Dayshifters - do you take a breakfast break as soon as you get to work?

[Snugglibumkins]

I work 7am-7pm, and it seems as though the popular thing to do is to take a "breakfast" break as soon as report is finished in the morning. We had an extremely busy morning today and the nurse I was working beside complained all morning that she hadn't gotten a breakfast break and so she had not had anything to eat since dinner last night. This is the only place I've worked where the floor is a ghost town as soon as report finishes. I'm just curious to know if this is common practice elsewhere?

FWIW, I do think the 12 hour shifts make it hard to figure out when to eat and I tend to take a break after my morning assessments and meds are complete (around 10am ish) for a snack and then eat lunch around 1:30, then grab a quick yogurt around 5pm as I'm winding down my day.

[sistasoul]

I work 7am-7:30pm and I eat before I come to work because I can't stand to eat the breakfast food in the hospital and I don't bring my breakfast to work because it will get cold/soggy by the time I get to work. But there are some nurses that do hit the floor running like clockwork NO MATTER HOW CRAZY it is on the floor after morning report. I am often left alone with maybe one other nurse who doesn't like eating so early. I wouldn't mind if it was just a break to eat but they are gone for a good 45-50 minutes which really ticks the other nurse and I off...and like another poster said about their nurses...these nurses believe they are entitled to this 45 minute breakfast break after the overnight nurse signs out. I one time asked one someone to stay to help out for an hour after sign out and she pretty much read me the riot act and told me I was SOL.

I take a morning snack break after meds are handed out(we start handing out meds at 10am)...and believe me it certainly isn't over 45 minutes like everyone else likes to take after morning sign out.

How is there time to take a 45 minute break? I don't know of one nurse who has the time to do that.

[tcvnurse, BSN, RN]

LOL. I chart my assessments and do morning meds and THEN I go down for breakfast. I consider that my reward for getting everything done in a timely fashion. I also do it because chances are good I wont get to eat until about 230pm otherwise, so I better eat while I can.

[JenniferSews]

I generally take 15 minutes to shove some food in my face while I read a chart, look at a lab, etc just after getting report. But "breakfast" is usually a cereal bar or a slice of toast. I'm not off the unit, but I just can't eat at 4:30am when I get up. All I can manage is coffee. I'm amazed that people can find time in their day to take a 45 minute break! All I get is 30 minutes and two 15 minute breaks in 12 hours, and those are more theoretical than actual.

[gardentulip27]

No way do I take a break soon as I get to work. There is way too much to do when first get there to break.. I am lucky if I get a pee break or lunch break for that matter.

[RNperdiem, RN]

I have this picture of a floor with the night shift nurses gone, all the day shift nurses eating elsewhere and is there anyone around to watch the patients?

This does not happen where I work.

Around 0900 there is a group that does the coffee run, but getting assessments done and charted early is how my unit operates.

I work in ICU, but especially when I worked med-surg, the early mornings were the busiest part of the day with no time to waste.

[Amanda.RN]

I think people should be eating prior to work, except the meal break they're allowed. They can pack snacks to eat as time allows throughout the shift if needed. That's what I always did anyway. ...it bothers me when people complain about not getting to eat breakfast when I get up early enough to have breakfast prior to leaving home in the morning.

[Sparrowhawk]

The only time I take a break after my shift is just begun is when I pass meds on the evening shift...bring my lunch with me and take ten minutes to scarf it down before hitting the floor. I never have gotten the morning breakfast break thing.....

[BriRN]

I can't tell you the last time I ate on a 12 hour daylight shift................

[wooh, BSN, RN]

When I did days I would take a quick break around 9am to get a snack on weekdays (if I had time). On weekends I would get my snack first thing. Since weekends were a bit lazier in the morning (not as many procedures, docs tend to come in later and they aren't going to order procedures to be done that day because those departments are there) I didn't have to worry about starting off "behind" and I could let patients/families sleep in a few minutes extra.

[JDZ344]

No. We get a short break around 11, and then lunch after that. We're expected to be on the floor otherwise.

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

No because I already had breakfast at 4:30am :)

However, I will take a couple of minutes to fire up some coffee, once the immediate fires are put out.

[mkjh]

Good God, no! Where do people work where they can do this? I'm lucky if I can scarf some food before I pass out around 3pm. I haven't taken a real lunch break in the year I've been working.