National Nurses Week is May 6—12, 2024. Our nurses deserve some much-needed love this week! They have worked so hard this past year to help those affected by the pandemic.
National Nurses Week started officially in 1993. It runs every year from May 6—12. Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing, was born on May 12th, 1820 in Florence, Italy.
Here are 5 ideas to celebrate your lifesaving, vitals-taking, game-changing nurses.
NATIONAL NURSES WEEK IDEAS: 5 WAYS TO CELEBRATE YOUR NURSING TEAM
When the time comes every year to celebrate National Doctor’s Day or National Nurses Week, you want to find something special to thank your healthcare workers.
Whether you’re a small community clinic or a big network of hospitals, you understand the important role of registered nurses on your team.
And while burnout is possible in any industry, it’s healthcare workers who may be most at risk, given the nature of the job. Here are some ways to show appreciation during National Nurses Week.
1. PROMOTE NATIONAL NURSES WEEK AROUND TOWN
Get your whole town involved to recognize the importance of nursing in your community. Form a partnership with other local healthcare clinics and hospitals to make a group announcement regarding National Nurses Week.
Work with your local library to create a display highlighting books about nursing and the history of healthcare.
Send your most charismatic nurse to schools — elementary through high school — to talk about the nursing profession.
Finally, request that local politicians (on both sides of political party lines) make a public statement regarding the importance of the role of nurses in the healthcare field.
2. HONOR A SPECIAL NURSE
A great way to celebrate National Nurses Week is to recognize one or more nurses on your team who have made a particular impact in your community. That could be due to years of service, a demonstrated commitment to nursing, exemplary patient service, or another special benchmark.
Hold a special lunchtime gathering, or an after-hours event, that can honor your special nurses with a celebratory recognition ceremony.
Related: 3 Tips for Improve Morale for Hospital Staff
3. NATIONAL NURSES WEEK GIFT IDEAS
If you have too many great nurses to pick just one, give out some little (or big) gifts to your nursing staff. Here are some ideas:
- Step trackers
- Flowers, balloons, signed cards from other staff members
- Gift cards to local restaurants or stores
- On-site chair massage for Nurses Week
- Personalized notes of thanks from your CEO or Clinical Director
- Promotional items such as pins, mugs, t-shirts, water bottles, etc.
Homemade treats and goodie baskets are another option to add a more personal touch to your gifts.
4. GATHER YOUR NURSES WEEK RESOURCES
The American Nurses Association offers some great resources for any organization that is celebrating National Nurses Week. Their downloadable toolkit includes marketing resources, customizable certificates, and more ideas to recognize your nursing staff.
And don’t forget about your online marketing! Find or create hashtags, such as #nursesweek, that you can promote on your company’s social media channels.
Share your celebrations on a Facebook Live video, so your team can virtually share their mid-day celebrations with their family and friends.
And post stories about each of your nurses highlighting what they bring to your team.
5. MEDITATION OR YOGA FOR NURSES WEEK
Take some time to meditate or do yoga with your team of nurses! Encourage nurses to take 5 to 10 minutes to meditate during their lunch break. You can direct them to this 7-minute meditation video.
You can also follow along to a yoga session online.
If you aren’t able to do these sessions together in person, provide your employees an app like Nivati so they can take care of themselves on their own time.
You can also provide nurses with stress management tools and resources on how to prioritize self-care so they can get a much-needed break.
NURSES WEEK DEALS TO LOOK OUT FOR
Many businesses are offering special perks to nurses this Nurses Week! Let your nurses know about some of these great offers:
- Dunkin’ Donuts is giving away free medium hot or iced coffees to healthcare workers.
- Chipotle has a couple contests going on for a chance to win free burritos and a $500 Chipotle gift card.
- Jimmy John’s is offering $5 off online and in-app orders that are $20 or more. Use the promo code 5OFF20—it’s good through June 13th!
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