NIOSH Training for Nurses on Shift Work and Long Work Hours

Get Regular Checkups and Take Care of Yourself

Protect your health by getting regular health checkups and informing your healthcare provider of your work schedule.

If symptoms occur, take action promptly to determine the source and correct or relieve it. If you cannot adjust to shift work, consider seeing a board-certified sleep disorders specialist with expertise in shift work-related sleep disturbances (to find a sleep center and board-certified sleep specialists, see Other Resources).

If you still have many symptoms, consider finding another job with work times more suited to your needs, since some people who have many symptoms when working shift work cannot seem to adjust (see Module 4, Individual Differences).