# Day or Night?



## lightsandsirens5 (Jan 15, 2009)

Well I looked for it but I couldn't find it. If you do KEV, just have this one deleted. (Or post a dead horse!)

Do you work mostly days, nights, about the same.....?

Which do you prefer?

Why?

I do more nights, but I like the day shifts better.

I am a volunteer. We do get more calls during the day, but I also have to work (on my farm) during the day.


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## tydek07 (Jan 15, 2009)

Right now its a little of each. I would love to work nights 100% of the time, but it just messes with your life so much


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## marineman (Jan 15, 2009)

Work 24's so I guess straight down the middle. If I were working 12's I'd take nights since that's when all the fun calls come in, not huge on the stacked up transports all day.


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## Sapphyre (Jan 15, 2009)

I do Wed-Saturday nights, and I love it.  You will have to pry my shift from my cold dead fingers  (with apologies!!!)  Yup, I'm heading into work soon....


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## JPINFV (Jan 15, 2009)

5am-10pm or 5am-midnight shifts, so it's about even of both.


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## Grady_emt (Jan 15, 2009)

Saturday, Sunday, Monday, 1700-0630


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## reaper (Jan 15, 2009)

1700-0500. Never have liked day shifts. That fireball in the sky scares me!!!!!!!!


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## Hastings (Jan 15, 2009)

I prefer the kinds of calls you get at night, but I prefer working during the day.


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## Onceamedic (Jan 15, 2009)

I run 48s - so straight down the middle.  I prefer calls during the day...    the second 24 is difficult if we've been running calls all night.


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## KempoEMT (Jan 16, 2009)

In my job we work 3-8.  So I call that day shift.  But I'm not in EMS.


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## mikeN (Jan 16, 2009)

evenings....

I work mostly days, but I'm a fan of evenings.  I try to work doubles[8am-midnight] when I can.  I hate overnights.  I value sleep.


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## NolaRabbit (Jan 16, 2009)

I worked days for 6 years, been on nights for a year and a half. I can't imagine going back now. 

At night:

- not as hot outside
- less BS (still plenty, just peppered a bit more b/w actual emergencies)
- a little more downtime (usually)
- no traffic!
- NO ADMIN

The major drawback to working at night is the interruption of your circadian rhythms and having to bounce back and forth between being awake days and nights when you have had a few days off. But I think it's worth it. The idea of working a dayshift now gives me a headache.


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## Sapphyre (Jan 16, 2009)

NolaRabbit said:


> The major drawback to working at night is the interruption of your circadian rhythms and having to bounce back and forth between being awake days and nights when you have had a few days off.



For those of us who work nights (and like it):  

How many keep the day sleep schedule on off days????  Am I the only one?


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## reaper (Jan 16, 2009)

I stay all night on my days off and sleep half the day.


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## motownems (Jan 16, 2009)

I usually sleep at my volley station on the weekends… its easer for me to just wake up and go rather then having to drive back to the station when we get a call…. so I guess that counts as the night a shift


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## NolaRabbit (Jan 17, 2009)

I work a 3-2-2-3. On my 2 day stretches off I usually keep the night schedule, but on my three day weekends off I inevitably end up shifting back to being up during the daytime. I show up Monday nights having either way overslept, or having already been up for the last 12 hours. 

I'm used to it by now, and like I said, the benefits outweight the drawbacks for me.


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## lightsandsirens5 (Jan 17, 2009)

Boy, I didn't realize the different hours people were on! I assumed it was something even, like we go 0600-1800 day shift and 1800-0600 night shift. I'd never be able to figure out this 5-10 or 8-3 thing! lol I guess the subject is a little more complicated than I thought.


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## JPINFV (Jan 17, 2009)

5-10 is easy... small company.


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## jochi1543 (Jan 17, 2009)

24-hour shifts at my station.


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## oldschoolmedic (Jan 17, 2009)

We have people working straight eights (transport and QRVs), twelves, and 24/72s. I work straight twelves on days.

I like days, no messed up sleep schedules, no circadian problems, sleep in your own bed every night, tuck my kids into bed at night, etc...

I honestly wish we could do away with 24 hour shifts. I have never believed they were safe.


