[classicdame]

depends on your definition of "hard". If dealing with doctors and lots of visitors bothers you then nights is your bag. If having fewer resources and sleeping during the day is a problem, then you need days. Both shifts have pros/cons. The physical work is about the same.

[libra1]

Nursing/HealthCare Is A 24-H0ur J0b! And As S0me0ne That Has W0rked All, And I D0 Mean ALL Kinds 0f Shifts, It's N0t Fair 2 Say 0ne Shift W0rks Harder Than The 0ther! I Agree With The Previ0us P0sts That It Sh0uld Be Ab0ut TeamW0rk And N0t Which Shift D0es 0r D0esn't D0 What.

[Penguin67]

I used to think that there was a clear cut answer to this, but as I got older and more nursing experience, I realized that ALL nurses work hard. Each shift has different stressors and a different way for the stress to manifest itself. Remember the phrase "The grass is always greener on the other side?"

[MichaelFloridaRN]

Nurses are overworked in both shifts at my hospital, no matter how you look at it. Both shifts have ups and downs. If you say that nursing on either shift is a piece of cake, them you are either very lucky or very lazy and I have met few very lucky nurses.

I prefer nights because the pay is 15% more during the week and 30% more on Fri and Sat. There are more extra shifts, in fact if I wanted to I could work every day, available on nights here for those who like the extra hours.

Also you do not have Social Workers, Dietitians, Case Workers and so on grabbing your chart all shift. But you have less Aids and Clerks available also. You do not have to deal with the docs so much, but you **** them off more often for calling them at 3AM with panic lab values.

Less family members around on nights, but the more annoying ones are the ones who find the need to hang out in the room 24/7 along with their friends who do not even know the pt.

No matter how hard I think about it, I have to say both work equally hard.

[squeakykitty]

The most hardest working shift is-------------
Any shift with no teamwork!!!

[BlueRidgeHomeRN]

Originally Posted by squeakykitty

The most hardest working shift is-------------
Any shift with no teamwork!!!

100% correct, kitty!!

[gt4everpn]

I kinda have a differnce of opinion, I work in LTC, and the morning shift is very tiring! you never get to sit, no exaggeration, I've also worked nights and where I work you do basically nothing at night besides paperwork! plus some running around but only about 2 hours worth the other 6 hours of my shift I'm just doing paperwork, sitting at the nurses station! Where I work there is a definite difference between the morning and night shifts, I hate it when the night nurses where I work complain if they get alittle extra work to do!

[nurse hobbit]

Each shift has pros and cons, the only fair way is to work each shift and then you can get a broad picture of why the hospitals run 24/7/365.

Most people I work with do work as a team, but there is always at least ONE PITA that causes trouble no matter what shift you work.

I wish that some people would remember that there is no "I" in TEAMWORK!!

[Diary/Dairy]

I have worked both - Days is so chaotic - I won;t work it again! Nights is more about learning to be self-sufficient and making people comfortable and helping them sleep. Nursing is a 24 hour job.....you do what you gotta do to make it work!

[MedSurgeNewbie]

I work the NOC shift, I love "patients sleep at night" line.. Umm no they don't We have a lot more patients and when admits come there are a lot fewer resources to get it done, no lab, no pharmacy, no transport, often no aide.. Plus we do the bulk of the paper work 24 hr chart checks on top of a lot of transfusions and bowel preps.. NOC does a lot of "clean up" for days.. I do sort of get tired of walking into a hot mess nightly at 11p and then getting the busness in the moring becuse I dont have time to read days the chart.. Day nurses please if you want a easier morning please leave nights less of a mess - the 8 hr chart check is a good thing....