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Christmas

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Original poster

Anybody else who will be working on Christmas Day?

48 replies

MercyNursey · 04/10/2023 18:15

I’m a nurse and I’ve been put in to work Christmas Day. I don’t mind too much, DS will be with his dad but I’ve never worked it before and feel a little bit weird about it. I’m doing 7-5 so nothing dramatic, DP will go to his mums for dinner and he waiting for me at home with leftovers and a massive baileys!

OP posts:
Fispi · 04/10/2023 18:23

I've worked alot of Christmases and it depends on the team you have and the work on the day. We make alot of effort to make it festive at work if approriate (labour ward midwives) and celebrate with family early or late. Some have been awful, some not so bad. It's been harder since my eldest was able to understand when Christmas day is. I did last year so not working this one. Make your Christmas on a different day if you can, we asked santa if he could come on 'our' Christmas when we went to do the santa visit. If you have others working with you arrange some sort of fuddle and a secret santa. If its mental busy you can snack and take your gift home as an extra.

PlantDoctor · 04/10/2023 18:29

I've done it before in hospitality. Probably different vibe to you as a nurse as people are usually happy to be out for fancy lunch rather than sad to be in hospital. It's weird to work on the day, so I second celebrating on another day like Christmas Eve.

Lathemistress · 04/10/2023 18:30

I'm on call so will be listening for my phone and hoping that it doesn't ring. I would rather actually be at work as the uncertainty of a call out always makes me on edge and unable to relax all day

Original poster
MercyNursey · 04/10/2023 18:53

I’m a district nurse so luckily won’t be at a hospital I’ll be out and about. The secret Santa idea is really good, there’s 6 of us working on our team so I’ll float that idea!

yeah I feel like it’ll be weird, it’ll be strange with DS being away but I always feel there’s a buzz in the air on the actual day. I’m off for Boxing Day and the 27th so hoping to recreate the same magic on the 26th!

OP posts:
MagentaRocks · 04/10/2023 18:58

I am working a night shift Christmas Eve and Christmas Day so will be sleeping most of the day so I can get through my shift.

annonymousse · 04/10/2023 19:01

I've worked a lot of christmasses. (Midwife). I quite like it. Most people make an effort and it's a nice atmosphere. I would rather do Christmas Day than Boxing Day. This will be my last working Christmas as I'm retiring in March.

Ratfinkstinkypink · 04/10/2023 19:25

Can I just say, two years ago my DH was home and dying, the district nurse was one of the few, friendly, adult faces I saw that day, her visit meant the world to me at a very scary time and I will be eternally grateful to the DN teams.

I have worked in healthcare on the ward and in a children's hospice on Christmas Day and they were some of the shifts I look back on with the most fondness. I hope everyone working over this Christmas has a peaceful one.

bennyonthedispatch · 04/10/2023 20:31

I'm working my first Christmas (well since I was a teenage waitress!) & Boxing days this year. I work in a police control room. My shift is 6.30am-4pm. My DH doesn't want to celebrate another day (he has his reasons but I'm still frustrated by it) so I'm facing the prospect of not being there for presents etc.

The job is fab so far but I am feeling sad about missing Christmas with the kids and hope we can come to a compromise. It's a kick in the teeth as I'll be the one buying and wrapping and organising and food shopping too!?!

MatthewsMumFromTikTok · 04/10/2023 20:47

Yes I will be. Men's prison. Can guarantee it will be a full on shift

rasellagirl · 04/10/2023 21:01

Me too. Nurse working a 13 hour day shift.

WetBandits · 04/10/2023 21:07

I’ve done district on Christmas Day before and it was actually really lovely! Essential visits only (insulins, stats, blocked catheters etc) so for once actually had the spare time to sit for a Christmas cup of tea and a mince pie (I took a box of them out with me!), especially with the patients who didn’t have any family to spend it with.

I did community care before I qualified, and a client’s wife had spent half the year knitting each of the carers a cuddly toy of our favourite animal for Christmas 🥹 none of us had any idea what she’d been up to, and then realised why she had casually asked us what our favourite animal was during the year. It was the loveliest little gesture, I still have mine on my bed!

BettyBallerina · 04/10/2023 21:16

Worked loads of Christmas’s (hospitality for over 20 years). I never really minded it because I enjoyed my job and liked my colleagues. At home we just had Christmas dinner and opened gifts later in the day or we’d have Christmas Day on a different day. Last year my teenagers were also working on Christmas Day so we had our Christmas Day on Christmas Eve and it was really wonderful!

fourelementary · 04/10/2023 21:27

Another community based Nurse here. Only working a half shift as we share them out across the team for fairness… bloody working the weekend after though AND New Year’s Day!

