Running head: SHIFT FATIGUE 1

Changes to Prevent Shift Fatigue in Nurses

Cierra Hinton

Auburn University at Montgomery

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Changes to Prevent Shift Fatigue in Nurses

Nurses struggle with the decision between making shifts eight or 12 hours. Currently, the

vast majority of nurses work 12-hour shifts, meaning that nurses work three days on and have

various amounts off time off until their next shift. The current shift schedule leads to nurses

becoming fatigued from working consecutive days, which causes medication errors (Dall'Ora,

Griffiths, Ball, Simon, & Aiken, 2015). Eventually this leads to nurses leaving their jobs due to

stress and fatigue experienced from working 12-hour shifts. Nurses must convince hospital

administration to change shifts to eight hours to reduce medication errors, nurse fatigue, and a

decrease in nurse turnover rates.

Dall’Ora, Ball, Recio-Saucedo, & Griffiths (2016) showed that working more than

twelve-hour shifts caused consequences related to fatigue and decreased performance which

leads to medication errors. The study also showed that fatigue leads to other performance errors

regarding charting. Changing the shift to eight hours will allow adequate recovery time for

nurses and decrease the number of medication and charting errors. Eight-hour shifts lead to

better patient outcomes and improved job satisfaction (Dall’Ora et al., 2016). Nurses make an

increasing number of medication errors when they become fatigued from working long shifts

which puts the patient’s safety at risk.

Owens (2017) found that nurses who work three consecutive 12-hour shifts have

increased fatigue. The author found that when nurses were too fatigued to do achieve activities

outside of work. Twelve-hour shifts lead to nurses being unable to live a full and functioning life

outside of work because of the fatigue they experience. Eight-hour shifts would allow nurses to

become more accustom to a regular schedule of working and allow nurses time to be able to do

the activities they want to do outside of work with enhanced competence (Owens, 2017). This
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shift change will also allow nurses to feel more fulfilled in their social lives and family lives

because the nurses will not be trying to spend off days recovering from the long shifts they

worked. The author further states that increased fatigue in nurses leads to increased job

dissatisfaction.

Dall'Ora, Griffiths, Ball, Simon, & Aiken (2015) found that when nurses work 12 hours

or more, nurses become dissatisfied with their jobs, which can cause nurses to experience

burnout leading to worse outcomes for their patients. Patient safety is extremely important

therefore, shifts should be changed to eight hours to increase the quality of care patients are

receiving from nurses. Shifts lasting 12 hours or longer cause the quality of care to decrease

because nurses become emotionally and physically exhausted, which cause nurses to become

dissatisfied with their work. Dall’Ora et al., states in the study that 40% of nurses that work 12-

hour shifts or longer durations report dissatisfaction with their job, which increases their intent to

leave.

Nurses must convince hospital administration to reduce the length of shifts, which will

decrease the fatigue in nurses, reduce medication errors, and reduce the turnover rate of nurses.

Decreasing shift hours for nurses will allow nurses to provide safer, more quality care to patients.

Overall, nurses who work a shorter shift on a daily basis will increase the quality of patient care

and the quality of their lives. Owens (2017), states how, “A notable comment refers to a nurse

working 12 hour shifts and dropping down to 8 hour shifts and states she has noticed less

anxiety, less stress, better sleep and a better relationship with her husband” (p. 62).
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References

Dall’Ora, C., Ball, J., Recio-Saucedo, A., & Griffiths, P. (2016). Characteristics of shift work

and their impact on employee performance and wellbeing: A literature

review. International journal of nursing studies, 57, 1-21. Retrieved from

tuckerpub.com/abnf.htm

Dall'Ora, C., Griffiths, P., Ball, J., Simon, M., & Aiken, L. H. (2015). Association of 12 h shifts

and nurses’ job satisfaction, burnout and intention to leave: findings from a cross-

sectional study of 12 European countries. BMJ open, 5(9), 1-7, doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-

2015-008331

Owens, B. (2017). The impact of shift work on nurses’ quality of sleep. ABNF Journal, 28(3),

59-63, Retrieved from tuckerpub.com/abnf.htm