What nurses want shouldn't be surprising

HCA commissioned a study to better understand what drives, engages, and motivates new generations of nurses. And the results show that we're not asking for anything crazy - just having our basic needs as employees met (duh). Strong working relationships, opportunities for various types of career advancement, and access to resources took the cake. When it comes to what support in our work looks like, we're requesting flexible schedules, the ability to share our ideas, having our concerns heard, and opportunities for career advancement. Really, we’re asking for what has always been necessary to do our jobs effectively. We deserve the tools and an environment where we can succeed and provide our best patient care.

If anyone needs circadian TLC, it's nurses —

The Global Wellness Summit recently named circadian health as one of the hottest topics of 2020. Since everyone has been driven indoors to work under artificial lighting, and spend their nights in front of brightly lit screens, our circadian rhythms (aka the internal clocks that dictate sleepiness and alertness) have been off. No one knows this better than nurses on night shift, who have struggled with fatigue and fatigue-related illnesses for decades. But for the first time, the rest of the world is catching up to its consequences. Turns out, no one's body is made to work night shift. Surprise, surprise. But there's a new trend on the rise this year to mitigating a tweaked-out internal clock: Circadian entrainment, or exposing yourself to the right kind of light at the right time of day. Check out this great infographic on what you can do to boost your "circadian entertainment."

The latest on the Wuhan coronavirus —

The death toll has officially reached over 1,300, and the number of new cases is still on the rise (almost 60,000 at last count). Some experts are also concerned that it still may not have taken its foothold in the USA just yet. While officials are still working to contain the virus, unfortunately another new trend of discrimination against Chinese citizens and others of Asian descent has been on the rise. In some cases, cruise ships without any known cases onboard have even been getting barred entry into countries. So, while it's important to take precautions, when it comes to discriminating against entire populations of people, in the words of T-Swift: "you need to calm down."

Emotional well-being isn't a one size fits all —

The 2020 Employee Well-Being Report released by WebMD shows a gender and generational divide when it comes to emotional, physical, and financial well-being, stress levels, and the need for support. Females and millennials report higher importance on emotional well-being. Likewise, female caregivers report higher levels of loneliness and lower levels of financial well-being. Environmental health, on the other hand, is pervasive across genders and generations.

Nurse invents solution for unsightly catheters and leg bags —

Brian Mohika BSN, RN (and a United States Air Force veteran) is a shining example of a nurse turned entrepreneur. Mohika invented CathWear, an all-in-one catheter management system built into a comfortable, high-quality unisex brief. For those of us who have cared for patients with leg bags, I think we're all sharing a "why didn't I think of that!?" moment right now. Great work Brian!

Hell hath no fury (or integrity) like a hospital scorned —

A couple of weeks ago, a group of 8,000 nurses, technicians, and other employees of Seattle's Swedish Hospital went on strike. But when the strike ended three days later, many employees were turned away at the door. The hospital claimed it needed to honor the 5-day contracts of the temps they had brought in. But under further scrutiny, it turned out some of those temps weren't even licensed.