Self educate
You could catch up on a lot of reading! There is a self learn book for just about everything, maybe sign language.

I take online classes and do my homework.

When school is out I either read or do crossstitch

what to do on night shift
I write independent studys for my peers on topics that come from the yearly educational needs list. It is fun to learn more about certain topics and it dresses up my evaluation and resume.

You can come work with me...we have been so busy, there is NO downtime on nights!

The same here!!!!

OK, WHERE DO YOU TWO WORK?!!!

I work on a med surg floor. If we get any busier, we'll need bunkbeds these days! It's always feast or famine for us, but we haven't seen famine for quite some time. I work 7p to 730a, and didn't get done until 9am the last time I worked!

There is always something to do, help your colleagues get finished on time
oh yes and by the way where did you say you worked

Write a novel. I wrote a novel almost entirely at work over a fourteen month period. It kinda sucked, though, but it got me into writing and now I am writing better stuff and am starting a new novel soon.

You should keep us updated on your novel, I'm sure many of us would enjoy reading it. Good Luck!

Personally I stay plenty busy on night shifts. But if I had free time I would take online ceu classes!

I'm sitting here on the night shift bedside with a private duty patient in his home and I've found the best way to stay awake- Bring the laptop and dial in!! Of course, I do recognize that you could NOT do this at any ordinary job. Private duty does have its advantages.

Make paper airplanes, with an emphasis on distance and lift.

When I worked night shift years ago we were always busy. You can always find something to do. You can bathe patients that are confused or those that are having trouble sleeping, you can help straighten up supply rooms or the nurses station. This is a novel one.. you can take care of patients . I am sure your unit manager can think of things for you to do when it is not busy.

meooooww!!! :wink:

what to do on night shift?
You must be kidding. I wish our night shift crew would stuff charts, clean charts, replace gloves and needle boxes. There is plenty to do, but most nurses don't want to do extra stuff. We do all baths, three meals, all doctor orders, admits, transfers and discharges on day-shift. Night-shifters complain but do nothing.

Lets see, what can one do on a night shift? Work on an invention, write that novel, solve the greenhouse effect, implement world peace, etc..

But, lets go out on a limb here and suggest something totally off the wall.

HOW ABOUT YOU DO WHAT YOU ARE HIRED TO DO!!!
DO YOUR JOB!!!!

Sheesh, I really hope that whoever asked this question and those of you that replied with non nursing duties are joking me with this post!!

Update on nursing and healthcare:
Nursing is a 24 hour a day job. 7 Days a week

It just blows my mind that people on the night shift get extra money to work that shift and are responsible for less work, and can still find room to bitch about it! Hey night shifters.....try and make it through a shift withour your supplies being stocked, your rooms being cleaned, your patients bathed. Seems like those things only get done on day shift at your workplace.
I am the type of person that will stay after my 12 hour day shift to make sure all my charting is done and that I dont leave anything for the followong shift to do with my patients. If I get new orders at the end of a shift, I make every effort to complete them beforeI leave because I feel that if it was ordered on my shift, I am responsible for it. Also, I have had medication ordered at 630pm and when I am ready to leave at 730 or 8pm and the medication is not available, I ask the nurse following me to give it, and I have come back the next day and the patient still had not received it. I know that I am NOT soley responsible for that, however I still feel bad if I dont see it to completion.
Nurses need to realize that nursing care does not stop after a certain hour or even after your shift ends. Patients are sick 24/7 and it is our responsabilty to meet those needs 24/7

If you chose to work night shift for the extra pay, but cant or wont actually do that work on your shift, you need to find another career as you are doing nothing but cheating your patients and hindering other nurses from their patient care if supplies arent stocked, orders not done, or any other nursing task that you are too "bored" to be able to do on your shift.

If you want to sit and not do much on nights, take up asecurity guard job or something where you can watch video camera surveillence and maybe only have to do "walking the grounds" twice a shift or something like that.

So, invent something, read a book, solve world hunger, or get up and take care of the patients that you are paid so well to take care of.

I am sure I am going to get a few nasty remarks about this, but I have worked both day and night shifts and the quality of my care has been the same on both. Day shift is a little crazier because I spend lots of my time getting and restocking suppplies instead of taking care of my patients....stocking and ordering supplies is a task all nurses should do, but granted, it is most times easier to do this on the night shift when the pace is somewhat slower.

So, fire away all your comments. I am ready for them...I worked nights last night and I am refreshed from sleeping through my boredom!!

NOT!! I know I am not the only one that feels this way,so back me up guys.

There is always something to be done ...... assist your coworkers on the next shift , get creative about dispersing some tasks from the day and evening shifts to yours... I have to wonder about this...Really!!!

night shift
I can't imagine not being busy. We bathe our patients at night and they are usually so critical, there is not much time for anything else. We are in a new unit so we are discovering the larger size is taking more time as well. I suppose it depends on what kind of unit you are working on. I work on a 22 bed ICU.