No break room on night shift...

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Specializes in Public Health.

Does anyone else have a problem with a common break room being used for sleeping quartersn by staff during the night?

We have this huge break room where staff can go to get away from patient care areas for their break, but on night shift it's monopolized by staff taking a sleep break during the night.

I've mentioned this to management a couple of times, but I don't know what else to do. I get frustrated because there isn't anyplace I can really go to get away from everything.

I really don't care that people take sleep breaks, but don't take up a room meant for everyone.

How would you approach this situation?

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Specializes in Utilization Management.

You mean night shifters can sleep where you work?!

Where I work, they'd all be fired.

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Specializes in Public Health.

Some people choose to sleep. I don't because I've found that I wake up more exhausted (and grumpy).

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Specializes in Oncology, Med-Surg, Nursery.

Oh wow. Yeah - we aren't allowed to sleep either. We'd definitely be on our way out if we were laying around in a break room asleep on night shift!

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

We can be fired for going to our car for a quick nap but thats ok because I'm like burnvictimRN so its better that I just stay awake. As for breaks, what breaks????? :confused:

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Specializes in NICU, PICU, PCVICU and peds oncology.

This is one of my BIGGEST pet peeves. Our break room isn't big but it can accommodate four sleepers, five if they're friends. Not only is sleeping common, it's accepted by our management. We used to have a manager on nights for years and she slept for part of every shift she worked. It gets me quite steamed to see them heading off on their breaks with all the warmed linen on the unit, then to see them shrouded and still for 90 minutes. But the ones who go and sleep in their cars without some kind of alarm clock are worse. If there's a code called, we're all supposed to return to our patients, but of course the code page doesn't go to the parkade. At least if they're in the break room someone can go get 'em. Then there are the ones who will crawl into a vacant bed in an isolation room and really sleep. I hate them worst of all.

Our break room also houses the only computer we can use for "non-work related" stuff, the fridge and the microwave. I try to arrange my breaks so that I'm in there before the sleepers, but it isn't always possible. I like to read my book and have a snack, or check my allnurses posts but I can't do either in the dark. If we have a vacant room I'll pull a chair in there and read. I don't like to leave the unit looking for a place to read because our hospital is built like a five storey shopping mall with an open centre and a glass roof. I feel very exposed out there at night when there's no security presence. Since my rotation is 50/50 days and nights, I just have to make the best of it.

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pssshh at least you guys have a break room. at the nursing home where i work, they have the soda & snack machine in our break room so the residents just go in and out as they please. while you're taking abreak, at least 2 will come in and ask for assistance on how to work the machine. no rest for the wicked, i suppose...

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Specializes in Oncology, Med-Surg, Nursery.

I am just amazed that sleeping is allowed at some places, LOL!! We would be out the door so fast.

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Specializes in Management, Emergency, Psych, Med Surg.

People are not supposed to sleep on the job. I used to fire people for sleeping. If you are sleeping I don't need you.

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Specializes in Cardiac Telemetry, ED.

I've heard rumors that our night shifters sleep. I've not witnessed it, but I think I'd have a hard time doing so in good conscience.

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People used to sleep on my old unit... Drove me CRAZY!!! Then they would come into the break room where I was eating and reading or watching bad TV and get all short with me because I wasn't sleeping! Hello! We are at a hospital, shouldn't you stay alert for an emergency? And the ones who would take all the clean warmed linens and then put them back! Ew! But management never did a thing... This is one of the MANY reasons I USED to work on that unit... (Sorry for the rant, hot button issue for me!)

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Specializes in PeriOp, ICU, PICU, NICU.

I can't imagine sleeping on the job (break, lunch or not). Wild thoughts of one of my kids extubating itself is enough to scare the bejeezus outta me :clown:

No thanks!

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