Time management is the process of exerting conscious control over the amount of time spent on particular activities. It requires balancing a number of demands from work, family, social life, hobbies, commitments, etc. Nurses actually have little direct control over many of these activities, which restricts their options for time management.
A nurse typically spends 76 percent of their day administering medications and interacting with other professionals. Patients occupy the remaining 37% of the time. They can finish up to 72 tasks per hour, experience two interruptions per hour, and take 55 seconds to finish a task on average. On the other hand, nurses can choose to use their time more effectively by focusing on time management.
Be organized
Creating and maintaining a well-organized workspace can aid in time management. Maintaining organization can help you store medical records and patient information in convenient locations and find pertinent information more quickly, freeing up more time for patient care. Try putting in place a time-saving organizational system that all nurses can use for shared areas, documents, and tools.
Arrive Early for Your Shift
You'd be surprised at the difference ten extra minutes of preparation can make in the quality of your day. Get into the habit of showing up at work a little early; most people choose to arrive between 10 and 20 minutes before their shift is scheduled to start. While staying in bed for an extra few minutes to sleep in might sound appealing, getting up a little earlier will make your day go much more smoothly.
Getting to work a little early gives you the chance to grab a cup of tea, settle down, and carefully read through all reports and handover sheets before the nursing life rush starts. Beginning the day anxious and hurriedly will only have a domino effect that will throw you off track for the rest of the day.
Plan attainable goals
You can find ways to increase productivity and better manage your time by setting attainable, measurable goals. To stay focused and gauge your success, try setting concrete goals with due dates. If you want to see more patients in a day, for instance, you could decide to see 15 patients on average each day for the next two weeks.
Don't be afraid to assign tasks to others
Finding a balance between being a team player and not always saying yes and taking on everyone else's extra work can be challenging. Don't be afraid to take responsibility and start assigning to other team members because being able to assign tasks to those best suited for the role is an essential component of working within a team. Asking someone else to take on the less important tasks in the interim if you have urgently needed tasks that must be completed shouldn't make you feel self-centered.
Set your responsibilities in order of importance.
Setting priorities will help you finish your crucial work during your shift. Think about your tasks and the amount of time needed to complete each one before or at the beginning of your shift. Then, arrange your tasks logically, starting with the ones you can complete right away. To maximize your time in one area, you can also group related tasks together. Make sure you have enough time to handle all patient needs throughout your shift and budget extra time to handle any unexpectedly urgent tasks.
The environments in which nurses frequently work are hectic, have strict deadlines, and have constantly shifting priorities. You can become more flexible, produce higher-quality work, and reduce stress by managing your time. The ability to focus on important tasks and priorities is another reason why mastering time management skills is essential to achieving your long-term career goals, particularly if you want to pursue managerial or leadership positions.
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