organized management will help you find everything without any struggle.

If a nurse is properly organized, he/ she will know where to find what they need at the most demanding moment. This can highly decrease stress levels during working hours. It will not be necessary for the nurse to rush around to find the scissors, the necessary papers or any other instrument.

From a number of observations, lack of proper management leads to a disorganized and messy work place. Messy environment is another acknowledged factor contributing to increased stress levels.

Visit the health care center psychological advisor

Psychological advisors are found in every health care center or any other servicing public institution. These professionals are experts in the field of psychological support regarding caring staff employees. These professionals are familiar with the most problematic issues that are concerning the nursing staff and already have the necessary tools (in terms of advice) on how to improve these situations.

Generally, it is found that nurses who look for and accept the psychologist support are more prone to maintain a manageable stress level, than those who are resistant to this kind of support.

Psychologists can also help in terms of organizing. They can present different strategies that nurses can apply in order to achieve an appropriate organized working style.

Prioritize

It is really important for a nurse to understand that despite the efforts he/ she might invest, it might still be impossible to complete every single task at the same time. Considering this, one of the best methods a nurse can apply in order to avoid stress on the job is to prioritize. A nurse needs to select and enlist tasks as per level of importance. Once this approach starts to become a working method, the nurse will gather the benefits sooner or later.

There will be more time to dedicate to the processes and therefore create better performance during the daily overall job routine. Once a nurse tackles one task at a time, he/ she will be dedicating his/ her best to that specific task completion. The final result will be outstanding.

It is true that prioritizing is not that easy, but nurses can start applying this approach daily, until it will become a working style.

Ask for support

Working in a hospital or health care center, it is not individual work. Instead, it is a team work. Nurses will have to work together in order to achieve the best results when it comes to taking care of sick people. One of the common mistake a nurse falls into, is trying to do everything on his/ her own. This comes mainly due to our individual nature and the challenging working environment.

Despite being care givers, nurses are common people as well. Thus, they are always trying to have an outstanding performance and exceed in every sector or situation they might be placed to serve with their professional services. This element has been found to highly increase the stress levels on the job.

As a matter of fact, it needs to be emphasized that excellence cannot be achieved alone, especially when related to health care provisioning. Thus, nurses should not overload themselves infinitively. Instead, whenever support is needed, it should be asked for. Asking for support alleviates the situation and also demonstrates a considerable level of self-esteem.

Studies show that most people asking for support, have an increased amount of self-esteem and personal trust on their abilities.

In conclusion …

In order to properly manage stress on the job, nurses should, first of all, accept its presence. Only after admitting that stress is part of the daily routine, a nurse will be focused on finding and applying methods that can relieve stress symptoms.

In case a nurse is facing continuous stress on the job, it is crucial for him/ her to ask for prompt support from his/ her supervisor. A working day off might be an option to be considered.