Watches are just simple accessories for most of us. It is an accessory that we use everyday just for us to tell time. Sometimes, we use it for clearly aesthetic purposes only. We switch our watches according to the outfits worn, or the activities that we may be doing throughout our day.But for nurses, they may not have the same consideration for watches that we do. In this article, we’ve listed some of the more popular watches we have in the market that can be considered as the best watches for nurses.

Not all watches can be good watches for nurses. There are specific characteristics of watches that need to be satisfied in order for them to be considered for the daily use of nurses and other medical practitioners.

Watches have become a staple for the lives of nurses all around the world. That is why it is important to choose the best one. Whether you are a nurse yourself or you simply know someone who is a nurse, a watch makes a great gift. Here are the 8 best watches for nurses that we recommend.

1. ShoppeWatch Nurse Lapel Pin Watch

This is a pretty watch that comes with the ordinary analog setting for watches. It comes with the pink one which has chrome hands but it also has the glow-in-the dark watch where you can see the face of the watch even at dark.

It is considerably a good and sturdy watch which you can easily pin to your uniform. You can pin this to somewhere it can be easily accessed but at the same time will still be out of your way as you work. This can be a good addition to watches for nurses since it can be easily pinned to nurses’ uniforms.

2. Prestige Medical Nurse Lanyard Watch Military Time

Another option to use as watches for nurses would be this Prestige Medical Nurse Lanyard Watch Military Time watch. This watch glows bright even if the room is dark. It comes with a leather-like strap.

It’s easy to clean and can be wiped down easily. You wouldn’t have to worry about stains or messes with this watch. It’s also set in military time so you can track the time easily and its second hand has 15 second intervals which is a good feature to have on a watch.

3. Casio Women’s LRW200H-7BVCF

This beautiful watch features a Japanese quartz with analog display and comes in a stark white color. The striking thing with this watch is indeed its color. It looks pristine when worn and doesn’t stain easily as well. Its design is simple and compact and it is lightweight.

One thing to love about this watch is that despite it being white, it is rather easy to clean. Washing your hands with soap and water with this watch attached is no problem because it is water resistant. It has a 24-hour clock and a nifty date feature as well. You can consider this as a good watch for nurses indeed.

4. Timex Weekender Watch Slip Thru Strap

This watch includes a slip thru strap which is interchangeable and has a lot of options. Although it is water resistant, this is the only feature of this watch that can be considered as a viable product for watches for nurses. It has been observed that this is a loud watch, meaning it has a ticking sound that can be very audible even if it’s not placed near the ears.

5. Nurse Mates – Specials – Rotating Dial Watch – Stethoscope

Consider this watch as a good option for watches for nurses. Its band is made entirely of rubber and it is set in military time. It is water resistant as well and has no ticking sounds. It’s simple and it works well. This would fit most female nurses too because it has a cute design on its clock face.

6. Prestige Medical Nurse White Scrub Watch

One stand-out feature for this watch is its clear second hand which is excellent in using to take vitals. It’s a good option as a watch for nurses because it is easy to clean and also waterproof. It shows the time in a 24-hour format and is very comfortable and lightweight. Its color also makes it match most nurses when they wear this during their duty.

However, its loud ticking has been known to put some people off when wearing this.

7. Dakota Watch Company Mini Clip Microlight Watch

If you like handy clip-on watches then this watch is for you. It is a watch that has a carabiner attached to it so you can easily hook it to somewhere accessible. It feels solid, but not so heavy. And the good thing with this watch that makes it a good buy as a watch for nurses is that it’s very durable. This is a watch meant to be used for the outdoors, but because it is durable and very handy, this is a good option for the medical and nursing profession’s use as well.

And the best thing? It has a microlight which you can use as sort of a mini flashlight.

The downside with this watch is that it has not been known to be that water-resistant. So that point is a good thing to consider in buying this type of watch.

8. Swatch White Bishop White and Gold Dial Plastic Silicone Quartz Ladies Watch GW164

This plastic watch is easy to clean and is waterproof. This is a good thing to consider if you’re out to buy watches for nurses. Nurses can appreciate this watch also because it can be used even if this is washed with soap and water.It’s lightweight and has a beautiful color to match any of your outfits.

One downside? It has a loud ticking which may be bothersome for others.

Reasons why a nurse needs a watch

There are various reasons as to why nurses need a watch when they’re working. Nurses often take vitals from their patients. For example, when taking the pulse rate of a patient, they need to count the number of pulses they can feel within a minute or so. They can also measure the rate that a dextrose is dropping to time how fast a medicine injected should be administered in a patient’s IV.

