Whether you are looking for the perfect christmas gift, birthday gift, or maybe even a going-away-on-your-first-assignment gift, we’ve got some great ideas for you. Check out these twelve gift ideas we can guarantee your nurse would appreciate!
1. Stoggles
Stoggles are the newest glasses/gadget essential during these covid times. They come in tons of cute colors, two different sizes, and two different shapes! Not only that, but they are anti-fog (since masks have become normal for every shift), block out blue light (for all those hours we spend charting on the computer), and they block out pesky germs and any other bodily fluids that might come our way. Too expensive? Check out the knock offs on Amazon that come in a cute tortoise shell!
2. Badge Reels
Nursing practice can vary from specialty to specialty, including the gadgets that you use. However, every single nurse needs to wear their badge! And why not get a badge that you know your nurse will be proud to wear? For a classic nurse themed badge, look no further than Snarky Nurses. These badges will have your nurse chuckling. Or maybe you want a badge with a favorite team, or book character? No problem! Check out Etsy for nurse badge reel themes; you can’t go wrong!
3. Scrub Caps (Scrunchies or Headbands)
Does your nurse have beautiful hair, or maybe they work in the operating room, or labor and delivery? Help your nurse out and get them one of these items! Scrub caps are helpful not just if this nurse is in the operating room a lot, but since covid times, a lot of people are enjoying having all of their hair up in a cap to keep themselves a little cleaner. There are plenty of options out there, especially on Etsy! If you don’t know where to start, we recommend OrganicMamaDesign! You can even pick buttons on the side so that it can hold the mask nurses have to wear for 12 hours! Don’t think they will appreciate or use a scrub cap? Then any cute headband or scrunchie will work great! Just make sure it’s one that can be thrown in the wash; who knows what fluids might end up on it.
4. Good pens
This might sound silly, but never underestimate a good pen for nurse. What makes a good pen? Well, first and most important rule of a good pen for a nurse is that IT DOESN’T SMEAR. This is very important because we sign and label lots of things, and if the ink smears and makes the writing illegible… just take our word for it! Also, a good pen doesn’t have a cap you take on or off! Click, you can write! Maybe the pen has multiple color inks? Your ICU nurse might love that! Or maybe its fine point and colorful? Honestly, you don’t have to be fancy, Bic or Papermate usually make some pretty great options.
5. Compression Socks
After 12 hours of standing or running around all shift, your legs really start to feel it, your ankles and feet are all puffy, and veins are probably pooling with blood! Which is why a common problem older nurses complain about is their beautiful collection of varicose veins (if you don’t know what those look like, google it). Best way to prevent these is using compression socks! We have multiple companies to recommend to you that our nurse staff here at Travelers Handoff have used. Smartwool and Sockwell are some brands we have tried and stuck with for many years now, and we know they mostly stand up to the test of time (one pair has lasted 5 years)! But now days there are some SUPER CUTE ones being sold by Figs that are just so hard to ignore.
6. Gift Cards
We know what you’re thinking, and the answers is: No, gift cards are a great gift and everyone loves getting them! Now the key to giving a great gift card is knowing your nurse. An outdoorsy nuse that enjoys hiking, backpacking, skiing, or camping, you can’t go wrong with an REI gift card. Or maybe they love to read, and you can get them a gift card to their local bookstore. Or a gift card to a favorite shop (lululemon, Anthropologie, H&M) always goes a long way for any nurse. If you aren’t sure what to get, the best fall backs are gonna Starbucks or Amazon.
7. Tumbler
Regardless if your nurse friend is a coffee, tea, red-bull, or water drinker, they need a tumbler, we promise you. At the end of the day, nurses are not the best at taking care of themselves, and we need all the help we can get to encourage us to stay hydrated. A good tumbler has to be a double walled insulated cup so that it keeps hot drinks hot and cold bevys cold. We personally are big fans of Yeti and Hydroflask, but would also recommend Miir – 20oz at least!
8. Apple Watch
If you want to really impress your travel nurse, get them an Apple Watch. They are definitely the latest and best nurse gadget for personal needs. Not only does it keep track of steps taken, and allow us to look at our texts quickly, it also can be set to seconds for ease of VS. It allows the wearer to compete with their other friends with an Apple Watch, and friendly competition is never a bad thing! It also work seamlessly with the Apple phone, so if your nurse has an iPhone, but no watch, splurge and get them that beautiful gadget.
9. Theragun
Let’s be real, a Theragun, who doesn’t need one of these? Okay, maybe Oprah, who has enough money to afford someone to massage her every day. But really, something to help a nurse out and have a better feeling body is ALWAYS a great gift. If a Theragun is too pricy, think about getting them a git card for a massage. But a good long term investment to help out a nurse more than just once, will definitely be some kind of massage gun.
10. Travel Bag
Most travel nurses we know don’t just travel for nurse contracts and jobs, they also travel for fun and vacations. A great travel companion for both types of travel is a good travel bag, the size of a carry-on. We here at Travelers Handoff are very big fans of a good backpack for a carry-on or travel bag, and we would like to recommend a good Cotopaxi Allpa 42L Travel bag. It’s made for all types of travel, is not a rolling bag (so you look less like a tourist), and has been taken by some of our own staff on both domestic and international trips, with great success.
11. Scrubs
This is the easy one for most nurses, because unless they work in L&D or the Operating Room, they probably need their own scrubs. Here are two different companies that make scrubs that some of our staff have enjoyed: Figs or WonderWink. We like Figs because they are just so beautiful and have some different and comfortable looks. Wonderwink we are a fan of because they are super comfy and made out of material that is super quick drying (for those days you forgot to wash your scrubs).
12. Fleece Jacket
There is a jacket that will always look good paired with any color scrubs a nurse might be wearing, and that is the quintessential Patagonia Better Sweater Fleece Jacket. Most nurses that have been to a large teaching hospital know that this jacket is KING, especially for night shift nurses, when the temperature seems to drop on the unit. These jackets also seem to make everyone look stylish, slimmer, and just darn professional. They are also made out of recycled materials and fair trade certified, so that you can buy your jacket guilt-free!
