Nurses: Focus on Personal Health and Wellness in the New Year

By Kelly Hancock, DNP, RN, NE-BC

When Cleveland Clinic’s 450 nurse leaders convened for the health system’s 8th annual Nursing Leadership Summit last August, they walked away with an important message from one event keynote speaker – health and wellness are pivotal to success and happiness, in and out of the workplace.

For better or worse, nurses are givers, not takers. And, like many, nurses are often pulled in several directions at work and at home. With the 24/7 nature of a nurse’s life, it’s understandable that personal health and wellness can fall behind other demands.

However, according to 2016 Nursing Leadership Summit guest speaker Jennifer Lea from Johnson & Johnson’s Human Performance Institute, for ultimate success in all facets of life – family, work, relationships, and more – nurses should make health and wellness a top priority.

At Cleveland Clinic’s Summit, Lea explained that focusing on personal health and wellness helps maintain positive energy. She stressed that energy is a person’s most critical resource, it is four-dimensional (emotional, physical, mental and spiritual) and it helps one ignite his or her full potential.

While Lea’s training session for Cleveland Clinic’s nurse leaders was designed to educate attendees on how to properly manage the demands of their energy, she noted that successfully doing so helps nurses stay healthy, succeed at work, enjoy relationships with friends and family and engage in pursuits outside of work. Lea’s message inspired the health system’s nurse leaders to consider the possibilities for expanding Cleveland Clinic’s nursing excellence if nursing caregivers are working to their fullest potential and nursing leaders are leading to their fullest potential.

As we enter a New Year, nurses everywhere want to put their best foot forward. But, to be the best, one has to be at their best. The following includes tips nurses can use to help achieve their full potential by making personal health and wellness a priority in 2017.

Health and wellness tips for nurses

Below is a selection of the many tips Lea presented to Cleveland Clinic.

Become more physically energized.

• Eat no more than 5 handfuls of food per meal.
• Ideal meals include carbohydrates and protein; snacks should be low glycemic.
• Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day and get 7 to 8 hours of sleep each night.
• Do some form of physical activity daily and do at least 2 strength training and 2 cardiovascular interval workouts per week.

Become more emotionally connected.

• Fully focus (100%) when speaking with someone, no multi-tasking.
• Set a specific day every other week to either spend time with someone you love or do something you love.
• For the first 30 minutes at home after work, turn your cell phone off and give your best energy.
• Call loved ones once a week at a specific time.

Become more mentally focused.

• Prepare 10 affirmations and read them daily as part of your mental preparation routine.
• Journal for 5 minutes each evening before bed.
• Strategically disengage every 90 to 120 minutes to help perform at your best.

Become more aligned with what is most important.

• Invest your full and best energy in the moments that matter most.
• At the end of each day, reflect on whether you followed your rules of engagement. Ask yourself, “Did my behavior today reflect my core values?”
• Focus your energy on what you want, not on what you don’t want.

In addition, the following is a brief overview of the “Six Cornerstones of Wellness,” which was devised by a Cleveland Clinic nurse who worked in Cleveland Clinic’s Wellness Institute.

These wellness cornerstones are designed to help develop healthy habits and commitment to work/life balance to make wellness part of daily life.

• Nutrition: Eat healthy to feel better and have more energy.
• Physical activity: Perform physical activity daily to help lower blood pressure, improve your immune system and more.
• Stress management: Acknowledge and become resilient to stress.
• Sleep: Get adequate sleep for energy, motivation and more.
• Weight management: Achieve and maintain an ideal weight.
• Prevent/treat chronic diseases: Schedule a yearly physical, educate yourself, and get to know your family’s health history.

Remember, when health and wellness are a priority, nursing professionals have greater opportunity to function at their fullest potential, live happier lives and succeed in more areas of life. So, start the New Year off with health and wellness at the forefront of your plans and aim for a successful and happy 2017!

Kelly Hancock is the Executive Chief Nursing Officer of the Cleveland Clinic Health System, and Chief Nursing Officer of Cleveland Clinic Main Campus.

Follow Kelly on Twitter at @kkellyhancock.