Time off for nurses

[Alayaha Khatun]

Im interested in becoming a nurse, but need to know - do nurses really not get much time off as people make it out, or are you entitled to a certian number of days A/L? And if you have taken time off, does your employer have the right to call you back in during your A/L?

[Altra, BSN, RN]

In my experience, my vacation/personal time allotments as a nurse have been about the same as in my first career before nursing. The hourly nature of the business does have some different considerations than other fields where most employees are salaried, but I don't necessarily see a huge difference.

Good luck to you.

[Mr. Murse]

I'm at a hospital on a surgical floor and I work 3 shifts a week, at about 13 hours each. That leaves you with 4 days off each week. So the days can get long, but over all it's not that bad. So if you don't need more than a week off you could plan in advance to schedule your work days at the beginning of one week and the end of the next and have a full week off without missing work. We are also constantly earning payed time off, which we can request to use as long as it's a reasonable time in advance.

Maybe I work at an exceptionally good hospital, but time off is not really an issue. Of course, this will all depend on where you work.

[Alayaha Khatun]

Hi Altra

Thank you for the reply, helps to know!

[Alayaha Khatun]

Hi

Thank you for your reply too, that's very helpful. Doesn't seem as bad as I thought it would be, in some instances it actually sounds better. I got the impression you'd have to work for months or weeks on end until you were allowed time off. But I think you're right - it really does depend on where you work and the shortage of staff/ demands on that work place. If you love the job, which I know I will, then the long hours shouldn't be an issue. Thanks again.