8 or 12 hour shifts

Rnra1954 · Mar 5, 2016

Sorry folks, this old nurses opinion is after 10 hours nurses are ineffective. Fatigue sets in and patient care and nursing decisions are affected.. Good older nurses are lost due to long work shifts. As a health care consumer I want my nurse to be alert. So many nurses look like they are exhausted.

standardprecautions · Mar 5, 2016

I have experienced working both 8 and 12-hour shifts and I prefer 12-hour shifts because you get more days off, less days where you have to get up for work, less uniforms to wash, you get more time to accomplish your work tasks, better handover and have I mentioned more days off? I can't think of any con for 12-hour shifts.

KMRN81 · Mar 5, 2016

I prefer 12 hr shifts, hands down. The 8 hour shift nurses often leave around 5 pm, only to get stuck in rush hour traffic! No thanks! I love commuting during off-peak hours, and having 3 days off in a row helps me recharge and relax in between my 12-hr shifts. Our 8-hour nurses like their shifts because they rely on the hours (40 compared to 36) each week.

LisalaRN99, BSN, RN · Mar 6, 2016

Nursing is my second career. I worked a "regular" job, 8 to 5, monday through friday. Then I became a nurse. Then I learned the pleasures of three 12-hour shift a week, with fours days off every week. Awesome! Before I was a nurse, I did feel like I lived at work. But the upside was having every weekend off. I did work one nursing job where I worked 7 am to 3 pm, five shifts a week, and every other weekend. I hated it. I felt like I never had a day off! I can and have adapted to the 12 hour shifts, as long as I don't work them three in a row. I need physical and emotional recovery time#

LisalaRN99, BSN, RN · Mar 6, 2016

Yes, we are exhausted, but I was exhausted doing five 8 hour shifts. I'd rather have the four days off!

MMC.RN · Mar 6, 2016

My facility schedules nurses for 8 hour shifts, but since my unit self-schedules most of us end up working 2 double shifts and a single 8 hour shift to get our 40 hours in. We also each pick one weekend a month and do two doubles in a row and that way we only have to work one weekend a month as opposed to every other which is great for the summer! I enjoy the longer shifts. Yes, the days do get long but I figure that I am already there and I know what is going on so I may as well stay. I find it easier that way. Plus, it virtually guarantees that I don't end up with mandatory OT. Of course, this works well for me because I am still in school and I am unmarried with no children as are most of the nurses I work with.

naptimeRN · Mar 6, 2016

As full time I prefer 12 hours because I feel like 5 days at the hospital is borderline intolerable. As part time and per diem, I prefer 8's because I'm not required to be there 5 days a week and 8 hours flies by! I start getting real tired after 10 hours. I totally understand why full timers usually prefer 12's however!

ER-BSN · Mar 6, 2016

I work 12 hour shifts in the ER. I like them because time flies by and you're done in 3 days. You can schedule yourself to have 5-6 days in a row off occasionally without having to use PTO. The con to 12 hours for me is that sometimes, I am so tired from 3 -12's that I feel I spend my off days simply sleeping or not achieving things I need to get done. I've worked both and I think it is truly a personal preference. The most important aspect to any job you accept is to LOVE what you do. Then the hours, shifts, holidays, ect don't really matter. Good luck!

SunnyPupRN · Mar 7, 2016

8. I'm dead on 12s. The first two days after 12s I take just to recover. I'll never do 12s again.

AureateNova, ADN, RN · Mar 7, 2016

I've worked both, 12s as an lpn and as a nurse tech on inpatient units and 8s currently in an outpatient setting. I hate working five 8hr shifts a week.

LAnderson76 · Mar 7, 2016

I work 12 hr shifts F/T

It's nice to have extra days off to get other stuff done at home and still have time to relax :)

I haven't work an 8 hr shift yet, only the NIC works 9-5 because she has young kids. But when she does pick up a 12 hr shift, she says "It's a walk in the park" compared to working 8hrs!

It'll depend on what works with you. I have a 4yr old son and 12 hr shifts work best for me :)

However, if you manage to get a day job, it's great for your health because shift work messes with sleep cycle and its not good in the long run.

owlmother · Mar 8, 2016

I've worked both. Working 12, you work three days a week. Working 8, you work 5. Either way, you come home tired. I'd rather work three!