That is why having an analog watch is important to do this properly. Tracking vitals helps nurses, doctors and other medical practitioners evaluate the patient’s health correctly. They can use this information to know if the patient is progressing well or is reacting adversely to the treatment being given.

They also need a watch so that they are aware of the time that medicines are administered or taken. Not all hospital rooms may have a clock which they can refer to when they go and check on a patient. Nurses have to record the time that medicines are taken, or the time that a dextrose or medical equipment has been changed, or calculate the next time that they need to go back for a follow-up on changing some equipment or medicine used by the patient.

Tracking the time that medicines have been administered or taken also helps them observe the effect that the medicine has on a patient. This is crucial especially if a medicine has adverse effects on a patient, and only accurate follow-up and checkup on the patient’s condition will reveal the result. If accurate records are not efficiently kept and recorded, a patient’s life may hang in the balance.

Watches also make sure that their recording is accurate. Nurses are not just scribbling random information in a patient’s chart. Time needs to be accurate because date records of treatments, tests and assessments largely depend on the time recorded in the charts. Correct time recording also gives the doctors or other medical personnel an insight on the medical condition of the patient.

This therefore gives them a more accurate diagnosis as to the patient’s disease or ailment. Without proper time tracking, this could lead to further complications on the patients’ health.

A small guide to choosing watches for nurses

There are a lot of watches that nurses can use for their work. FOB watches used to be the watch of choice for most nurses years ago. But now, ordinary analog wristwatches have also been proven to do just as fine.

Waterproof

In choosing watches for nurses, it is important to go for a watch that is waterproof and still performs well even if used while washing your hands in soap and water. This is because nurses will always be washing their hands during their duty. What good is a wristwatch if you’ll just be consistently taking it off when you are washing your hands.

Furthermore, taking off your wristwatch when you wash with water and soap will greatly increase your chances of infection. Aside from this, a watch should have a quality that means even if it gets wet, it still functions properly.

Go for watches that don’t mist when exposed to water. Some watches, though saying that they are waterproof or water resistant, create a mist or fog in their face when it becomes wet. This will of course make the time unreadable for its wearer.

Easy to clean

That is why it’s important that watches for nurses should be easy to clean. Any nurse would definitely agree that it is unavoidable, during their duty, that their arms will come in contact with all kinds of fluids. Watches should still be okay even if is wiped down with alcohol to make sure that no contamination or infection remains even after being exposed to bodily fluids or harmful chemicals.

And even if it is easy to clean, watches should also still look and function the same. A watch is no good if a fluid will just stain it after wiping it clean.

Lightweight

Go for watches that are also lightweight. Throughout a nurses’ duty, they will be using their hands often and if a watch feels heavy and is dragging their arm down, they will be hampered. Watches should never get in the way. They should be easily accessible, but not to the point that their weight bothers the wearer.

Backlight

Watches with built-in backlight are also very useful for nurses. Why? Not all patients’ rooms are lit when nurses come to check in. And some rooms are specifically set to be dark because of medical or patient requirements. Nurses also sometimes check in the late hours, at a time when patients are sleeping or resting with their lights out.

Nurses should not be disturbing their patients just because they cannot see the time on their watch. This is especially critical if there are patients who are advised to go in a dark room after surgery. Nurses still need to be able to check their watch no matter the lighting, or absence thereof, of their patient’s room.

Silent – Minimal Ticking Sound

Make sure also that watches bought for nurses are also silent. There are a lot of wristwatches in the market that have a loud ticking sound even when worn. This would not do because this may irritate patients when nurses go into a quiet room. And, the constant ticking sound may be distracting for some nurses especially if they are concentrating on timing their measurements with the movement of the secondhand.

Analog

As with all watches for nurses, watches bought should be analog and should show a 24-hour format. It should be analog because nurses need the secondhand of analog watches to track most vitals. It should also come in a 24-hour format because most of their records use this format when listing down time in patients’ records. While digital watches are okay to use, looking and using analog makes it easier to track the seconds passing by which corresponds to rate measurement.

In Conclusion

To be efficient as a nurse, sometimes it takes a little accessory such as a watch to make or break your performance on duty. It may indeed be little but it is a small thing that has become important in the daily lives of nurses and other medical practitioners as well. Choosing the right one will immensely help in aiding nurses. The importance of watches should not be set aside if we consider their help to all who are in the nursing or medical profession. One must learn to accurately choose which watch gives the best benefits. And in doing so, it can definitely make the lives of nurses easier.