How flexible is your schedule?

[tamanta]

Hi everyone!

I'm taking my CNA course in June, and I really appreciate the "real world" point of view that I get from reading everyone's posts. I think I'll be much better prepared for my job because of it.

However, one concern I have about finding a job is that I have a weird schedule. I have 3 kiddos, and my husband will be home with them on his days off, so I can work then. I'm also in school part-time.

The problem is that his days off are never the same. [He's a firefighter, so he's got one of those weird 24 hrs on, 24 hrs off then 3 days off in a row, etc.] I do know all the days I can work for the whole year though. It's just that there's no real pattern to it.

Our job market in Oklahoma "seems" to be pretty good, as far as I can tell. Some people have told me that it won't be a problem to find a job that's willing to work with my schedule, but I'm still a little worried about it.

Oh, and we don't have any family here to help out with the kids- it's just us.

Can I really expect to find a job when I have an irregular schedule like this? What are your thoughts?

[Poi Dog]

You could go per diem/PRN and let your employer know what days you are available.

Good luck to you!

[juliaann]

Hey neighbor! I'm also in Oklahoma - we are fortunate to have a good job market! I've found that the only thing that works well for an ever-changing schedule like it sounds like you would need is going PRN. At my hospital PRN employees have to work at least 2 12-hour shifts a month to stay in good standing, but can work as many shifts as they want above that. You come in every week and give your availability, and then they schedule you for the days they need people. Unfortunately, PRN at my hospital does not come with benefits, and PRN employees are the first to be called off if there is a drop in patient census. BUT they make more hourly than staff employees!

Maybe if you work with a facility/unit with "planning scheduling" this might work - when I started as a CNA in the hospital my manager put out a calander a month in advance for us to scribble on and put our requested days off on, and they would use that to make the next months' schedule. Something like this would require knowing your husband's schedule a month in advance, though. And I know most units prefer to have nurses and CNAs on set schedules (M-W-F nights, or T-W-Th days) just to help make sure they have adequate staffing and can reasonably expect to have enough people each shift to cover the patient load.

This is something you really need to address in an interview.

If you're in the Tulsa area, I'd highly recommend working at OSU Medical Center - we're hiring now and often will take students straight from class without work experience yet. :) Good luck!

[CoffeemateCNA]

Most facilities base their schedules on a rotating one-or-two-week block. Your best bet is definitely to look for a PRN position. Usually these work one of two ways: 1) the employer calls you and tells you the days that people have asked off of - you get to pick from these days to work; or 2) you tell the employer the days you are available/willing to work, and they will schedule you to work on those days. PRN employees don't get benefits, but they do generally make more $$ per hour than full-time or part-time employees.

Be up front at the interview and let the employer know about your situation. Sometimes they are very much willing to work with people who have irregular schedules -- you never know unless you ask. Good luck!

[tamanta]

Ok, so it definitely sounds as though per diem or PRN is the way to go. I went to my school today to ask them how many of the CNA graduates go on to per diem work, and it seems like a fair amount of people go that route. I'm not too concerned about benefits, as we've got pretty good coverage already. The schedule takes a higher priority.

But I'm still confused about the difference between per diem and PRN- are they the same thing? I asked the secretary at the CNA training school about "per diem" work and she had no idea what I was talking about. Then I explained what I meant and she said "Oh! You mean PRN?"

So what's the difference?

I know this is simple stuff- I'm just new and learning :) Thanks!

[juliaann]

My hospital doesn't have per diem, just PRN. From my understanding it's just two terms for the same thing...I'm pretty sure facilities offer per diem or PRN, not both. Maybe someone else can clarify?