Getting Stuck with Night Shift.

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I decided I might need to get some hopsital experience so I started applying at some hospitals. The hospitals I applied to advertised they needed nurses for nights AND days. I specified days on my application but I guess that part of the application doesn't get looked at.

I got two phone calls from excited human resource people who said they would love to have me come in for an interview, but when I ask if it is day or night shift they tell me they don't have any day shift positions open.

I've tried working night shift and it almost killed me. I apologized to them but told them I just couldn't do nights. One of them even upped the ante a bit and asked, how about 6a to 6p??? You'd get finished a whole hour earlier!!!

I apologized but told them I couldn't work nights. One of them told me if I changed my mind to call back.

I understand there may be a waiting list for day shift. Does anyone know what the average wait to get a day shift position is in case I decided to be a fool and try to do nights?

I've got a pretty secure job at the nursing home but it's very unchallenging and I'd like a little more variety and excitement. I don't know if I should blow it with this job to get stuck working a night shift job I know I couldn't do for months only to find out it could be a very long time before I could get a day job.

Also, why do these places run ads for day and night shift when they apparently never had day openings from the start. Is it a bait and switch deal?

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Specializes in Family Practice/Primary Care.

I've tried working night shift and it almost killed me. I apologized to them but told them I just couldn't do nights. One of them even upped the ante a bit and asked, how about 6a to 6p??? You'd get finished a whole hour earlier!!!

Unless I am missing something, 6a-6p IS day shift.

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Specializes in ICU, Telemetry.

If you're around another place, try them. Sometimes we're full on days, with night shifters waiting for day spots, and sometimes we've got new hires on days, waiting for a spot on nights. It seems to cycle back and forth, at least at our place....

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Specializes in Rural Nursing = Med/Surg, ER, OB, ICU.

Have you tried a night shift? I, as a new graduate had to move to night shift in the hospital I had worked for for 10 years as an CNA. I knew I would hate it but I had no choice and I hoped I would get on days quickly. Well suprise....I actually like the night shift! As long as I protect my time to sleep I do great. We really work as a team on nights and I really enjoy that aspect. You might try the shift out and see how you do.:heartbeat

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Unless I am missing something, 6a-6p IS day shift.

I'm just missing my sign...I meant 6p to 6a.

The human resource person did the same thing on the phone and had to correct himself.

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Specializes in Critical Care.

I've tried working night shift and it almost killed me. I apologized to them but told them I just couldn't do nights. One of them even upped the ante a bit and asked, how about 6a to 6p??? You'd get finished a whole hour earlier!!!

How did night shift almost kill you? I worked nights with huge family issues, and once I'd established myself on my unit, when I couldn't take it any more, I asked for either a day position, or a transfer to a lower acuity unit. I was lucky that no one else wanted day positions at that time.

What area of nursing are you applying for? How much experience do you have?

In most hospitals in my home state, a new nurse needs to take a night shift. We never hire new nurses onto days; too many noc nurses want days. To get onto my unit (ICU), you need to be hired onto the intermediate unit; and then take a night position. Once on nights, then you transfer to days based on demand and hire date.

Esp in this economy, and you coming from LTC (an entirely different breed from hospital work), you should take what you can. If you have an offer of a 6am-6pm position, and you view it as a night position? Well ... I'm hoping it's a typo. And if it IS a typo, please take the 7p-7am position before the 6p-6am. A LOT happens in that 6-7pm hour (codes, intubations, physician orders). As a previous noc shifter in a hospital, less happens 6-7am than it does 6-7pm.

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Have you tried a night shift? I, as a new graduate had to move to night shift in the hospital I had worked for for 10 years as an CNA. I knew I would hate it but I had no choice and I hoped I would get on days quickly. Well suprise....I actually like the night shift! As long as I protect my time to sleep I do great. We really work as a team on nights and I really enjoy that aspect. You might try the shift out and see how you do.:heartbeat

I tried it and it just about killed me.

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How did night shift almost kill you?

What area of nursing are you applying for? How much experience do you have?

In most hospitals in my home state, a new nurse needs to take a night shift.

Esp in this economy, and you coming from LTC (an entirely different breed from hospital work), you should take what you can.

Yes, it was a typo. It's 6p-6a.

Night shift almost killed me because my body couldn't take it. I would have to hang my head out the window on the way home and sing to keep from falling asleep. About 3AM I would become so miserable I didn't think I would be able to make it the rest of the shift. And no matter how much I slept, I was always tired. Always. I was also picking fights with my husband.

I hate how people think nursing home experience=no experience. The nature of work may be different. I can understand the patient care may be of higher acuity (it's on a med-surg floor) but I've been told I'm basically a new grad. This is a big insult, because I know and can do a heck of a lot more now than as a new grad. I'd venture to say I'm at least familiar with a lot of what goes on in a med surg unit, and I may have been born at night but it wasn't last night.

But if the graveyard shift is the best I can expect I may just have to go on to NP school without working in the hospital. I'm not trying to be a spoiled princess, I just know my limits.

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Specializes in Oncology.

You may have experience, but day shift positions are generally based on seniority, not experience.

One way to do it may be to apply at an outpatient facility associated with a hospital, build some seniority working outpatient, then try and get an inpatient job when you have a few years seniority and can bid on it internally.

Even if you do get a days job with no seniority you risk being floated to nights, which is way worse than working straight nights imho.

When you worked nights, were you trying to flip your schedule back and forth constantly? When you get used to nights its not bad at all.

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Specializes in onc, M/S, hospice, nursing informatics.

I've been at my job for six years, and it wasn't until the past year when we got a new manager that I was actually given the opportunity to go to days... now that I don't want to anymore. My other managers would not transfer me, even when a position opened up. They both hired new grads for positions I was hoping to get. I guess it all depends on the facility and manager you get.

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Specializes in ACUTE, GERIATRICS.

I love working nights in hospital. I work 90% nights, 10% days no problem at all. Maybe it depends how your body will accept it or some people really don't sleep in days or really couldn't stay working nights. But for me, since I'm a night person I love working nights. Yeah, it's true in some places that if you're new you probably will be assigned in nights seniority staff gets the choice first.

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I disagree about the ability to adjust to nights. I have been doing a straight nights rotation for basically 2 yrs, and I still feel like crap, can't stay awake, can't sleep when I get home, miss out on lots because I just don't feel like doing anything from the time I wake up til I go back to work.

Maybe some people flip to the night side, but it will never be something that comes easily to me.

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