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## EMTCop86 (Jan 17, 2009)

I'm a student so not working in EMS yet. My work schedule is usually Friday-Tuesday 2300-0700 but I have recently been having to work 1900-0700 on Saturday and Sunday. 48 hours a week for work and then 8 hours of school not including study time does not leave a lot of time for the husband. I am ok working night shift the only thing that sucks is my husband works days, so working opposite schedules and not having the same days off gets to me sometimes but there isn't much I can do about it.


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## Labareda (Jan 18, 2009)

I used to get more action during day. But I prefer to take runs during night. I allways liked night and the city lights, and watching the Ambulance lights reflected in the windows and signs on the streets, it makes it all worth.


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## medic417 (Jan 18, 2009)

oldschoolmedic said:


> I honestly wish we could do away with 24 hour shifts. I have never believed they were safe.



Actually in slow services in rural areas it is not a problem.   We do much longer than 24 hour shifts quite often.  But the odds are we will get more sleep and time sitting at the station than calls.  In busy services I agree they are dangerous.  EMS is not a one size fits all business.


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## jochi1543 (Jan 18, 2009)

medic417 said:


> Actually in slow services in rural areas it is not a problem.   We do much longer than 24 hour shifts quite often.  But the odds are we will get more sleep and time sitting at the station than calls.  In busy services I agree they are dangerous.  EMS is not a one size fits all business.



Quoted for truth. Work 96 hours straight here and consider it to be a good shift when I get more than 1 call.


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## medic417 (Jan 18, 2009)

jochi1543 said:


> Quoted for truth. Work 96 hours straight here and consider it to be a good shift when I get more than 1 call.




Only way to staff many remote areas is to have long shifts so people can afford to drive in and work there.


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## Paladin (Jan 19, 2009)

I do both days and nights.  I mainly prefer nights more than days.  Some of my better reasons are that their is no administration( you know what they say about when the cat is away) plus the night shift I realized that because there are no supv. there is a closer bond and comraderie between us.  Oh yea plus more work and sleep.


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## daedalus (Jan 19, 2009)

reaper said:


> 1700-0500. Never have liked day shifts. That fireball in the sky scares me!!!!!!!!



What is that thing!??

Some people I work with.....like to bathe in it....sounds like witchcraft to me. 

I stay away from it. Nights for me.


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## lizhiniatsos (Jan 19, 2009)

it all runs together for me...is it day? or night? which year? hmmm....maybe I've been here toooooo long 

where I am now we work 72-96 hours straight then get 3/4 days off....it's a slow station, most of the time... you know how that can go. I prefer nights, I feel certain that I'm part bat, part vampire, with a teeny, tiny, eensy, weensy bit of 'light' in there somewhere...just have yet to find it


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## lightsandsirens5 (Jan 19, 2009)

lizhiniatsos said:


> it all runs together for me...is it day? or night? which year? hmmm....maybe I've been here toooooo long



Ha ha! I never know weather I should put the date you are paged out on or the date you deliver the person to the hospital, when you fill out the report.


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## lizhiniatsos (Jan 19, 2009)

...I know EXACTLY what you mean!   I frequently confer with  my ALOC patients to decide which day it is...and if it even matters


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## Sieldan (Jan 19, 2009)

Still in class, but from my time in the Marine Corps, I have found that I dont mind the late shift.  Im also a net controller for the local Skywarn system, and more often than not, I find that Im one of the few that will take a night net.  Some of the nets will run all night.


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## Sieldan (Jan 19, 2009)

lizhiniatsos said:


> I prefer nights, I feel certain that I'm part bat, part vampire, with a teeny, tiny, eensy, weensy bit of 'light' in there somewhere...just have yet to find it



That sounds like me, too.


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## lightsandsirens5 (Jan 19, 2009)

lizhiniatsos said:


> ...I know EXACTLY what you mean!   I frequently confer with  my ALOC patients to decide which day it is...and if it even matters



Goes like this:

Me: Hey Bob!

Bob: *yawn* What?

Me: Should I put the day we were paged on or the day it is now?

Bob: (Comes arond corner with tired look.) Do I look like I care? Just put something, finish the report and we can get back to bed.


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