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Nursing New Year's Resolutions

Nurse Leader Weekly, January 4, 2008

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2008 holds limitless possibilities for change and adventure. It's also time to roll out the list of resolutions. Will this be the year you kick that smoking (or shopping) habit? Will you drop a few extra pounds? Will you finally contact those old high school classmates? With so many options, we've decided to help you out with a list of 25 New Year's resolutions. And best of all, we've used a nursing theme.

The bulk of the list was compiled from our Stressed Out books, a series intended to help new graduate nurses with the difficult transition from school to practice. Still, you can apply many of these to your life as a nurse manager:

1. Volunteer to be a mentor to a new nurse at your facility.
2. Volunteer to be a mentor to a new nurse outside your facility. Listservs, blogs, and discussion boards are great ways to network with colleagues across the country.
3. Join a committee that is working to improve the culture at your facility.
4. Don't talk about a colleague unless he or she is there to hear what you are saying.
5. Say "no" at least once a day. Saying "no" is a skill you need to practice so that you do not cave in. It's okay to set limits and say "no."
6. Get along with every physician at your facility. Yes, even that one.
7. Document accurately--every time. If you do make a mistake, handle the situation appropriately
8. Go to a day spa at least twice during the year to treat yourself. You deserve it.
9. Double-check every medication before administering it to a patient.
10. Create a budget and actually live by it.

Editor's Note: This excerpt was adapted from the article, "Making a New Year's (nursing) resolution" featured in the Reading Room on HCPro's new online resource center, www.StrategiesForNurseManagers.com!

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