.A wise nursing quote might be helpful to motivate you on the days when you need a little inspiration to get through your shifts or decide whether you’ll laugh or weep.
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Every shift as a nurse presents you with a new set of difficulties and new levels of vulnerability. Nursing may quickly transform into an amazing job, whether it’s at the patient’s bedside or on a mental level. In the middle of these events, words of wisdom emerge that can inspire and raise us.
Here is a collection of 156 inspirational nursing quotes that will help you stay strong when things seem impossible. These quotations, from Florence Nightingale to contemporary nurses, serve as a reminder of why we selected this amazing profession in the first place.
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Beautify your environment with stunning wall art adorned with inspirational nursing quotes.
156 Best Nursing Quotes
Table of Contents
1. “I did not think of going to give myself a position, but for the sake of common humanity.” – Florence Nightingale
2. “Nurses are always there; you care for us from the earliest years. You look after us in our happiest and saddest times. And for many, you look after us and our families at the end of our lives. Your dedication and professionalism are awe-inspiring.” – Duchess Kate Middleton
3. “The trained nurse has become one of the great blessings of humanity, taking a place beside the physician and the priest.” – William Osler
4. “It would not be possible to praise nurses too highly.” – Stephen Ambrose
5. “Most of all, you need moral courage because nursing is about the pursuit of justice. It requires you to stand up to bullies, to do things that are right but difficult, and to speak your mind even when you are afraid. I wasn’t strong like this when I started out. Nursing made me strong.” – Tilda Shalof
6. “Finding a good nurse is not just about checking off a list of skills the nurse can perform; it’s also about finding someone who is a good fit for your home.” – Charisse Montgomery
7. “Every nurse ought to be careful to wash her hands very frequently during the day. If her face, too, so much the better.” – Florence Nightingale
8. “One person caring about another represents life’s greatest value.” – Jim Rohn
9. “Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.” – Mother Teresa
10. “Nursing is not for everyone. It takes a very strong, intelligent, and compassionate person to take on the ills of the world with passion and purpose and work to maintain the health and well-being of the planet.” – Donna Wilk Cardillo
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11. “Nurses: one of the few blessings of being ill.” – Sara Moss-Wolfe
12. “I didn’t want just any career, so I am not going to be just any nurse.” – Denise Richards
13. “Apprehension, uncertainty, waiting, expectation, fear of surprise, do a patient more harm than any exertion.“ – Florence Nightingale
14. “Everything is sketchy. The world does nothing but sketch.” – Florence Nightingale
15. “Where the needs of the world and your talents cross, there lies your vocation.” – Aristotle
16. “I may be compelled to face danger, but never fear it, and while our soldiers can stand and fight, I can stand and feed and nurse them.” – Clara Barton
17. “A caress, a smile, is full of meaning for one who is sick. It is a simple gesture, but encouraging; he or she feels accompanied, feels closer to being healed, feels like a person, not a number.” – Pope Francis
18. “Never give up on anybody. Miracles happen every day.” – H. Jackson Brown Jr.
19. “Let us fill our hearts with our own compassion – towards ourselves and towards all living beings.” – Thich Nhat Hanh
20. “May we hope that, when we are all dead and gone, leaders will arise who have been personally experienced in the hard, practical work, the difficulties, and the joys of organizing nursing reforms and who will lead far beyond anything we have done!” – Florence Nightingale
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21. “Panic plays no part in the training of a nurse.” – Elizabeth Kenny
22. “I think a hero is any person really intent on making this a better place for all people.” – Maya Angelou
23. “I attribute my success to this:—I never gave or took an excuse.”- Florence Nightingale
24. “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” – Derek Bok
25. “Don’t let anyone treat you like an expired 24 butterfly gauge. You are a #16 in the left forearm with excellent venous return!” – unknown
26. “Hardships often prepare people for an extraordinary destiny.” – C.S. Lewis
27. “I am of certain convinced that the greatest heroes are those who do their duty in the daily grind of domestic affairs whilst the world whirls as a maddening dreidel.” – Florence Nightingale
28. “Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and, above all, confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this something, at whatever cost, must be attained.” – Marie Curie
29. “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth.” – Muhammad Ali
30. “Confidence is not ‘they will like me,’ confidence is “I’ll be fine if they don’t.” Successful people have fear, successful people have doubts, and successful people have worries. They just don’t let these feelings stop them.” – T. Harv Eker
