How to Decide to Go PRN

purplegal · Dec 27, 2016

So, for the last 8 months, I have been working 2 jobs. My first one is a 0.85 FTE job working at the clinic and hospital performing ECGs. My most recent job is one at a LTC/Rehab facility. There, I "work" 7-11 shifts every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evening, as well as every other weekend (I put work in quotation marks, as I'm almost always there longer than scheduled). I work every other weekend at my other job as well, leaving absolutely no weekends open.

Not too long ago, I went through a 38-day period where I was working either one or both jobs. This year, I've had to work 6 major holiday shifts as well. Additionally, when I work back-to-back shifts I get, at the most five or six hours of sleep before I have to get back up for another 12+ hour day. When I have to do this 3 or 4 days in a row, I'm extremely exhausted. After my last stretch of six back-to-back shifts, I slept for 18 hours straight without waking up to eat or even go to the bathroom. I would have slept even longer if I hadn't had to get up for work.

Additionally, I have been sick at least 8 times within the last two months. I have called into work five times because of it and have had to leave work early three times. When I was only working one job, I never used to get this sick.

Also, my second job has nearly interfered with my first job several times. We are very short-staffed, and so people are often mandated. There have been several times that I have barely gotten out of being mandated. There is always the anxiety that I'm going to have to stay late at my second job, due to mandation, and be late or miss my shift at my first job.

At the same time, I am not sure if 8 months is too soon to look at switching to PRN. I feel that I am ready for the reality that I would be floating to different units, and am prepared to work longer shifts (on my own terms). I would rather be able to pick days to work that, if I were mandated, it would not cause a conflict, and therefore, decrease my anxiety.

However, if I do go PRN, would I list my experience on my resume as 8 months? Or as long as I worked PRN? Neither of my jobs was meant to be permanent, they are only there until I have enough experience to get another job.

So, I'm a little torn...