Which kind of nurse would you like to see? Someone who shows up at work with their shoulders hunched, or a healthcare professional who loves their job and their work community? A person who has found their calling and feels proud and respected, and not like they have to stretch themselves thinner and thinner?
Working conditions, and working hours in particular, make a great difference to our coping. Not just at work, but also outside of work. According to the recent studies by the Finnish Institute for Occupational Health, it has been observed that shift work and night work make people vulnerable to various health risks and severe illnesses.
One way to reduce the health hazards of shift work and night work is reducing the weekly hours of night workers. This has been recognised by Finland’s neighbours, Sweden and Norway, a long time ago.
Shift planning can make all the difference in retaining employees
Shift planning even affects the decisions of employees to stay in the field, a survey of social and health services carried out in mainland Europe shows. I heard this survey referenced at a panel discussion of the European Working Time network.
The survey shows that people who have left the sector could return to their old jobs if they had shorter hours, the shifts were more predictable, and the shifts followed the planned schedule more closely.
In Finland nursing staff find out their upcoming shifts in periods of three weeks.
Currently, nursing staff in Finland find out their upcoming shifts in periods of three weeks. To quote a Norwegian chief physician I met at Tromsø University Hospital: "Then how can the employees know what they will do over Easter?!"
It's a good question. In Norway, nurses are generally assigned shifts for six months at a time, and they can lock in their plans for Easter and other holidays well in advance.
Finally, I would like to challenge you, dear reader: What if we turned around the old phrase of 'work–life balance'? What if we started talking about life–work balance?
We would allow even professionals in social and healthcare services to plan their lives. We could show respect for those who care for us even when the rest of us are sleeping, going on holiday or suffering from illness.