Great Books for Nurses

Whether you’re reading while settling into a new home or en route to a new assignment, sometimes there’s nothing better than diving into a great book. There are many fantastic reads on nursing that are both fun and educational.

Read on for Gifted Healthcare's list of great books for nurses!

Notes on Nursing: What It Is, and What It Is Not

Nurses of all kinds are sure to love Notes on Nursing: What It Is, and What It Is Not by Florence Nightingale, one of the most important nurses in history.

Florence's legacy began during the Crimean War in the mid-1800s, where she implemented high standards of sanitation and patient care. She took what she learned in Crimea back home to Great Britain, and soon had developed a reputation as a world-class hospital manager.

Notes on Nursing includes advice on cleanliness, interpersonal dynamics, health, and much more. And while clinical standards have advanced far beyond what can be found in Notes, it is a fantastic document of the start of modern nursing.

How to Survive and Maybe Even Love Your Life as a Nurse

How to Survive and Maybe Even Love Your Life as a Nurse by Kelli S. Dunham is a great resource for new nurses.

How to Survive takes the reader from graduation to their first days as a self-confident, professional nurse. The book provides wonderful tips and encouragement, and can be used as a mentor away from the facility.

This book will help you do more than just survive your first days as a nurse – it’s a lovely companion that provides support as you make your way to nursing excellence.

Inspired Nurse

Inspired Nurse by Rich Bluni is a beautiful tribute to nurses that explores the great joys and sorrows of the nursing experience.

Nursing is a physically and emotionally taxing profession, and burnout is common. Inspired Nurse aims to guide new nurses through the intangible and occasionally overwhelming requirements of the job, and to help veteran nurses reclaim the passion they may have lost.

Inspired Nurse acknowledges that nurses have good days and bad days, and reminds us that the journey is actually the reward.

Becoming Nursey

Becoming Nursey by RN Kati Kleber is full of stories that highlight the reality of nursing and bedside care.

Kleber’s book gives detailed advice and tips on the safest and most efficient ways to care for your patients. Becoming Nursey discusses how to avoid “losing yourself” to your job, which greatly increases the chance you’ll make a life-ending, or career-ending, mistake.

Becoming Nursey will help you take excellent care of your patients while still taking care of yourself.