Do Nurses have to work in rotating shifts in almost all the jobs?

I have not worked rotating shifts in over 10 years...most places have done away with those.

I've never worked rotating shifts, I was hired for a shift and that's what I worked unless I worked extra. I've known of some people who worked rotating shifts, my parents both did, my dad in manufacturing and my mom in nursing (both in the 80s). It's hard on your body, switching back and forth constantly.

But it's hard to find a nursing job when your new and not have to work nights. You have to pay your dues, you know.

It depends what kind of nursing you're looking at doing.

If you want to work in an acute ward situation, then you're going to have to do some nights, at least when you're just starting out. From my experience, there aren't many places that have enough permanent night staff for all the other staff to avoid doing nights.

Of course, if you want to go work somewhere like day surgery, out patients, a doctors surgery, occ health nursing etc etc, there are no night shifts at all.

We do not use rotating shifts where I work.

I've never done a rotating shift. Gah, that would be horrible.

I did two and a half years in LTC and only worked 3-11, never rotated. I did six months night shift in med/surg and transferred to days in step down ICU. I'm pregnant now and not going back to nights because I'm tired, I don't like seeing The Man in passing when I'm coming home and he's going to work and my family was ready to kill me because I constantly stayed at home to sleep during family gatherings.

We do rotating shifts and it destroys your social life, your body clock and your sanity after awhile. Never do rotating shifts if you can possibly help it.

No rotating shifts at my facility either.

Rotating shifts are normal in Australia. I have worked them and yes they are very hard physically and mentally and hard to have a social life. Now i changed to the OR all my shifts are pretty much early shifts, and no weekend or nights.

Yeah we have the rotating shift patterns here in the UK too. Ridiculous really!!

Back in the good ole days (over 20 years ago) we just rotated back and forth early to late shift and the night staff worked nights constantly. The night shifts suited most mums with young children. The someone in their infinate wisdom decided everyone should rotate throughout all the shifts.

Where the heck is best pratcise for us nurses. No wonder our nurses have low morale - they are constantly tired! I thank the Lord I have no children, because it must be murder to sort out child care.

At my workplace, nurses are hired as day/eve or day/night, straight eves and straight nights. If you are hired as a day/eve or day/night nurse you do 90% of your shifts on the day shift and then fill in as needed for the other one.

I've noticed that the hospital where I do my clinicals is advertising several RN positions as rotating shifts. I realize that as a new grad in May 08 that I won't have much barganing power to begin with, however I've already determined that rotating shifts are a deal breaker for me. Either day shift or night shift would be fine, but rotating shifts are just too hard on the body and a person's life in general. I always thought that rotating shifts were silly.