Pros and cons of the shift

OCRN3 · Oct 24, 2014

7a-7p 12 hours, day shift, still have time to go out Saturday night. Work some weekends and holidays. Only work 3 days a week, still get to sleep during the night.

RNperdiem, RN · Oct 24, 2014

7A-7p days per diem. Pros: get a normal sleep schedule and a life more in synch with the rest of the world. I am naturally a morning person, so getting up early is easy. There is no traffic on the roads where I live going to work and going home. Fewer admissions: days tend to transfer people out, and nights gets more admissions. Days: patients are often calmer; sundowners go a little crazy at night. Doctors and other staff we need are more available during the day.

Cons: The doctors go on rounds and sometimes we are busy with the list of doctors orders. We deal with more visitors and feed 3 meals a day for the patients who eat. Days does more patient transports to CT scan, VIR and other departments. When joint commision comes for inspection, days bears the brunt of it.

I have worked all the shifts, and I prefer days.

inchii · Oct 25, 2014

I posted this before on an old thread:

Days:

Pros:

1. Normal sleeping pattern

2. More adequately staffed (some hospital have different nurse/patient ratio for RNS and CNAs for days and nights)

3. More resources (you have the Admit nurse, SWAT nurse, IV nurse, wound nurse, MDs, case manager, social worker, PT, OT, etc.)

4. See number 1.

Cons:

1. Most hospital activities happen during days (procedures, Doctors' rounds-which include new orders, Discharges, etc)

2. You also have to deal with patients' relatives (not that it's a bad thing, but some of them can give you a hard time)

Nights: (Pretty much the opposite of days)

Pros:

1. Night shift differential pay

2. Less procedures are done at night

Cons:

1. Messed up sleeping pattern (very important if you have family/kids)

2. Less staff resources.

3. You need to call or sometimes wake up physicians to get an order. You cannot really address all patient problems unless it's urgent.

4. Depending on the hospital, some routines are done during nights --IV tubing change, IV site change, Routine lab draws (usually done early AM. Some patients are nurse draws. You also need to address abnormal lab results), chart audit, central line dressing change, foley catheter change, etc

anh06005, MSN, APRN, NP · Oct 25, 2014

Weekend option!! 7a-7p

Pros:

Have a normal life, free during business hours, get same pay for less actual hours worked

Cons:

When family does stuff on the weekend. We aren't a hugely on the go family, though, so I get a few hours off for, say, my nephew's birthday

mhy12784 · Oct 25, 2014

7am-3pm M-F

Pros- No weekends (unless you want OT)

No evenings

"normal people hours"

Cons- 5 days a week

cant manipulate schedule for vacations/long weekends

after having a day to "recover" from the work week the weekend goes too fast

more time "wasted" commuting to/from work, getting to work early/leaving late etc working 5 days instead of 3

Not gonna lie overall 7-3 m-f is pretty awesome (especially as a new nurse!) but 4 days a week would be SOO much better. id kill for a 7-5 or 9-7 position or someting else 4 days a week since that would truly be the ultimate sweet spot. But till I find it ill be happy where I am

PomMom65 · Oct 25, 2014

7p-7a

13 bed inpatient Hopsice Unit. I love my nights. For us, it is a calmer environment. Our docs do not do rounds overnight and we do not have as many visitors and other staff members (social work, clergy, volunteers, therapy dog). My only real complaint is my sleep schedule is a mess. However, my husband and I do not have any children at home anymore so it works out okay.

sistrmoon, BSN, RN · Oct 25, 2014

11p-7a Thurs/Friday/Saturday

Pros: best paid shifts, hardest to staff so almost never float, no management/limited visitors, get to do dinner/bedtime with my kids even on work nights, limited daycare for kids/sahm during week

Cons: miss out on weekend events, hard to switch schedules/not enough quality sleep, don't see husband much since we work opposite shifts, management "forgets" you since they rarely see you(this can also be a pro)