Why aren't nursing homes doing 12 hour shifts???

Specialties Geriatric

Published

The market is awful at this time, so as a new nurse I am applying at many nursing homes in my area. I've noticed now that they have 3 shifts of (7-3, 3-11, 11-7)/5days and I'm sooo bummed. I was looking forward to the same 12 hours shifts that go on in hospitals (7-7, 3-3, etc)/3 days. I am possibly going to be offered the 3-11 shift, but I will never see my family with that... And I hate the thought of working 5 days a week, but I'm desperate. All the nursing homes seem to follow these hours. Any advice, will they mix that up in time? Why aren't they doing the same deal as the hospital shifts???

well maybe they'll be overtime. A lot of Nurses who are supposed to get off at 11 don't leave until 1 or 2. And you might be able to cover other ppl's shifts once and a while. :)

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Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.
I work the 3-11 shift, 4 evenings/week, in LTC. That's all I can muster, so I budget accordingly. I am NOT a morning person, so the 12 hour day shift wouldn't work for me. As for 7p-7a, I have done my share of nights. I don't care how many extra days I would have for myself. I am past the age of double shifts/12 shifts; my vote is NO to 12 hour shifts in LTC.

That was the schedule I had in my last job, and it was perfect---I loved having 3 days off during the week, even if they weren't all consecutive days off, and I gladly sacrificed $$ to not have to work 5 days/week. I'm too old and tired to run the floor like that anymore. :rolleyes:

I have done some 12's in LTC to cover for noc shift call-ins, and it took me two days to recuperate......I didn't handle 12's well when I was 40, and I REALLY don't handle them well now. If I could design my ideal schedule, I'd work only 2-3 days per week, 10A-6P so that I could avoid the early AMs but get home in time to spend several hours with the family before bedtime. But of course, that would be asking way too much of a nursing job.........oh well, like I told a friend the other day, there are only so many years of work left, and I'll sleep when I'm dead. :smokin:

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In this area, there are more 12 hr places than 8 hr places. It is probably an accounting thing. The place I work saved money by going back to 8's. Full time is 32 hours a week, not 40. So nurses got 4 hours OT ea wk on 12's.

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Specializes in ER, LTC, IHS.

Our place does 12s, 6-6. I work 3 nocs

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