Tips for Balancing Your Healthcare Career and Keeping Your Family Healthy at Home

Healthcare is a truly rewarding field, but it is also extremely stressful and requires long hours away from home. Maintaining a strong-work-life balance and focusing on physical and mental health can be difficult for most healthcare professionals. However, with some focus and forethought, you can succeed.

Know Your Priorities

It’s easy for priorities to get out of line when you’re busy and in the swing of things with your career. However, it’s important to take a step back now and then and identify what really matters to you and focus on things that you may have been neglecting.  For example, making your home spotless on your days off is taking time away from family. Look for a better solution like hiring a cleaning service, assigning chores to older members of the household, or simply allowing a little dirt to gather now and then.

Have A Home Schedule

If you have children and you don’t have a master calendar/schedule, make one. A calendar keeps things from falling through the cracks, ensures everyone knows where other members of the family are, where they need to be and when, and more. Schedules can also be a game-changer in terms of meal planning and chores, especially when you are at work. By planning ahead, you ensure everyone stays on their own personal schedule and that there is more time for family.

Set Boundaries

Technology has blurred the boundaries between work and home life. It’s not uncommon for someone to send work files, emails, images, or questions during your off-hours. While some patient questions must be answered, unless you are on call, turn off all work notifications while you are with your family at home so that you are present with them during your personal time.

Prioritize Health at Home

Your entire job is caring for the health of other people, and that means that you and your family could actually be less healthy. It’s the old “the cobbler’s children have no shoes” conundrum. After 8-12 hours a day or more on your feet focused on others, the last thing you have the energy for is exercise or taking the time to eat well. But it’s important to set aside time for exercise – and that goes for the whole family. Consider taking up outdoor activities like biking or hiking that you can do together on days off, which will give everything something to look forward to while staying active.

Find A Job That Provides Better Balance

Sometimes, it’s worthwhile to examine whether the job you have is worth the stress and time away from family. If you are looking for a great new healthcare job that can provide better balance, talk to the recruiters at Employment Professionals Canada.   Browse our current openings, contact us online or give us a call at 1-800-842-0421 learn more.