The mindful nurse.

Mindfulness is the awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, with compassion, and open-hearted curiosity . Through cultivating mindful awareness, we discover how to live in the present moment rather than brooding about the past or worrying about the future. Mindfulness, in my opinion, may just be one of the most important skills that can be taught to nurses (and other caregivers). It is an easily taught skill that can help to strengthen resilience, improve concentration, decrease likelihood of errors, improve clinical performance, nurture empathy and lessen the effects of chronic stress. As well as benefits to caregivers, there is now a growing body of evidence to show its effects when taught as part of our patients care planning, including: long-lasting physical and psychological stress reduction positive changes in well-being a decreased propensity to become stuck in states of depression and exhaustion. improved ability to control addictive behaviour. I have been practicing Zazen, (a particular form of meditation closely related to mindfulness practice) now for many years with varying degrees of consistency. When I am engaged in a regular practice I can attest to some very real and deep experience of the benefits mentioned above. The trick is to commit to making it a regular part of your daily routine, and this can be very difficult for shift-workers immersed in the hectic warp and woof of hospital life. One of my own New Years res...
Source: impactEDnurse - Category: Nurses Authors: Tags: tips and tricks Source Type: blogs