I’m looking forward to seeing my
patients and planning to take wee gifts out to them all, maybe not sweets or chocolates for the diabetics though! 🎅🏼

Im planning on spending the money on patient presents that I save avoiding the staff night out…

Doobydoo · 04/10/2023 21:37

I am used to working Christmas Day as I was a nurse. This will be my 2nd Christmas in my role on a support liñe. I offered to work as I like Boxing Day off and the line is open 10-2..huge drop in hours from when nursing!

Destiny123 · 04/10/2023 21:40

It's actually great tbh. Ive worked 7/9 Xmas days since I graduated as a Dr. Everyone is in good spirits tons of food....boxing day in theatres is total carnage though as patients avoid coming in with their issues from xmas and surgeons don't want to operate xmas day so boxing day is just chaos of everything put off from the day before

Allthegoodusernamesareused · 04/10/2023 21:42

I work in an emergency services call centre and I'll be working Christmas eve and Christmas day, day shifts. I've worked many Christmases before, so my family are used to having to be flexible around when we celebrate!

Toddlerteaplease · 04/10/2023 21:51

I quite enjoy working Christmas Day. I'm a paediatric nurse so the atmosphere is usually really nice. Though does depend how busy we are. The 'poor sick children in hospital' is a myth. They get loads and loads of presents donated! We usually have lots of food to graze on, having said that we had none last year. We are very strict on making sure everyone works their fair share of Christmas's.

MummyFliesAeroplanes · 04/10/2023 21:53

I much prefer working Christmas day to Boxing day (for an airline).

Colleagues can make it fun and the passengers have chosen to fly then so they're pretty chilled. There're not too many flights so less likely to be delayed.

Whereas on Boxing day the passengers tend to be in a rush to get somewhere, Christmas might not have lived up to their hopes and there're more flights so more delays likely.

Obviously different to healthcare.

Toddlerteaplease · 04/10/2023 21:54

rasellagirl · 04/10/2023 21:01

Me too. Nurse working a 13 hour day shift.

Are you on a long day by choice? We always go back to short shifts over Christmas and no one has to do a LD

TheLovleyChebbyMcGee · 04/10/2023 21:57

Not this year, I'm on new year's day this year, but I have in the past. Microbiology in a hospital, in for the morning, but then on call for the remaining 20 or so hours of the day.

Its fine, usually quiet, but what there is to be done is really important as staff on the ward don't want to bother us unnecessarily which is nice.

Maverickess · 04/10/2023 22:07

I most likely will be, I've worked every Christmas Day, bar two, in the last 25 odd years, between hospitality and care and I'm in hospitality again now and we're going to have a busy day!

One I was on mat leave and one I was off sick after an operation.
Some places we did 4 hour shifts to spread it out and some years I've done nights Christmas eve and day or 14 hour shifts and seen very little of a family Christmas.

The care homes were mostly, great on Christmas Day, and I really enjoyed the shifts because it was upbeat, loads of nice food, time to sit with people and lots of happy faces because there were more visitors too.

Hospitality has been a mixed bag over the years I've done it from lovely and upbeat with laughter and happiness to actually having to split up a fight that broke out between a family over lunch!

Tryingandfailingagain · 04/10/2023 22:14

Yea I can understand that. At least a defined shift has a clocking off time to aim towards.

I work in a hospital, and as yet I’m not actually sure if our dept will be open on Christmas Day… I am hoping not… Scared to ask 😂

SD1978 · 04/10/2023 22:47

I've worked most Christmas days for the last 15 years. On the ward they are usually fine, A&E usually sucks and is still busy- lots of nursing home patients, and elderly people. The 'younger' crowd usually start coming in about 17.00. I can't say there is much difference in the number of people. Christmas Eve is usually really busy with kids with very minor ailments because parents want to make sure that Christmas isn't affected by their cough, colds and snots. Christmas Day, more injuries after lunch with new bikes and skateboards Grin

Borris · 04/10/2023 23:14

Me (vet). Working Christmas Day and Boxing Day. But dd is with her dad this year so I'm happy to work so my colleagues can spend the day with their family. I'll get a break with Dd over new year, and be guaranteed Christmas off next year

Ciderandskatesdontmix · 05/10/2023 01:13

Radiographer working Christmas day here. I actually volunteered for it so I can have boxing day off as its my ex's turn to have my oldest DC this year. We'll have our Christmas on boxing day...been separated 9 years now so DC are used to having a double Christmas!