Encouraging employee wellness is essential for any company, but healthcare employees, especially nurses, deserve special appreciation for their commitment to helping patients. Nurses work long, stress-filled hours to ensure everyone has access to quality medical care, so gifts that encourage physical and mental wellness can be meaningful employee rewards.

Keep reading to learn why you should participate in National Nurses Day and which rewards nurses love the most!

Showing appreciation for nurses is more important than ever

According to a Mental Health America survey from 2020, 93% of healthcare workers reported regular stress on the job, and nurses were more likely than any other position to feel exhausted after work. 

Since the beginning of the pandemic, nursing turnover has spiked, and clinics and hospitals are experiencing shortages that add to the remaining nurses’ workload, leading to more stress and potential burnout.

Human resources (HR) teams in healthcare organizations can show gratitude to their hard working nurses by creating a recognition program, rewarding nurses for outstanding patient care, work anniversaries, birthdays, training, etc. 

While a $10 Starbucks gift card doesn’t seem like much of a reward in exchange for the intensive work nurses do, getting their favorite coffee for free can be a much-needed bright spot in the middle of a taxing 12-hour shift.

Learn more about how easy it is to use gift links to send rewards.

Top digital rewards to encourage wellness for nurses

Rewards are excellent for boosting employee engagement and reducing turnover, but what kind of rewards do employees want? 

A survey on employee incentive preferences found that 41% of employees want gift cards or prepaid cards, third only to bonuses and time off work. 

If you want to give your nurses rewards they’ll love, consider the following digital gift card ideas:

Food delivery options

Gift cards for romantic dinners and coffee dates can be thoughtful rewards for nurses who need more time with family and friends, however the best gift for a tired nurse is food delivery options. Nobody wants to cook dinner after a long nursing shift.

  • Uber Eats
  • Grubhub
  • DoorDash 

OPT Blog Image - Nurses talking to each other during their shift at the hospital

Self-care

After long, hectic shifts, nurses need some rejuvenating self-care to feel confident and nurtured before returning to work. Encourage them to treat themselves with gift cards from brands like:

  • Bed Bath & Beyond
  • Bath & Body Works
  • Spa & Wellness Gift Card by Spa Week
  • Ulta Beauty 

Travel

Nurses should take time off work to give themselves mental health breaks and avoid burnout. Whether it’s for a family vacation or a weekend trip, you could pitch in with gift cards from brands like these:

  • Uber
  • Fairmont Hotels & Resorts
  • Marriott
  • Hotels.com 

New call-to-action

Fitness & sports

Nursing can be physically taxing. If you have nursing staff that likes to keep fit, you could reward them with gift cards to the top athletic brands, such as:

  • Athleta
  • Nike
  • Adidas
  • Under Armour

Nutrition

Busy nurses might find it hard to eat healthy while working long hours. The following are brands that offer healthy diet supplements so nurses can get the vitamins they need to stay strong:

  • The Vitamin Shoppe
  • CVS Pharmacy
  • Jamba Juice

New call-to-action

Giftbit simplifies rewarding our heroes

With Giftbit, you don’t have to be tech-savvy to send digital employee rewards. Our app is easy to use, enabling you to send over a hundred digital gift cards in seconds — all you need is your employees’ email addresses. We also offer a diverse catalog of brands to choose from, including the ones we listed above that promote employee wellness. 

Get ready for National Nurses Day; sign up for Giftbit now, and learn how to make your organization’s nurses feel special with personalized rewards.