What do you do?

Nurses General Nursing

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When you have down time on the night shift? I am talking about patient care is done; charting is done, no co-worker needs help getting caught up, yadda yadda. Do you sit and read a book or try to look busy?

Specializes in Pedi.

When I worked in the hospital, on a particularly slow night if EVERYONE was caught up and the floor was quiet (this was rare), we mostly sat down together and discussed how much we hated working there. Hahaha. Sometimes we watched a movie... nights that slow were PAINFUL.

When I worked in the hospital on a particularly slow night if EVERYONE was caught up and the floor was quiet (this was rare), we mostly sat down together and discussed how much we hated working there. Hahaha. Sometimes we watched a movie... nights that slow were PAINFUL.[/quote']

Hahah this is generally what happens on my unit as well.

Specializes in Acute Care Cardiac, Education, Prof Practice.
When you have down time on the night shift? I am talking about patient care is done; charting is done, no co-worker needs help getting caught up, yadda yadda. Do you sit and read a book or try to look busy?

Stock med carts, PIXIS counts, wash the patient tracking board and re-write, check the crash cart, work on CEU's/mandatories.

Specializes in Pediatric/Adolescent, Med-Surg.

I worked straight nights for years. On slow nights I would catch up on my annual mandatory educational modules, do homework for my graduate classes, look up recipes, etc. Some nights I would be sitting there just wishing for something to do and other nights there was no such thing as down time.

Specializes in Orthopedic, LTC, STR, Med-Surg, Tele.

Sometimes I clean, if I have my Kindle I'll read or study certification material. I eat my "lunch" too. I find the hardest shifts to get through are slow ones! Time just drags.

Specializes in LTC, med/surg, hospice.

I chill out and enjoy it because those nights are few and far between. Likely the next night I will barely have time to enjoy an uninterrupted lunch. So I may chat with coworkers, sit with an awake patient, read...it varies.

When I have absolutely nothing to do, I listen to music and/or read a book.

Specializes in NICU, ICU, PICU, Academia.

We talk like adults (working in peds- this is a rare activity). I have a research project going, so I'll pull that stuff out. Go through my email and delete crap, print out articles I've saved to my inbox, work on my mandatory education stuff, stock empty rooms, set up rooms for admits. Last night we took a whole bag of plastic Army men and put them all over the unit. So yeah, really important stuff! :)

Specializes in ER, progressive care.

We would sit and talk, or I would read a book on my Kindle....or read my newest issues of AJCC or CCN :geek:

Sometimes we would watch videos....we have a TV in a little waiting area so sometimes we would watch that. Or we'll get together and take a bunch of silly pictures at the nurse's station.

I work with a fun group of people. "Quiet" nights like the ones you are describing are very rare.

I worked night shift for years, and was taken by surprise at the number of people talking about having nothing to do! "Down time"--meaning time that wasn't spent running after lights, giving endless PRN meds, admitting new patients from the ED, changing/cleaning patients, charting, or doing the MAR/orders checks--was reserved for getting a bite to eat and possibly a potty break.

Time with nothing else to do? Can't say I know what that would be.

Stock med carts, PIXIS counts, wash the patient tracking board and re-write, check the crash cart, work on CEU's/mandatories.

yep, i'm pretty sure this is what i would do, too.

i was always thinking about *stuff* i wanted to do 'if i only had the time'.

leslie

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