After my 12, I just want to go home! RANT

Nurses Safety

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Do I have any grounds for being annoyed with this? I arrive at work at 630 to prepare for my 7A shift (I do not punch in until 5 of 7)...Once 7 PM rolls around, I am exhausted. We do nurse to nurse report. The 7P folks are always a few minutes late, then they mosey around and by the time I am done giving report and tying up a few loose ends, its 8PM or often 830 PM. This is a rampant problem around the entire hospital. Most people don't mind staying late because it adds up to extra money. For me, getting out of work at a reasonable time (ok 730, even 745 is acceptable) is more important. I was hired for a 7A to 7P shift and I feel like it's unfair to have to stay so late more times than not. I do not mind staying once in a while if I am needed to help out, but being stuck there for really no good reason is annoying. I have noticed most nurses save their charting for after 7 PM because they have just accepted that this is the way it is...

So my question...Is it even worth trying to work this out with one of my managers or is this just something I have to suck up and live with? 12 hour shifts are exhausting enough, but 13-14 hours is crazy to me...Sometimes I have to give a quick med or do a little task and I feel so brain dead after 7 that I feel unsafe. I know to quintuple check myself when I am that tired but again...Bottom line, I just want to go home when my shift is over!

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On the flip side what about us poor night shifters having to wait till 7 am or later for the dayshifters to get to work (always the excuse of traffic or day care) and then they want to run down to the cafeteria real quick before report top get their breakfast or the want to drink their starbucks ( and now we know why they are late...) and gossip for a few minutes before report. We also want to get hoome to our families or our beds. We have to fight rush hour traffic to get home and we are tired as well....and we wnat to get out on time also.

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This is in no way an attack on night shiters. In my hospital, the night nurses report off to the charge in the AM and go right home on time. I totally respect all of you night nurses, I think we have equally demanding jobs, just in different ways.

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I am surprised that management allows this to go on. They are usually wanting everyone to get out on time, not wanting to pay that extra time.

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Specializes in PCU.

Wanting to go home once the shift is over is perfectly reasonable. If this is a frequent occurrence, you should definitely bring it up to management. It is not right to have to wait on others who selfishly take their time, not taking into account that the previous shift is tired and ready to go...be it day or night.

I do not think this is the fault of day or night shift. It is the individual's responsibility to relieve the previous nurse in a timely manner, regardless of whether they need coffee/breakfast/dinner. They should have taken care of it before coming to work.

Timeliness is part of our job requirements and it is not negotiable. Taking it for granted that it is ok to walk in late and others be darned is not acceptable. JMHO.

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Specializes in ICU.

This isn't a dayshift night thing, this is a relief thing, and I understand it.

If you brought this to management, something might be done, because it is eating into their budget.

I got reamed by upper management with all the late punches as a manager. And that was a staffing issue I wasn't getting help with, but if it was your situation, I would be there at change of shift like a hawk making sure none of that was going on.

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I totally agree with you. I feel the exact same way. I think it's the facility that you work in...When my shift is over, I want to go home.

I know there are people that can work 16 hour shifts, and I am NOT one of those people. Like you said, EVERY ONCE in a while to stay late is fine, but EVERY freakin' shift!

It is absurd, and I feel your pain.

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Specializes in Community Health/School Nursing.
This is in no way an attack on night shiters. In my hospital, the night nurses report off to the charge in the AM and go right home on time. I totally respect all of you night nurses, I think we have equally demanding jobs, just in different ways.

Okay, I have to laugh. Do you realize you just said, "Night Shiters"? (typo oopsie!) lol :yeah:

I was one when I worked nights on the floor in Ortho/Neuro.....I felt like sh** after my shift. lol

12hr shifts should be illegal in nursing. JMO. :D

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Bahaha! At my facility, we prefer to call ourselves "Night Poopers." Lots of kids around... :p

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Specializes in pediatrics, public health.
This is in no way an attack on night shiters. In my hospital, the night nurses report off to the charge in the AM and go right home on time. I totally respect all of you night nurses, I think we have equally demanding jobs, just in different ways.

So why can't the day shift nurses report off to the charge at the end of their shift too? I don't understand why it would be different for the different shifts. Maybe you can suggest this change to management -- sounds like it would save them a bunch of money in overtime.

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Specializes in Med Surg.

You're starting your day 30 minutes early, so you've already extended your work day needlessly.

What time are you supposed to give report? Isn't there an allotted time for that? If the next shift isn't supposed to be there till 7 and you're supposed to leave at 7, that means someone's getting messed over.

Other than that, I do think your boss needs to do something about this. Isn't there some kind of procedure in place to deal with tardiness? If someone can't get to work on time, they're a pretty crap employee.

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lol oops on my typo, sorry!!! I honestly cannot understand why this is happening. It's not just about people showing up late either...Even when everyone is on time if I have, say a 6 patient run, it gets all split up for the new shift so nurse A might get 2 of mine, nurse B might get 1 and so on...This means that I may have to report off to 3 or even 4 different nurses. So I may have reported off to the first nurse and then have to wait for the second and third to finish up getting report from the others. Just typing this makes me realize something is very wrong with this situation and maybe it's not "just me" and there really is a larger problem.

I am glad I asked this question because I feel better about talking to my NM about it now.

*I start my day early because I live very close to my hospital and it just makes me feel more prepared for the day. The extra 30 minutes is not ALL work, part of it is having coffee and just getting myself grounded for the day. I am still a new nurse so this time in the AM gives me the chance to shake off my newbie nerves and ease in to the day.

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