5 Perks Nurses Working On Holidays Get

Working a holiday sounds like a raw deal, especially when you are the one missing the family celebration. It is not all bad news, though. Here are five perks that come with being on the schedule when everyone else is off.

1. You skip the cooking

No turkey to roast, no kitchen to clean. You can dress up, decorate the station, and write notes to patients and coworkers instead. Many facilities hand out free meals on holidays, and if yours does not, delivery covers it.

One ward nurse put it simply: "The unit was slammed last Thanksgiving, but we still got the work done with time to spare. We just ordered boxes of pizza. No turkey, just good pizza."

2. The pay is better

Most facilities pay a holiday differential, often time and a half or double time. Check your own policy for the exact rate. Either way, the extra shows up in your check, and you can put it toward a treat, a gift, or the savings account you have been meaning to open.

As one ER nurse admitted: "I take the holiday shifts for the pay, no shame in it. My family is overseas anyway, so there is nobody to celebrate with at home."

3. You are there for your patients

A holiday shift does not trap you in the building for the whole day. You can still celebrate before or after. Your patients cannot. They are stuck there feeling lonelier than usual. Small acts of kindness land hard on a day like this. A genuine compliment or a warm smile costs you nothing and means a lot to someone confined over the holidays.

4. You get to know your coworkers

Spending a holiday together pulls out stories you would never hear on an ordinary shift, when everyone is heads down on tasks. You learn how people celebrate, what their traditions are, who is far from home.

One ICU nurse shared: "Last Christmas a coworker gave handmade angel figurines to my kids, a family tradition of hers. Her own kids were spending the holiday with their grandparents in another town because she had to work. I invited her over after our shift."

5. You are reminded of what you have

You are at the hospital for work. A lot of people are there because they or someone they love is sick. Let the day be a reminder to be grateful, for the job, for your health, and for the chance to spend part of it with people who need you.