The Rounds Journal · For nurses
Short staffing, long shifts: the workload nurses describe
Too few staff, six-day weeks and extra tasks piled onto every shift. Nurses describe the workload, and what can make it more manageable.
Ask nurses in the region what makes the job hard and most start with staffing. Units run below planned numbers, shifts stretch, and rest days disappear into evening rotas. Many describe finishing a week with little left for anything outside work.
“The constant short staffing, discrimination and overwork is quite frustrating.”
“The timings given to me are awful and its 6 days a week . I barely get time to do anything for myself.”
“By the end of the day i am thoroughly exhausted . Weekends are basically obsolete cus i always have evening shift.”
Why units run short
Much of the region's nursing workforce is recruited internationally. Recruitment takes months, licensing adds more time, and when a nurse leaves the post can stay empty for a long time. In the meantime the work is spread across whoever is on shift.
Staffing levels are usually set by each hospital rather than by a fixed, published ratio. When budgets tighten, nursing hours are often among the first lines reviewed, because staff costs are the largest part of a hospital's spending.
More than patient care
Nurses also describe a growing list of tasks outside direct care: documentation, chasing results, transporting patients, covering for missing support staff. Each one is small; together they take time away from patients and push breaks later or out of the shift entirely.
What can help
Keep your own record of hours, breaks missed and patient numbers on each shift. Patterns are easier to raise than single bad days.
Report unsafe staffing in writing through the hospital's incident or quality reporting system, so there is a formal record.
Ask your manager how staffing for your unit is calculated, and what triggers extra cover.
Check your contract for maximum weekly hours, rest days and overtime rules, and compare them with what you actually work.
Protect recovery time where you can. Rotas that run six days a week for long periods are a recognised risk for burnout.
Nurses who move into charge nurse and manager roles have more say over rosters and skill mix. Those roles usually ask for training in leadership and resource planning alongside clinical experience.
Working-hour limits and labour rules differ by country. Check the current rules with your licensing body and the relevant labour authority.