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31. “The very first requirement in a hospital is that it should do the sick no harm.” – Florence Nightingale
32. “I’m not telling you it’s going to be easy; I’m telling you it’s going to be worth it.” – Art Williams
33. “Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow.” – Anthony J. D’Angelo
34. “Have a heart that never hardens, a temper that never tires, a touch that never hurts.” – Charles Dickens
35. “Our fingerprints don’t fade from the lives we touch.” – Judy Blume
36. “To do what nobody else will do, a way that nobody else can do, in spite of all we go through; that is to be a nurse.” – Rawsi Williams
37. “Nurses are a unique kind. They have this insatiable need to care for others, which is both their greatest strength and fatal flaw.” – Dr. Jean Watson
38. “Let us never consider ourselves finished nurses … we must be learning all of our lives.” – Florence Nightingale
39. “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead
40. “The world gives you so much pain, and here you are, making gold out of it – there is nothing purer than that.” – Rupi Kaur
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41. “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.” – Dr. Seuss
42. “America’s nurses are the beating heart of our medical system.” – Barack Obama
43. “Being a nurse means to hold all your own tears and start drawing smiles on people’s faces.” – Dana Basem
44. “The character of a nurse is as important as the knowledge she possesses.” – Carolyn Jarvis
45. “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest accomplishment or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” – Leo Buscaglia
46. “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” – Mahatma Gandhi
47. “A nurse is compassion in scrubs” – Lexie Saige
48. “Our job as nurses is to cushion the sorrow and celebrate the job, every day, while we are ‘just doing our jobs.’” – Christine Belle
49. “I did not think of going to give myself a position, but for the sake of common humanity.” – Florence Nightingale
50. “Success is not final. Failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill
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51. “It is the nurse that the child first hears, and her words that he will first attempt to imitate.” – Quintilian
52. “The world is put back by the death of everyone who has to sacrifice the development of his or her peculiar gifts to conventionality.” – Florence Nightingale
53. “I think one’s feelings waste themselves in words; they ought all to be distilled into actions which bring results.” – Florence Nightingale
54. “Unless we are making progress in our nursing every year, every month, every week, take my word for it we are going back.” – Florence Nightingale
55. “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” – Nelson Mandela
56. “To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived, this is to have succeeded.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
57. “Every nurse was drawn to nursing because of a desire to care, to serve, or to help.” – Christina Feist-Heilmeier
58. “Nurses encompasses an art, a humanistic orientation, a feeling for the value of the individual, and an intuitive sense of ethics, and of the appropriateness of action taken.” – Myrtle Aydelotte
59. “The most important practical lesson that can be given to nurses is to teach them what to observe-how to observe-what symptoms indicate improvement-what the reverse-which are of importance-which are of none-which are the evidence of neglect-and of what kind of neglect.” – Florence Nightingale
60. “Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.” — Earl Nightingale
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61. “It is not how much you do, but how much love you put in the doing.” – Mother Teresa
62. “Nurses are like icebergs. At any one time, you are only seeing what they are actually doing.” – Ian Miller
63. “For the sick it is important to have the best.” – Florence Nightingale
64. “Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.” – St. Francis of Assisi
65. “The longer I’m in the profession, the more experiences shape my life, the more amazing colleagues influence me, the more I see the micro and macro power of nursing.” – Joni Watson
66. “We are each made for goodness, love, and compassion. Our lives are transformed as much as the world is when we live with these truths.” – Desmond Tutu
67. “Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair, but manifestation of strength and resolution.” – Kahlil Gibran
68. “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring; all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” – Leo Buscaglia
69. “God appoints our graces to be NURSES to other men’s weaknesses.” – Henry Ward Beecher
70. “Kindness can transform someone’s dark moment with a blaze of light. You’ll never know how much your caring matters. Make a difference for another today.” – Amy Leigh Mercree
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71. “Work for a cause, not for applause. Live life to express, not to impress. Don’t strive to make your presence noticed; just make your presence felt.” – Grace Lichtenstein
