This post may contain affiliate links. If you use these links to buy something we may earn a commission. Read our full disclaimer here. Our opinions are not affected by affiliates and are our own.
In this Apple Watch for Nurses Review I’ll be taking a look if this is the best watch for nurses to get? In addition, I’ll also deep-dive into the features, specifications, different models and which one you should be looking at!
For a lot of nursing students and nurses, getting the right watch can be very important. Nurses rely on their watches throughout the day to have accurate charting, recording of events and medication administration.
Watches, especially a smart watch like the Apple Watch, can be really useful to get texts from family members, check in on things, or get special alerts when not being able to use your phone. One of the Apple Watches biggest pros for nurses is that you don’t need your phone to see notifications, which can make a big difference for nurses with kids!
Top 5 Reasons Nurses Need an Apple Watch

What are the reasons nurses should be choosing the Apple Watch? Other than “it functions as a watch”, there are a few other reasons we highly recommend the Apple Watch for nurses.
- SOS Function: The Apple Watch has an SOS function built into it. And if you’ve ever been in a hospital before, you know that anything can happen at any time. So, having this feature can be very helpful in sticky situations where you can’t get to your phone.
- Notifications: Getting notifications straight to your wrist (like text messages, social media, and call alerts), is very useful in a hospital setting. Most floors won’t let you carry your phone around with you, so having a mini-phone on your wrist is important.
- Text Message Responding: With an Apple Watch you are able to respond to text messages and calls right on the watch. This can be very helpful again, if you don’t have your phone near you.
- Stopwatch, Timer & Alarm: Pretty obvious functions of a typical watch, but very nice to have especially for lunch time, breaks or some nap time!
- Health & Fitness: The health and fitness benefits to the Apple Watch for nurses can potentially be endless. Depending on your hospital, you might get discounts on health insurances for certain step quotas, or for your own health benefits tracking steps can be very useful! Using Apple’s apps you can evaluate your heart rate, steps and other information to tailor a healthier lifestyle.
Which Model Should You Get?
There are a few models of Apple Watch to choose from. Each of them has their own pros and cons. Apple has a great comparison of each model if you’re interested in getting into the nitty gritty.
- WHY APPLE WATCH SE — All the essentials to help you monitor your fitness, keep connected, track your health, and stay safe. Now up to 20 percent faster, with features like Crash Detection and enhanced workout metrics, it’s a better value than ever.
- EASILY CUSTOMIZABLE — Available in a range of sizes and colors, with dozens of bands to choose from and watch faces with complications tailored to whatever you’re into.
- HEALTH AND SAFETY FEATURES — Get help when you need it with Crash Detection, Fall Detection, and Emergency SOS. Get deep insights into your health, including notifications if you have an irregular rhythm or an unusually high or low heart rate.
- SIMPLY COMPATIBLE — It works seamlessly with your Apple devices and services. Unlock your Mac automatically. Find your devices with a tap. Pay and send money with Apple Pay. Apple Watch requires an iPhone 8 or later with the latest iOS version.
- SWIMPROOF AND STYLISH — Water resistant to 50 meters. Three finishes. And a redesigned, color-matched back case made with a new production process that reduces its carbon emissions over 80 percent.
- WHY APPLE WATCH SERIES 8 — Your essential companion for a healthy life is now even more powerful. Advanced sensors provide insights to help you better understand your health. New safety features can get you help when you need it. The bright, Always-On Retina display is easy to read, even when your wrist is down.
- CELLULAR CONNECTIVITY — Send a text, make a call, and stream music without your iPhone, even while traveling internationally. Use Family Setup to manage Apple Watch for family members who don’t have an iPhone.
- EASILY CUSTOMIZABLE — Available in a range of sizes and materials, with dozens of bands to choose from and watch faces with complications tailored to whatever you’re into.
- INNOVATIVE SAFETY FEATURES — Crash Detection and Fall Detection can automatically connect you with emergency services in the event of a severe car crash or a hard fall. And Emergency SOS provides urgent assistance with the press of a button.
- ADVANCED HEALTH FEATURES — Temperature sensing is a breakthrough feature that provides deep insights into women’s health. Keep an eye on your blood oxygen. Take an ECG anytime. Get notifications if you have an irregular rhythm. And see how much time you spent in REM, Core, or Deep sleep with Sleep Stages.
However, for those of you who simply want an Apple Watch that works, we recommend the Apple Watch SE (2nd Gen). The SE has a great blend of features from the Series 8, with the affordability of the Series 3. In addition to having great built-in features, you also get the option of getting the cellular version (which you don’t have with the Series 3).
Finally, there are a variety of colors to choose from making it easy to match your favorite nursing scrubs.
Apple Watch for Nursing Students
A lot of nursing students will question, should you get an Apple Watch for nursing school? Our answer to that is absolutely! An Apple Watch is an awesome choice for nursing students.

For basically the exact same reasons as before, it performs very well. In addition, nursing students get the additional compatibility of using the whole suite of Apple products for their school work.
While Apple Watches can be a bit more on the pricey side, there are several less expensive options out there.
Apple Watch Accessories for Nurses
There are some great accessories specifically designed for nurses using an Apple Watch. These include little hangers that you can hang the watch from your pocket or waist-band. Or, you can even get one that attaches like a badge reel holder.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, I think that the Apple Watch is a great choice for nurses. For several reasons, the watch does exactly what nurses need it to do.
In addition, for nurses with families, you can easily answer kids’ text messages or calls or check in on the family. For others, you might just want to get notifications from social media (such as Snapchat), or listen to music, or perhaps check the weather.
Whatever it is that you want to do, the Apple Watch can pretty much do it. And for nurses on the move all day, it can be difficult to carry your phone around with you to check it. So, having all of the same information from your phone on your wrist can really improve your workflow and give you peace of mind throughout the day.