12 hour shifts too long?

punnit_square · Mar 31, 2005

Are 12 hour shifts too long? I have seen many nurses getting burned out at 8 hours. Does the level of care decline when nurses are working 12 hour shifts?

Twelve hours is too much but yet not enough time. Nursing research has shown that errors increase with the longer hours. Admistration looks at it from this standpoint . . . for each RN that works the 4 hours less per week, that averages out to be approximately 75.00 per week times 100 (on the conservative side) RNs = a savings of $7500 per week. As we all know, it is the budget that counts.

RN4NICU, LPN, LVN · Apr 1, 2005

Twelve hours is too much but yet not enough time. Nursing research has shown that errors increase with the longer hours. Admistration looks at it from this standpoint . . . for each RN that works the 4 hours less per week, that averages out to be approximately 75.00 per week times 100 (on the conservative side) RNs = a savings of $7500 per week. As we all know, it is the budget that counts.

I'm not sure I understand where you are going with this. The hours are still worked, but by another nurse. There are either 2 or 3 nurses working in a 24-hour period (8 vs. 12 hour shifts), but you are not actually getting out of paying someone to work those other 4 hours.

KacyLynnRN · Apr 1, 2005

I LOVE 12 hour shifts, especially having 4 days a week off...I wouldn't ever want to do it any other way.

PFDGB · Apr 1, 2005

when you are scheduled for more than 8 hours there is no way they can ask you to stay over..if someone calls in they have to move their butts and get someone to cover
also the days off are really good...if you want to get some overtime you can get some w/o wearing your self out

New Grad.......I believe that the NY laws permit maximum of 4 hrs madation onto a 12 hr. shift. If someone knows different pease let me know...

PFDGB · Apr 1, 2005

I don't think so. I don't think I'd even be able to finish everything in 8 hours anyway. For me, it's as much effort to drag myself in for 12 hours as it would be for 8, so I'm very happy with 12.
-Julie in NYC

When you were a new grad how long did it take you to complete your work ? Did an 8 hr turn into 10-11 hrs etc...or 12 hrs into 14-15 ? Also, in your opinion if you know would it be better to work those kind of hours all in a row or broken up. Does the grafeyard shift give you the same amount of experience ?

punnit_square · Apr 1, 2005

I'm not sure I understand where you are going with this. The hours are still worked, but by another nurse. There are either 2 or 3 nurses working in a 24-hour period (8 vs. 12 hour shifts), but you are not actually getting out of paying someone to work those other 4 hours.

Please see the post in regards to the person losing 6k + a year from doing twelves. Your actual individual pay decreases by working 36 instead of 40 hours a week and administration has that set up so they save quite a few hundreds of thousands of dollars a year that could be paid to us.

Gompers, BSN, RN · Apr 1, 2005

Please see the post in regards to the person losing 6k + a year from doing twelves. Your actual individual pay decreases by working 36 instead of 40 hours a week and administration has that set up so they save quite a few hundreds of thousands of dollars a year that could be paid to us.

I still don't get it. There are still 24 hours in a day. Whether the hospital is paying 3 people to work 8-hour shifts that day or 2 people to work 12-hour shifts, they're still paying out the same amount. If I went part time, I'd take a $20,000 a year paycut - but the hospital wouldn't SAVE any money because they'd still have to pay someone ELSE to work the hours I was cutting back on. The staffing needs of a hospital determines the budget. If a unit needs five nurses per shift, that's the budget. Whether those nurses work full or part time only affects those nurses' bank accounts, not the hospital's.

*PICURN* · Apr 1, 2005

I LOVE 12 hour shifts.....the time flys by as it is so really after 8hrs the last 4 are nothing.

MultipurposeRN · Apr 1, 2005

I worked 12 hrs shifts for years. The no-sleep thing finally got to me last summer and I took a care coordination job, M-F 8-4:30. I wasn't sure how I would adjust to 5 days a week, but it's been great. I'm on salary, so my time in/out is flexible..yes, there's hectic weeks I've worked a few 10 hour days, but other days I leave an hour early with no flack. It's the most autonomous job I've had to date. When I was working my fulltime night job, I felt like crap all the time since I got little sleep during the day. My kids were home, in and out, etc etc I had a bedroom right by the living room and was continually getting awakened. Plus my schedule ended up being some lame M-W-F thing which killed the whole week anyhow. I swear when I went to my 8 hr days, I felt like I had twice the time off that I did before working the 12 hr night shifts. I'm still basically a night person, so have a little trouble staying on the day schedule on weekends but it's gotten better. I still do 12's once a month in the ICU at another hospital and I had forgotten how tiring they could be. I wouldn't want to work the floor and do 8's, though. If I had to go back to the bedside, I'd try to just do 24 hrs /week.

MultipurposeRN · Apr 1, 2005

I still don't get it. There are still 24 hours in a day. Whether the hospital is paying 3 people to work 8-hour shifts that day or 2 people to work 12-hour shifts, they're still paying out the same amount.

If the hospital pays benefits, vacation time, sick leave, longevity bonuses, etc to 3 nurses instead of 2, they are still putting out more money. They also spend more in traning that 3rd nurse.

baby&mommynurse · Apr 1, 2005

I still don't get it. There are still 24 hours in a day. Whether the hospital is paying 3 people to work 8-hour shifts that day or 2 people to work 12-hour shifts, they're still paying out the same amount. If I went part time, I'd take a $20,000 a year paycut - but the hospital wouldn't SAVE any money because they'd still have to pay someone ELSE to work the hours I was cutting back on. The staffing needs of a hospital determines the budget. If a unit needs five nurses per shift, that's the budget. Whether those nurses work full or part time only affects those nurses' bank accounts, not the hospital's.

I agree with Gompers on this one. If a nurse is concerned with what she/he makes by working 8 hour shifts as opposed to 12 hour shifts, then that nurse should find a job that suits their own needs. Before all of our nurses went to 12 hour shifts, there were concerns about having less hours on their paycheck. Now, it's not even an issue. Everyone seems to like it, and there is always overtime available to make up for any lost hours.

Gompers, BSN, RN · Apr 1, 2005

If the hospital pays benefits, vacation time, sick leave, longevity bonuses, etc to 3 nurses instead of 2, they are still putting out more money. They also spend more in traning that 3rd nurse.

Well, yeah, that I understand. But the post I was replying to was talking about the pay involved with those four hours, not about benefits and such. I was explaining that the hospital is not saving money because they still need the same number of nurses per shift regardless of whether those nurses work 40 hours a week or not.