Who's for banning rotating shifts?

Nurses General Nursing

Published

  1. What are your opinion(s) on rotating shifts?

    • 49
      Let's ban them altogether!
    • 48
      Straight nights is better than rotating.
    • 16
      Rotating every 3-4 weeks is not so bad.
    • 34
      Rotating shifts are harder on the body than straight nights.
    • 29
      I don't understand why many hospitals staff with rotating shifts.

176 members have participated

Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

I have never worked rotating shifts...Nor do I ever wish to..I avoid jobs with rotating shifts by principle. Unfortunately, many of the university teaching hospitals in my area that I would oh so much like to work for in the future have rotating shifts. The options are straight nights or rotating. There are different types of rotating shifts. Some places you rotate each week or after days. Two days..one night...one day...three nights. Other places have you rotate by weeks to months. 3 weeks days...4 weeks nights..something like that. That form of rotating is not so bad, but the other form is very difficult. Would you rather do straight nights or rotate every couple days?

Specializes in Operating Room.

We do rotating shifts and it can be tough when you have to switch. We have percentages to meet every time block (6 weeks) and therefore don't have the option to work a few weeks of days and then a few weeks of nights. I'm thinking of switching to straight nights because I'm getting sick of it. And I'm not getting a spot on days any time soon so I might as well take control over my shifts now.

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Specializes in ER.
Poll: What are your opinion(s) on rotating shifts?

  • Let's ban them altogether!
  • Straight nights is better than rotating.
  • Rotating every 3-4 weeks is not so bad.
  • Rotating shifts are harder on the body than straight nights.
  • I don't understand why many hospitals staff with rotating shifts.
  • Public View Results

What kind of poll is this?

1)An unscientific one

2) A poll written by someone with a strong opinion

3) A poll where most of the choices support the poll maker's bias

4) The most biased poll I've seen in a long time

5) Sort of biased, but I've seen worse

I hate nights but will take that over rotating any day.

Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.
What kind of poll is this?

1)An unscientific one

2) A poll written by someone with a strong opinion

3) A poll where most of the choices support the poll maker's bias

4) The most biased poll I've seen in a long time

5) Sort of biased, but I've seen worse

Ok ok, not really a poll..more like do any of these ideas ring true with you. There's no other format to ask a multiple choice question that makes it easy for responders to just pick and click instead of responding.

How would you post it to make it sound less biased and more scientific? In general, polls are not an especially scientific method of data collection.

Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.

You left out the option for "I like rotating shifts".

Night shifts are unpopular, but they need to be covered. Hospitals operate 24/7/365. Someone has to work nights. Some places get around this by sticking all the newbies on the night shift. This is problematic for the newbies stuck on the night shift . . . as you'll see explained all over AN. It's also a problem for the patients. If the only nurse with experience on the night shift is the two year nurse in charge, all kinds of mistakes get made, trends get missed, protocols are violated and patients die. If everyone with less than 10 years or so of seniority has to rotate, there are always experienced nurses on the night shift available to answer questions and give guidance to the newbies.

If you work a six week schedule, there's no reason you can't work three weeks of days followed by three weeks of nights. If you'd like longer on each shift, work the first three weeks days, the second three weeks nights and the next schedule work the first three weeks nights and the last three weeks days. And so on. Six weeks of each.

Night shifts are grinding on me. I would like the opportunity to rotate to be honest.

In my facility most new positions are "flex" or rotating as you say. Half of the flex staff like nights (I fall in this category), the other half like days. We self schedule and I haven't had to work a day shift since last year because we switch shifts with each other, meaning if I get assigned a day shift I find someone who doesn't want to work nights and switch. Our manager got so tired of doing 40+ switch forms a week that most people get the shifts they want with the knowledge that we may be flexed if the floor needs it.

Since I despise working nights I would rather have no rotating shifts :) However, nursing is 24/7 and someone has to work nights. On my floor rotators are required to fill in with nights as necessary and work a minimum of one night per 6 weeks. Most of the time I only do 1-2 nights per six week period. It sucks when I do my nights but I survive it and go back to my majority of day shifts.

Specializes in ER.

How would you post it to make it sound less biased and more scientific? In general, polls are not an especially scientific method of data collection.

What do you think of rotating shifts?

1) Everyone should have rotating shifts

2) The option should be available for some

3) They are unhealthy and unsafe

4) I think they are another way for management to circumvent union contracts

5) I have no opinion

6) What are rotating shifts?

7) Other (please explain)

Specializes in Pediatric/Adolescent, Med-Surg.

Actually my unit banned rotating shifts several years ago. A couple of our nurses did an evidence based project including a review of the literature that showed that it is harder on nurses to rotate and an increase risk of errors. Now we all of set shifts, be it day, night, or evening. Even our new grads do not rotate

Specializes in Psych.

I rotate between Eves, Nights and 12 hour nights. I do not want to work day shift. Most of the staff is scheduled either days or evenings with 2 nurses who cover most night shifts with me plugged in every now and then.

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