72. “Although your educational journey may be difficult at times, you will reap the reward of utmost satisfaction when holding your nursing diploma for the first time—and nothing will ever compare to the fulfillment that improving and saving the lives of others will bring!” – Mikhail Shneyder
73. “Nursing is an art: and if it is to be made an art, it requires an exclusive devotion as hard a preparation as any painter’s or sculptor’s work; for what is the having to do with dead canvas or dead marble, compared with having to do with the living body, the temple of God’s spirit? It is one of the Fine Arts: I had almost said, the finest of Fine Arts.” – Florence Nightingale
74. “Being a nurse is weird: I can keep a poker face through trauma, but have a mental breakdown over losing my favorite pen.”–unknown
75. “The nurse is temporarily the consciousness of the unconscious, the love of life for the suicidal, the leg of the amputee, the eyes of the newly blind, a means of locomotion for the infant, the knowledge and confidence of the young mother, and a voice for those too weak to speak.” – Virginia Henderson
76. “Your profession is not what brings home your paycheck. Your profession is what you were put on Earth to do with such passion and such intensity that it becomes spiritual in calling.” – Vincent Van Gogh
77. “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” – Leo Buscaglia
78. “A nurse dispenses comfort, compassion, and caring without even a prescription.” – Val Saintsbury
79. “Nursing is a progressive art such that to stand still is to go backward.” – Florence Nightingale
80. “A nurse will always give us hope, an angel with a stethoscope.” – Carrie Latet
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81. “It’s okay to learn from every experience, and it’s okay to make mistakes.” – Louise Hay
82. “Nursing school. One syllabus at a time. One class at a time. One exam at a time. One clinical at a time. Keep going…” – unknown
83. “Nature alone cures. … what nursing has to do … is to put the patient in the best condition for nature to act upon him.” – Florence Nightingale
84. “Caring is the essence of nursing.” – Jean Watson
85. “Caring about others, running the risk of feeling, and leaving an impact on people, brings happiness.” – Harold Kushner
86. “Nurses are the heart of healthcare.” – Donna Wilk Cardillo
87. “Be kind for everyone you meet is fighting a battle.” – Plato
88. “The trained nurse has become one of the great blessings of humanity, taking a place beside the physician and the priest.” – Dr. William Osler
89. “Nurses are there when the last breath is taken, and nurses are there when the first breath is taken. Although it is more enjoyable to celebrate the birth, it is just as important to comfort in death.” – Christine Belle
90. “When a person decides to become a nurse, they make the most important decision of their lives. They choose to dedicate themselves to the care of others.” – Margaret Harvey
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91. “The character of the nurse is as important as the knowledge she possesses.” - Carolyn Jarvis
92. “How can anybody hate nurses? Nobody hates nurses. The only time you hate a nurse is when they’re giving you an enema.” – Warren Beatty
93. “Constant attention by a good nurse may be just as important as a major operation by a surgeon.” – Dag Hammarskjold
94. “Nurse: just another word to describe a person strong enough to tolerate anything and soft enough to understand anyone.” – Brittany Wilson
95. “Bound by paperwork, short on hands, sleep, and energy… nurses are rarely short on caring.” – Sharon Hudacek
96. “The best nurses have the essential qualifications before they go to school.” – Florence Nightingale
97. ”As a nurse, we have the opportunity to heal the heart, mind, soul, and body of our patients, their families, and ourselves. They may forget your name, but they will never forget how you made them feel.” - Maya Angelou
98. “No man, not even a doctor, ever gives any other definition of what a nurse should be than this – ‘devoted and obedient.’ This definition would do just as well for a porter. It might even do for a horse. It would not do for a policeman.” – Florence Nightingale
99. “You treat a disease: You win, you lose. You treat a person, I guarantee you win—no matter the outcome.” – Hunter Doherty “Patch” Adams
100. “Live life when you have it. Life is a splendid gift-there is nothing small about it.” – Florence Nightingale
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Inspirational Nurse Quotes
101. “Every nurse has that one patient that they’ll remember forever.” – Unknown
102. “I attribute my success to this: I never gave or took any excuse.” – Florence Nightingale
103. “When you are a nurse, you know that every day you will touch a life or a life will touch yours.”– Unknown
104. “Our fingerprints don’t fade from the lives we touch.” – Judy Blume
105. “To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived, this is to have succeeded.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
106. “No matter how difficult the days may get, don’t forget the reason you became a nurse.” – Unknown
107. “The character of the nurse is as important as the knowledge she possesses.” – Carolyn Jarvis
