New ED job 2:30p-3a! Advice..

Specialties Emergency

Published

Hi Everyone! I just accepted an offer to work evening shift (2:30p-3a) at a very busy, huge ED. I will be orienting on days (because that's when preceptors are available). I heard (from reading around on allnurses) that 3p-3a is the busiest shift and you literally do not have time to sit down and you may be dumped on. Is this all true?! (I know i'm asking the same people who probably answered before). I am very excited for this opportunity and I will learn a ton and their ED nurses get to drop central lines which is great experience! Any advice for a med-surg nurse transitioning to ED? I've taken ACLS already. I won't have to deal with the peds patients (who I am scared of) until I get comfortable as an ED nurse.

Specializes in Emergency/Cath Lab.

3p-3a is a great shift. So is 11a-11p. As is 9a-9p. Im doing 5p-5a now and it is fun too. We stay busy till about that time so It never really stops.

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

Thanks you guys! I'm getting more and more excited. It was kind of a surprised that I ended up here because I never thought I would do ED full time and here I am. I got an email from a hospital recruiter that the hospital was hiring for a variety of specialties. I sent her my resume. I had a panel interview and I liked the ED manager the most and she seemed very interested in me. I had indicated that I really wanted to work days or maybe evenings (11-11). I got two job offers one days, one nights, but no ED. There was a lot of back and forth and then I was invited for a share day and then the manager called me with an offer! She is everything a good manager should be: experienced, flexible, open minded, able to discipline staff (I've had a managers who were afraid to be confrontational to a fault), and OK with me trying out ED and then moving on to a different specialty if I find it isn't for me. Also she said I will be waitlisted right away and as soon as an 11-11 shift opens I can get that shift, it may happen as soon as I'm off orientation. Which I'm not counting on but it would be a nice surprise. Who knows? I may end up wanting to stay on 230p-3a.

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I have worked ER 1-1 and sorry to say that yup all your fears are true. At least in my experience our ER started really picking up between noon and 3pm and didn't stop! I actually left late with some regularity (with supervisor approval) because it was tough to walk out of the mess.

eta

I did like it though. It was exhausting but exciting. Great learning and shifts usually went by very quickly. Eventually I went to 7a-7 but I valued the experience I gained on my swing shift.

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Specializes in ER.

I've worked that shift as a newbie. My biggest complaint was that driving home afterward is more dangerous. It's at an hour when all the drunks and crazies are out. If I needed to pull over for a snooze on the way home, I felt unsafe. And a lot of people on the road are impaired with drugs, alcohol or sleepiness.

So, if I were sleepy after shift, I'd pick an empty room and nap in the ER. Now I'm on straight nights with a good rotation of my favorites peeps, but I had to earn that right by seniority.

Good luck Lev!

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.
I've worked that shift as a newbie. My biggest complaint was that driving home afterward is more dangerous. It's at an hour when all the drunks and crazies are out. If I needed to pull over for a snooze on the way home, I felt unsafe. And a lot of people on the road are impaired with drugs, alcohol or sleepiness.

So, if I were sleepy after shift, I'd pick an empty room and nap in the ER. Now I'm on straight nights with a good rotation of my favorites peeps, but I had to earn that right by seniority.

Good luck Lev!

Good to know! I was kind of happy about the avoiding traffic bit...On the way there shouldn't be bad if I leave at 1:30 to get there 2:30.

Thanks for all your advice everyone. I've been reading the ED specialties forum and all the humor threads...such as "You know you're and ED nurse IF..." I know there's a lot of cr*p in the ED, just like on the floor, but I'm hoping there's less of it and more patient care.

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I have been working 4p to 2a for the 6 years. I love it. For me the wrIters shift I'd 11 to 11p. The eves are very busy but time goes by fast. We have great teamwork. You will learn a huge amount every day and wont be bored. What could be better?

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I like the 3p-3a shift. We bounce around more than anybody else and that's precisely what I like about it. It's uncommon for me to do the same thing for 12 straight hours.

I prefer the ambiance of night shift and that's 2/3 of my day. I also get most of the shift differential.

It is the busiest shift but that's a bonus to me because it makes the shift go by more quickly and I don't like sitting around.

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

Thanks!

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Specializes in ER.

I work mids (3-3:30) in a high volume ER. I am switching to nights in a few weeks because I hate this shift. Me and the other mid-shifters discuss this a lot - we usually end up with the worst assignments, and we run our butts off for the entire shift. The whole reason they have this shift is to have extra support during peak hours. Sometimes it slows down after about 1am, but not always.

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

Hi moderators...

I don't know how this happened, but it says EMT-P next to my name in the title of this thread. I don't know how that got there and I am not a paramedic. Can someone take it off please?

edit:

Never mind. I think I fixed it myself by removing the BSN and RN credentials. Or unless a moderator fixed it in literally 1 second. (highly unlikely)

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Specializes in Emergency Nursing.

I've been in the ED for 5 years and I've worked 8a-8:30p, 8p-8:30a and most recently 2p-2:30a and I have to say that it's the best shift so far for me. Yes, when I get there the ED is in full swing but I've learned that if my assignment is to pick up a team of patients I will try to absorb a few patients from the nurses in my district. Most happily oblige as they are swamped and don't mind unloading some of their patients to me. This keeps the possibility of me being bombarded with a full load of patients within 1 hour of arrival complete with orders for labs and meds. Most times I'm sent to the fast track area or asked to cover breaks in triage before I head over to pick up a team. Ironically I am almost never late (I was never a morning person so getting up late morning suits me) and I clock out on time more times than not because things are winding down after midnight and I can give report on my patients to the nurses who are on shift already. I don't have to wait for anyone to arrive from home and I can give report an hour or so before I leave and fill in the gaps just before I walk out the door. So far it's been good for me. I wish you the best of luck!!:cat:

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Jump in and take it and enjoy. Yes, it will be busy (1-1, 2-2, 3-3 are all busy shifts....no lull time early in am (about when you get off...) and no lull time at all really, esp if busy. But if that busy, there is no time that you don't have 4 patients at least. I wish you well and enjoy your career. I am getting very close to saying goodbye for now to nursing at 63. Been the best decision of my life, well our adoptions were better...lol.........I LOVED BEING A NURSE. TRULY. Got to start 7 healthcare businesses and having fun back in ER now at 63. BUT not for long....going to psych and pass out pills and smiles.

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