The Future of Nursing 2020–2030: Charting a path to achieve health equity

Healthy sleep and nursing

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has increased and highlighted the day-to-day demands of nursing and effects on sleep. 1 During the pandemic, the prevalence of sleep disturbances among healthcare workers and nursing students was 31% and 27% (respectively), compared to 18% of the general population. 2,3 Given that sleep is important for cognitive, emotional and physical wellbeing, 4,5 sleep may be especially important for nurses -a demanding profession that often requires shift work -a known risk factor for poor sleep.…”

“…2,3 Given that sleep is important for cognitive, emotional and physical wellbeing, 4,5 sleep may be especially important for nurses -a demanding profession that often requires shift work -a known risk factor for poor sleep. 1,6 Studies support the importance of sleep for nurses. [7][8][9] Poor sleep has been associated with reduced quality of life, weight gain, hypertension, and diabetes among nurses.…”

“…These programs are important to promote nurses' health and are strongly associated with patient safety and workforce sustainability. 1,[19][20][21] In Victoria, Australia, the six-week 'Happy People at Work' program, which promotes energy, mood, stress reduction, and sleep was piloted in 2017 among 874 nurses and midwives. 22 The trial found 59% of 807 respondents reported that they gained strategies to help with sleep, although many (45%) reported that they were still learning how to effectively apply strategies.…”

“…There are thoughts that strategies to promote wellbeing and resilience should be developed early in a nurse's career. 1 However, many of these initiatives fail to identify the importance of sleep despite growing concerns of poor sleep during the graduate nurse year. 1 In a recent study of 88 newly graduated nurses working in a tertiary hospital in South Korea, Kim and Lee found a significant decline in subjective sleep quality over the first four months of undertaking shift work as a nurse, which was associated with a decline in quality of life.…”

The Future of Nursing 2020–2030

“…The preceptor must understand how to facilitate turning these into learning opportunities by setting aside time to discuss possible interventions for addressing these disparities. These discussions should include how to care for diverse patients with competence and empathy (Hassmiller & Wakefield, 2022). However, because of the numerous disparities in health care, teaching preceptors to take a positive approach through methodology such as appreciative inquiry (AI) may be beneficial.…”