"It is really so exhausting": Exploring intensive care nurses' perceptions of 24-hour long shifts.

Improving nurse and patient health and safety, and quality of care requires hospital leaders to work with government and nursing organisations to develop better shift strategies. Resources need to be provided so that: nurses can work a maximum 12-hr shifts; the ratio of nurses to patients is improved; and nurses can have decent break times. This has major implications, for not only practice, but also management, administration, budgets and education.