10 Doses of Inspiration for Nurses Working on Christmas Day

Illness and trauma don't take the day off, so every Christmas a crew of nurses works while everyone else celebrates. If this is your first Christmas on the floor, or one you're dreading, here are some stories that show the work matters.

A Christmas Love Letter to Nurses

Lauren Tedaldi, a breast cancer survivor, skipped Christmas cards one year and posted a love letter to nurses instead. "We are grateful and thankful and completely unable to show you how much, because you see us when we are at our worst. When we are sick and tired (and sick and tired) and broken. And you fix us. We love you. Merry Christmas. I hope you get the holidays off."

Christmas Greetings From This Little Man

Naomi Patterson posted a video of her son in the hospital with the message: "Thanks to the excellent staff all year round, I get to spend another Christmas with my little man. Thank you to all. Merry Christmas."

Thank Your Nurses This Christmas

Plastic surgeon Anthony Youn rounded on a patient one Christmas morning and was struck by the nurse on duty, Sara, working her second 12 hour shift covering for a colleague who called in sick. "Operating on almost no sleep, she was spending Christmas working in the hospital instead of with her small children, and she was going about her job cheerfully, without complaint and with consummate professionalism." He spent the rest of the day urging people to thank their nurse.

Appreciating Nurses, With Discounts

An Australian restaurant posted a nurse appreciation note on Facebook: "Xmas is a hectic time for nurses. They work crazy hours, they are spread thin, and there's so much demand on them. Often they miss out on family time because they're busy helping everyone." They offered nurses a free breakfast and coffee.

An Impromptu Christmas Party

ER nurse Victoria Schlintz was on triage when a mother and four children showed up, all with vague complaints. The mother said they didn't mind waiting because the room was warm. The family was homeless. What they needed wasn't a prescription, it was Christmas. The nursing team claimed their own cafeteria meals, built a banquet, wrapped presents out of odds and ends, and took turns joining the party in the waiting room. It ran most of the shift, and by the end they had found a shelter that would take the family in. On the way out the four year old ran back and whispered, "Thanks for being our angels today." There wasn't a dry eye at the station.

Appreciating What You Have

Nurse Beth Hawkes had never worked a Christmas away from family and felt sorry for herself getting dressed for the shift. The day changed her mind. Caring for a mother newly diagnosed with an aggressive cancer, she was grateful her own husband was healthy and her children had two healthy parents. Sharing chocolate cake with a homeless young man who was a regular on the unit, she remembered she had a good job with benefits, worked indoors, and was earning holiday pay. By the end she was home with her family. "But still, maybe next year, could I get Christmas off?"

Dressing Up as Santa

Nurse Georgie chooses to work Christmas because of what the day means. One year she dressed as Santa and walked into a patient's room at midnight. The patient was opening presents with family over a video call, and the kids spotted Santa in the background.

The Hidden Positives

One nurse listed the less obvious upsides of a Christmas shift. You get out of the dawn cooking and the family gathering prep with a clean excuse: "I have to work." And on Boxing Day you're worn out and everyone fusses over you because you worked the holiday.

Bringing Christmas to Your Patients

Christmas on the unit looks nothing like a normal day. Patients don't want to be there any more than the nurses do, and the holidays hit the elderly, the children, and anyone without visitors the hardest. Jace Vargas-Weissner, who works at a children's hospital, said there's no protocol for spotting who needs extra attention, but nurses know. "The more seasoned nurses tend to lead the newer staff in showing it's OK to give a little extra, whether it's watching a cartoon while you both eat a popsicle, or sneaking them a cookie from the staff potluck if it's OK in their diet orders."

A Little Extra Caring Goes a Long Way

Nurses have always found ways to bring Christmas onto the floor, holiday scrubs and Santa hats, a decorated unit, extra time with a lonely patient, a small gift or treat. The shift can be a drag or it can be one you remember. That part is your call.