What is the better shift? Would you rather work night shift or day shift? Curious :)

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Hi, just a little curious on which shift is most desired.. Night shift or Day shift? And Why?:D

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Specializes in Cardiothoracic ICU.

night shift, pay, less supervision, chiller co-workers, more hanging out.

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Specializes in Acute Care, Rehab, Palliative.

It depends on the person. I have a friend that has worked nothing but nights for 25 years and loves it.Another friend can't hack a night shift at all. It depends on the individual.

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lori: it depends who is working nights with you. I have a great shift buddy and enjoy our time on the floor together. There is one nurse that makes it the longest 8 hours of my life when she's on.

But no family to visit, the only time you see Drs are if you page them or they come in for early rounds, oh and $8.25/hr extra doesn't hurt.

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The "better shift" is what is best for you personally. Are you normally a "day" person? Do you feel and work your

best during the day hours? Are you a "night owl"? Could you get decent sleep during the day when 90% of the rest of the world is up and making noise? Do you have small children? Think about your lifestyle and what is best for you. Personally, right now, night shift works for me.

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Specializes in Acute Care, Rehab, Palliative.

That's true Fiona. Who you are on with makes a lot of difference.

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If you are an insomniac like me and don't actually need a lot of sleep, night shift has its benefits and may as well make use of those boring hours in bed! And as the lovely ladies above say, this normally means more pay and less busy which is a bonus. I personally LOVE early morning shifts and then finishing by mid-afternoon (so feels like you have half the day left) which leaves the late afternoon/evening to relax and unwind. You'll find your rhythm :)

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Days. This works best for my family. I also wouldn't function well if I worked nights.

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Specializes in Cardiac.

Nights, better pay, less administration, better atmosphere and much less noise and distractions.

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Specializes in LTC.

Night shift most definitely. Not just because there are no head hogs peering over our shoulder.. but because I feel on nights.. with limited resources.. you learn to make do with what you have and solve problems quickly and efficiently.

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Specializes in Emergency Nursing.

I like to see the sun.

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Specializes in Critical Care-Neuro/Trauma ICU.

I've been an RN for just a little over a year and I have been on night shift. I worked as a PCA during school on rotating shifts and got to experience days and nights. I've noticed that in every hospital it seems to be the same...Day shift sometimes has a lot less teamwork than night shifts. For whatever reason night shift co-workers become like family even when you don't always loooove the people you work with. Also, it really depends on you as a person. Can you function on less sleep and stay up all night or are you a day person? Day shift has to deal with a lot of discharges, doctors, social workers, visitors...it's just more hustle and bustle. I will never say that night shift isn't as busy because at least where I work we are just as busy at night. The one thing that makes a big difference also is how confident you are in your skill. We have less resources at night and you should be able to make quick critical thinking decisions for the health of your patient. You have to call doctors and wake them up in the middle of the night...we deal with a lot. BUT...I love night shift and could never imagine day shift work...and yes of course the $$ is a lot better.

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