Why night shift may not always be best for new nurses.

[downsouthlaff, LPN]

Less physician orders, slower pace, less documentation, all reasons why a night shift may seem like a good starter job for a new nurse in a nursing home. I spent 2 years as a night shift LPN in LTC before filling my current position as a day LPN at the same nursing home. Prior to that I began my career as a licensed nurse working evenings, a very busy shift in which I feeel like I learned a lot.

While night shift nursing seems to be a popular choice for new nurses, for various reasons, in my opinion In some ways it can be far from it.

as we all know, long-term care nurse and can be overwhelming. Especially for a new nurse. During daytime hours the director of nursing and and various other administrative staff are present to answer questions and give guidance. During the nighttime hours this is not Sue. Various problems arise during the night with patients such as the need to be transported to the emergency department for a new onset problem,falls. Often during the night, the floor nurse is the highest ranking administrative official in the building.

While in theory, the director of nursing, and attending physician or available by phone 24 seven. But as we know, that is not always the case. it then require is a very crucial and important, critical thinking decision by the floor nurse. And often times when you have a nurse who is fresh out of school put in this situation, it may land the nurse in trouble.

This post is not meant to scare a new graduates from night nursing. But if you are a new nurse, make sure that you have support from the facility, example partnered with a seasoned nurse , Director of nursing is reliable by phone, the facilities protocols or clearly explained in the event you can't reach an attending physician or a director of nursing. As a former night nurse, I can tell you that this situation happens on a frequent basis.

[GrandmaSqueak]

All I can say is: I totally agree.

I work night shift in a Continuing Care Retirement Community. I am the only nurse in the building from 10p-6a. I am responsible for my 38 bed LTC/SNF unit, but occasionally field calls from Assisted Living or Independent Living.

I am the Nurse, Administrator, Plant Manager, etc.

On night shift, the nurse has to be prepared to act quickly in medical or non-medical situations. Medical: blood glucose 38, or a fall with injury. Non-Medical: Severe weather, various alarms, smell of gas from the kitchen!

It requires confidence in your judgment and experience.

[caffeinatednurse, BSN, RN]

Agreed, although I think it depends on the new grad. We had several new grads at my old facility. Of the handful of them, one of the new grads was equipped with a headful of common sense, critical thinking skills and a healthy dose of humility. This particular nurse oriented with me on the busiest shift (evenings) and was able to transition smoothly to nights with little hiccups. However, I have seen other new grads struggle on nights - both with the heavy weight of responsibility, and just staying awake and focused on nights. I also think that when a new nurse starts out on nights, they don't get to practice many skills, and then they don't have them when they really need them - which makes for a dangerous nurse, IMO.