108. “Nurse: just another word to describe a person strong enough to tolerate everything and soft enough to understand everyone.” – Unknown
109. “Let us never consider ourselves finished, nurses. We must be learning all of our lives.” – Florence Nightingale
110. “As a nurse we have the opportunity to heal the mind, soul, heart, and body of our patients. They may forget your name but they will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou
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Funny Nurse Quotes
111. “Be nice to your nurse. They’re the person who chooses your catheter size.” – Unknown
112. “Nursing would be a dream job if there were no doctors.” – Gerhard Kocher
113. “May your cup runneth over, unless it’s that urine specimen cup you’re trying to hand me.” – Unknown
114. “Shift change is my favorite time of day.” – Unknown
115. “Always thank your nurse! Sometimes they’re the only one between you and a hearse.” – Warren Beatty
116. “Yes, I am a nurse. No, I don’t want to look at it.” – Unknown
117. “Don’t mess with me, I get paid to stab people with sharp objects.” – Unknown
118. “Be nice to me…I may be your nurse someday and remember…catheters and needles come in sizes that I choose!” – Unknown
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Quotes That Show Appreciation
119. “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed people can change the world, indeed it is the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead
120. “Constant attention by a good nurse may be just as important as a major operation by a surgeon.” – Dag Hammarskjold
121. “Remember, nurses are like icebergs. At any one time, you are only seeing what they are actually doing.” – Ian Miller
122. “Save one person, you’re a hero. Save hundreds, you’re a nurse.” – Unknown
123. “It would not be possible to praise nurses too highly.” – Stephen Ambrose
124. “The doctors may be mapping out the war games, but it is the nurses who make the conflict bearable. – Jodi Picoult
125. “Nurses are a unique kind. They have this insatiable need to care for others, which is both their biggest strength and fatal flaw.” – Dr. Jean Watson
126. “A nurse will always give us hope, an angel with a stethoscope.” – Carrie Latet
127. “Bound by paperwork, short on hands, sleep, and energy…nurses are rarely short on caring.” – Sharon Hudacek
128. “Nurses—one of the few blessings of being ill.” —Sara Moss-Wolfe
129. “You didn’t even know me, yet you treated me like family…I’ll never forget that. Thank you.” – Unknown
130. “Nurses dispense comfort, compassion, and caring without even a prescription.” – Val Saintsbury
131. “America’s nurses are the beating heart of our medical system.” – Barack Obama
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Motivational Quotes for Nurses
132. “It is not how much you do, but how much love you put into doing”. – Mother Teresa
133. “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” – Mahatma Gandhi
134. “What you do makes a difference. And you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” – Jane Goodall
135. “Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier.” – Mother Teresa
136. “Have a heart that never hardens, a temper that never tires, a touch that never hurts.” – Charles Dickens
137. “Save one life, you’re a hero. Save a hundred lives, you’re a nurse.” – Unknown
138. “Where the needs of the world and your talents cross, there lies your vocation.” — Aristotle
139. “There are only four kinds of people in the world. Those who have been caregivers. Those who are currently caregivers. Those who will be caregivers, and those who will need a caregiver.” — Rosalyn Carter
140. “Some days there won’t be a song in your heart. Sing anyway.” — Emory Austin
141. “You treat a disease: you win, you lose. You treat a person, I guarantee you win…no matter the outcome.” – Robin Williams, Patch Adams
142. “Never give up on anybody. Miracles happen every day.” – H. Jackson Brown Jr.
143. “Be kind for everyone you meet is fighting a battle.” – Plato
144. “I’m not telling you it’s going to be easy, I’m telling you it’s going to be worth it.” – Art Williams
145. “To do what nobody else will do, a way that nobody else can do, in spite of all we go through; that is to be a nurse.” – Rawsi Williams
146. “Knowing is better than wondering, waking is better than sleeping, and even the biggest failure, even the worse, beats the hell out of never trying.” – Grey’s Anatomy
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Short Quotes for Nurses
147. “No act of kindness, however small, is ever wasted.” – Aesop
148. “It is not enough to be compassionate—you must act.” – The Dalai Lama
149. “Be the nurse you want to work with.” – Unknown
150. “Treat every patient like they are family.” – Unknown
151. “I never dreamed about success—I worked for it.” – Estée Lauder
152. “Nurses are angels in comfortable shoes.” – Unknown
153. “I’m a nurse because miracle worker isn’t an official title.” – Unknown
154. “Nurses are the heart of healthcare.” – Donna Wilk Cardillo
155. “For the sick, it is important to have the best.” – Florence Nightingale
156. “From caring comes courage.” – Lao Tzu
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