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

LynnLRN · Nov 30, 2011

I sometimes get to work 20 min early to eat food from the cafeteria while I write down my patient info for the day. However, even if I eat breakfast before I come to work which would be 530 a.m. I am hungry by 830 (and so are most of my coworkers). So we do usually take a coffee break and get a snack from the cafeteria if time allows.

Otessa, BSN, RN · Nov 30, 2011

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.

Have these people ever heard of eating breakfast at home BEFORE work?? A mid-morning break-sometime after 9 or 10, yes, before assessing patients?? um, no.....

Butterfliesnroses · Nov 30, 2011

Where I work we are "required" to take a 1 hour lunch or 2 30 min lunches during a 12 hour shift. I usually eat something light such as a yogurt before work. Around 10 after my morning meds are passed and any emergencies attended to I take a 30 min break and eat a snack. Then around 2 PM I take another 30 min. break and eat lunch. I usually scarf down another yogurt or some crackers at my cart around 5ish.

caliotter3 · Nov 30, 2011

I stayed over from night shift to chart one time. A family member came up to the desk, stood in front of one of the oncoming nurses and proceeded to inquire about her relative. The nurse had a plate of food that she was dealing with. She refused to acknowledge the family member, even though they were standing directly in front of her and asking about one of her patients. Then the family member started looking in my direction, because the other nurse ignored her. After the second comment or so, I had to get up and leave. I just could not tell them that their relative's assigned nurse was ignoring them. Of course, I tried to help as much as I could, but I felt I needed to go somewhere to chart so I could leave. I recall thinking about how rude that was, much less unprofessional.

sistasoul · Nov 30, 2011

The breakfast breaks I am referring to with my co-workers are seriously 30-45 minutes, and they are taken IN ADDITION to a 30-45 minute lunch break, and regardless of how busy the unit is or whether or not patients are in need of pain meds, etc. As I mentioned, it is the sense of entitlement to this morning breakfast break that irritates me more than anything. It is as if the priority is the breakfast break, not the work that needs to be done.

Who medicates the patients that are in pain? That is simply horrendous. I may not get a break but at least I can look at myself in the mirror because I know I have done as much for my patients as I could. That is a shame.

nola1202 · Nov 30, 2011

rofl. This seems to be really common. The other most common is the grab a quick break after am report, chart checks and assessments. I used to get so annoyed at the smoke break and breakfast break right after report people and say nothing. I was one of those nurses on orientation of abt 2 weeks when a group of MD's walked on the unit and had a bunch of questions...did the best I could and no one was ever the wiser, but boy did I say something after that! (don't you dare leave me on this unit all alone!)

tokyoROSE, BSN, RN · Nov 30, 2011

I have witnessed this phenomenon on a L&D floor. The nurse I was with took her sweet time to eat breakfast at the nurse's station. We did not assess a patient until 800. Contrast that to the floor I am on now-- once I get there at 645 I do not stop working until 1:30 when I take my 30 min lunch break.

VICEDRN, BSN, RN · Nov 30, 2011

The ER I used to work in was like that. Between 0800 and 0900, off they went to cafeteria and breakfast. They were shocked when management changed the shift pattern to add two 0900 shifts instead of 0700 shifts and more activities for them to do (around the unit). SHOCKED I tell you. lol

locolorenzo22, BSN, RN · Nov 30, 2011

see, I trained on days when I started as a new grad, and i noticed WITHOUT A EXCEPTION, everyone would go down to the cafe when it opened at 7am, come back, eat breakfast, get lunch at 11=12 ish, then snack in the afternoon, and then be wondering why they were still charting when day shift came on.

I ate a quick snack at 7AM, after assessing all my patients, giving any needed meds, etc. I wouldn't eat again until about 1, so I could give my lunch meds, check my new admits, etc. I would try to snack if I needed to, but I was always done, and charted and ready to give report by shift change. Rare was the day when I stayed over.

And this was on a busy ortho/neuro/medical floor, so lots of admits and surgeries.

ICURN35 · Nov 30, 2011

I hit the floor right after report. I don't take a break until I have passed all my meds and have completed my assessments. I try to take a break about 10am and don't eat lunch until about 1pm. It doesn't always happen that way depending on what is happening at the time.

jtk57 · Nov 30, 2011

This thread hits home for me. I work 12 hour day shift on a MS floor with a lengthy commute to and from work. I get up at 5:15 and out the door by 5:50 with my bagel or toast in hand to be eaten while I drive to work. We are supposed to get a couple 15 min breaks and 30 for lunch; no way do I take a breakfast ever. I choose to spread my "breaktime" around during the day so I can pee when I need to and I generally take 15 mins or so to scarf a bagged lunch around 15:00 while on the unit. I know plenty of RNs and Techs whose entire day seems to revolve around taking lengthy breaks to obtain food, snack in the break room, and kick back for a relaxing meal in the middle of the day. I have no idea how they do it, although I suspect it may have something to do with delivering a lower level of patient care than that to which I hold myself; not unsafe care, just less responsive to patient needs. Just my opinion.

Double-Helix, BSN, RN · Nov 30, 2011

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?

Have you discussed this with your manager? If this break is creating conflict/safety issue/affecting patient care, it's definately something that you should report. Management isn't in that early in the day and probably isn't aware of the breakfast break. (That also might be one of the reasons that the nurses take a break so early- so that management can't come in and find them all eating.)

When I was a CNA in LTC we used to have an issue with a few of the aides taking their supper break right after the resident's ate dinner. One aide in particular always went to the dining room to assist with dinner. When it was done, she would take her break for 45 minutes to an hour. Which meant that the other two aides had to attend to the missing aide's 12 residents, in addition to the other 24 on the floor. After dinner is a really busy time, as residents want to use the bathroom, get ready for bed, etc. We eventually had to talk to the DON about it and she implimented a policy that aides could not take breaks during certain hours of the day, and the breaks had to rotate with the aides, so that two aides weren't gone at the same time.

OP, you should talk about this with your manager. No need to name names, just explain that you have noticed that a lot of the nurses take a long break together right after report, leaving just one or two nurses to manage the entire floor. Explain that you think it is dangerous (cite examples, such as falls that have occurred during that time or call lights going unanswered). Ask for her insight and suggest that breaks can only be taken after a certain time of the shift, such as after 9am. Also suggest that there be a planned break schedule with an assigned person to cover for the person on break. Good luck.