Getting 12 hour shifts on unit

[jannrn]

I work in a small community hospital, there are 4 regular night shift staff and 3 of us want 12 hour shifts, there are similar numbers of regular staff on other shifts plus some that rotate and are per diem. (and I don't know how many of them are intnerested) The manager says that ALL have to agree to go 12 hour shifts. I am wondering how they think you will ever have a 100% agreement on anything. that just tells me they don't care if 99% of us want to change! They obviously don't want the change made so they make it impossible to meet the criteria!

How have some of you seen the change made in your hospitals? Some of us have even considered quitting because there are plenty of 12 hour shifts out there, just not here!

[Quickbeam, BSN, RN]

Been there....I worked 10 years as an 8 hour full time night nurse. I loved it. I didn't have 12 hours in me. Never have. Many of the places I worked had a mix of both schedules. Almost all have gone over to 12 hour shifts since I worked there.

I think you have momentum on your side. I do feel for the 8 hour night nurse who doesn't want to change. The management probably does not want to force an employee to work a shift he/she didn't hire on to do.

[ahsitters]

My hospital recently switched our ccu a (four bed unit) to 12 hr shifts but all people who work in the ccu had to agree to the change by vote and it had to be 100%. The rest of the hospital remains on 8hr shifts because 100% vote would never happen plus the pt load is too demanding. My advice is to check with your union and your managers and circulate info to your peers to get a good idea of why staff does and does not want the change.

Good Luck.

[ArmyMSN]

Have worked both and prefer 8 hr shifts (CCU). Seems that there's more continuity in patient care for me. During 12 hr shifts, I'd be away from the hospital for stretchs while on days off and the entire ward census would be different when I returned - having to relearn new patient's plan of care, idiosyncracies, etc.

Wonder if anyone has studied the difference between 8 and 12 hrs - in terms of error rates, staff and patient satisfaction. Three change of shift reports is more time consuming and takes time away from patients. I do know that the last four hours of a 12 hr shift, many of my staff would seem to "peter out" - and just try to hang on during the last few hours because they were worn out.

[puggymae]

When we first changed to 12 hour shifts there were numerous people who did not want to change. Managment let them stay on 8 hours if they wanted to - BUT - they had to have other nurses to cover the remaining 16 hours. The 12 hour people did their schedule, the 8 hour people did theirs - if their was not enough 8 hour coverage then those nurses had to recruit others or work the hours themselves. Eventually everyone switched to 12 hour shifts (just like managment wanted :bowingpur ).

[PMFB-RN, RN]

Among the many reasons I became an RN was to work 12 hour shifts. I will not work 8 hour shifts. It is a quality of life issue for me. The hospital where I work has only 2% male RNs but half of the nurses I work with in the SICU are men. We have all discussed this many times and so far I have never heard any of them say they would work 8 hour shifts. We do have some older RNs who work 8 hour shifts and managment is happy to have their experience on the floor and makes it work.

I very much like working in a place that so values it nurses that they are willing to be flexable.

A few years ago the shortage of ICU nurses was so acute where I work that some of the CV surgons had to cancel surgeries becuase there where no nurses to take care of their patients. Talk about heads rolling! Suddenly the surgons where on the nurses side. A couple surgons even left for greener pastures. Those guys bring in BIG bucks for the hospital. That whole thing led to new ICU managment and good working conditions for nurses.