Novice Nurse's Perception of Working Night Shifts: A Qualitative Study

Nursing is always accompanied by shift working and nurses in Iran have to work night shifts in some stages of their professional life. Therefore, the present study aimed to describe the novice nurses’ perception of working night shifts. The present qualitative study was conducted on 20 novice nurses working in two university hospitals of Jahrom, Iran. The study data were collected through focus group interviews. All the interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using constant comparative analysis and qualitative content analysis. The study findings revealed five major themes of value system, physical and psychological problems, social relationships, organizational problems, and appropriate opportunity. The study presented a deep understanding of the novice nurses’ perception of working night shifts, which can be used by the managers as a basis for organizing health and treatment systems.