Shift Work vs Monday to Friday - Which would you prefer?

[MaleNurseYH]

Hi guys,

I have been a nurse for about 3 years working full time at a local hospital. My full time schedule has been 4 days on and 5 days off (2 days then 2 nights and 5 days off) which are 12 hours shifts. I have always been interested in public health where the schedule is 8 hours through Monday to Friday with weekend and holidays off but I am not sure if its any better than my current schedule. Working night shifts are becoming very difficult.

Which would you guys prefer? 4 days on 5 days off or Monday to Friday with weekend and holidays off. Have any of you experience working in the hospital and community setting? How was transition from hospital to office work?

Thanks in advance for any of your input! It would be greatly appreciated!

[mirandaaa]

Honestly, I prefer the 4 on 5 off.

I worked 12 hour nights with that shift and although the 4 on were brutal, the 5 off were wonderful. I currently work Mon-Fri 8-4 (weekends and holidays off) and although it's nice, it does get exhausting only having 2 days off between 5 days of working (but it is nice sleeping in my own bed every night!).

It just depends on personal preference!

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

Everyone I work with thinks I'm crazy, but I prefer the shift work over straight M-F. I like being off during a weekday--like today--while the rest of the world is at the daily grind.

[OrganizedChaos, LVN]

I think each shift has pros & cons.

12 hour shifts: you never get off after 12 hours so it's more like 14/15. I usually worked 3 on 2 off, 2 on 3 off. The first day off I spent decompressing, the next day I did errands/got ready for work.

8 hour shifts: nice, short, get off generally when you're suppose to. But working so many days together then only having 2 days off gets tiresome. I wanted a longer weekend.

[kidzcare]

It's really very personal, depends on what you value.

I would love weekends/holidays off. I work two jobs and one is as a school nurse, so I have great hours there with no weekends or holidays. But I also have another job that I work every other weekend and several required holidays throughout the year. I am very much looking forward to the day when I can only work the school job and work the M-F schedule that is much more conducive to being a single mom with elementary aged kids.

That being said, I always did love having days off during the week when I could get errands run not during peak hours. Very convenient.

[joanna73, BSN, RN]

I've worked 12s and currently I'm working Mon-Fri 8 hour days. I definitely prefer shift work.

Mon-Fri is not all it seems. I have to take time off for appointments because I work bankers hours. More importantly, there's no rest in between shifts. Weekends off doesn't cut it for me. I really enjoyed having long stretches of time off.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

I've been working 12s since 1983, and there's no way I'm giving them up. I did 8s and 10s Monday through Friday once for about four months. I hated it!

[LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN]

I work two 12s and 2 8s...

Needless to say I can't WAIT for the transition to 3 12s.

[Libby1987]

I work Mon-Fri flex time and have been fortunate to have my important holidays off. It works well with my family and personal/social schedule.

My philosophy has been you can get used to anything (unreasonable situations excluded), it's the change that's hard. I would choose the job I want and acclimate to the schedule.

[dudette10, MSN, RN]

How was transition from hospital to office work?

I can answer this part of the question. I worked in an office M-F for ten years in a different profession. I kept on task, kept busy, and worked very hard. I spent some time as a stay-at-home mom, then I got into nursing. Twelve hours shifts, gotta get 'er done, then leave. I now have a second job in an office (tangentially related to nursing) and I had a hard time with all the "free time." My productivity for about a month was so awful because I had to self-start and self-motivate--and failed miserably. I'm finally into the self-starting groove, but the transition had some bumps.

[BrandonLPN, LPN]

I like being able to run errands and do my shopping while 90% of the rest of the world is at work. I like avoiding rush hour traffic. After doing shift work for so many years, I feel claustrophobic when I go to the supermarket during regular-people hours.

[anon456, BSN, RN]

I would prefer a M-F normal business hours job. While kids are in school I can work. No more missing them because of long shiftwork. No more physical exhaustion because 12 hours is just too long to be on your feet.

I was offered a job in outpatient PACU when I was a newer nurse, regular hours, holidays and weekends off. I turned it down because I like the higher acuity patients on my unit and I wanted to build those skills. Still, I do envy the people who got that job and love their lives.