One of the more common questions nursing students have is about the shift time. Do all nurses have to work a 12 hour shift, or is this only some nurses?
What determines how many hours a nurse works? Is it the years of experience or how well they perform?
No, none of these things matter. The reason why a particular nurse would have to work 12 Hour shifts has nothing to do with their performance, professionalism, or years on the job.
Not all nurses work 12 Hour shifts. There are many nurses who do not work 12 hour shifts, and instead work either short time (school nurses, home nurses, and assessment nurses) or else they work regular hours.
Let’s look at why nurses work 12 hour shifts, and why some nurses like or dislike working this schedule.
Why Do Nurses Work 12 Hour Shifts?
Anytime you start working in a hospital setting, you’re going to come across the unique work schedule of the nurses who work there. Most of the nurses who work are going to only work a few days or nights a week, but they work 12hr shifts.
There are many reasons why, but some common sentiments are:
- More patient consistency
- Less change over time between shifts
- Nurses can work a 3 Day or Night Week and have off 4 Days/Nights
- Administration Prefers Fewer Employees for Payroll
There are many reasons, none of which are official. It’s more of a culture that is now accepted as the norm. There are no legal reasons why nurses have to work 12hr shifts. In many states, a Per Diem nurse might only be on schedule 4hrs a day.
Nurses who work in outpatient clinics and private doctor offices do not work 12hr shifts. They might want to work 12hrs and then have several days off, but that’s not the situation.
Most clinics do not hours that accommodate a 12hr work schedule. This is why it’s most common for nurses to only work a few days a week, and in clinics a nurse would work an 8 Hour schedule.
One of the most common reasons nurses go to nursing school is that they want flexibility as well as high pay.
When a nurse thinks of flexibility, she thinks of working 3 days per week. It’s a common sentiment for nurses to say that they won’t work more than 3 days per week. Hospitals are publically funded and also charge insurance companies incerdiebly high rates (another reason why hospital nurses make so much money when compared to some other professions).
Most nurses will only want to work 3 days per week, and then be open for per diem work. Per diem work is a particular type of work that involves working part time at a variety of different locations (clinics, home nurse, assessment nurses, and non-profit nurses).
Nurses work 12hr shifts because:
- It frees up their week
- 12hrs shifts allow for Per Diem Elsewhere
- Less Patient / Nurse Turnover
- Less Administrative Fees (Payroll and Tax expenses)
Does Education Matter: BSN vs Associate Degree Nurses
Sometimes it pays to have a Bachelors in Nursing. A BSN is only an extra two years (or less, depending on how the school operates) and many times there are government funded programs that will pay for the nursing students tuition.
In most cases, a hospital will prefer to hire a BSN over a nurse who has simply an Associates in Nursing. The difference between the two degrees is not much in schooling, but it can result in a huge difference in paychecks. It's still worth it to get an Associates Degree in nursing, but it won't get you the highest pay.
Most nurses who graduate from a community college or a small local nursing program such as Chamberlin (which operates small nursing schools around the country) are able to find nursing work in jails, prisons, schools, and many non-profit organizations that hire nurses to care for the homeless, mentally ill, and people who abuse chemicals.
The normal difference is that a BSN will be paid more and will also have a more flexible schedule. While an Associates in Nursing might have the degree and clinical experience during their schooling, they will not be allowed to have the same role.
Nurses at most major city and state hospitals will be required to be BSN nurses. These nurses will be paid the higher rates. Associate Nurses will be given the same role in the hospital, but because of nursing union agreements they will not be paid the same rate.
Therefore, it’s important to remember that there is a benefit to obtaining the BSN. The BSN in nursing is not hard to achieve (there are many online nursing programs that cater to full time working nurses) and it will result in a higher pay for the nurse.
What Nursing Facilities Require 12 Hour Shifts?
The most common place for nurses to work 12hr shifts are hospitals. If a nurse is looking to work in a doctors office, a school, or some other facility, then they will not have the option of working a 12hr shift.
The hospital is really the only location where a nurse can work a 12hr shift. Hospitals, however, pay the highest salary and compensate nurses because of medical requirements.
Most hospitals will also have more openings for nurses than a clinic, private practice, or other small location.
Hospitals hire large pools of nurses so that they are always staffed. In many cases, they even higher Travel Nurses, to come in and work additional shifts.
Many hospital nurses will work second jobs because they only work 3 shifts per week at the hospital. This allows them to work at other hospitals in a per diem shift, or even work at a clinic or doctors office.
How To Find a Nursing Job That Doesn’t Require 12 Hour Shifts
Most nurses won’t end up working a 12hr shift unless they are working for a hospital. If a nurse is working at a hospital, they do tend to be required to work 12hr shifts.
In other instances, where the nurse is going to be working at a clinic, or school nurse, or a home care nurse, then the hours won’t be on a 12hr schedule.
Many home care nurses only work a few hours per day. These nurses work in a variety of roles, including delivering medicines for Government or Non-Profit institutions, or else they do assessments and help fill out forms for people on government benefits programs or entitlement programs. This is a very common side hustle for nurses because they can work a couple hours a week and pick up several hundred dollars.
The best way to find a nursing job that does not require a 12 hour shift is to remove hospitals from the job search. If you were to restrict the job search to only doctors offices, school nurse jobs, homeless shelters, hotels (migrant hotels such as those in Chicago, NYC, and LA)
Nurses are hired to work in many settings:
- Homeless Shelters
- Mental Health Facilities
- Schools
- Prison and Correctional Facilities
- Drug Rehab Centers
- Clinics
- Outpatient Centers
Do Nurses Have to Work 12 Hour Shifts?
Nurses only have to work 12 hour shifts if they are working at a hospital. If a nurse is working at the hospital, then they will likely have to work 12 hour shifts due to that being the norm.
Nurses who do not work in hospital settings do not have to work 12 hours a day. It isn’t even possible in most cases for a nurse to work 12 hours outside of a hospital setting.
Some common situations that call for a few hours or less include nurse assessment jobs. These jobs might only involve a few hours of work per week, and they pay quite well. For instance, in certain large cities with a large population on public assistance or health benefits, nurses are paid upwards of $100 an hour to do an assessment.
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