Per Diem Not for me

Nurses General Nursing

Published

  1. If you've ever worked as a Per Diem RN, did you find it to be monetarily rewarding?

    • 15
      Yes
    • 3
      No

18 members have participated

hello everyone,

i have a question. is it just me? or, is there more per diem positions than permanent ones?

frankly speaking, i'm not happy about having to be a per diem rn because:

1. i'm always floating around. i like consistency with my surroundings.

2. i'm only called to come in when needed. the hospital i work at (and i'm sure most hospitals) utilize the float team for coverage because they are on a permanent basis. once the nursing office has depleted that source then they will give me a call.

3. because the job is not consistent, neither is money. the entire month of may and june i have not made one cent. this is unacceptable. therefore, i find myself aggressively looking for employment elsewhere, however, most hospitals are looking for per diem as well. i never thought the market for rns would be so difficult.

4. god forbid any of us get sick because per diem nurses are not offered any health insurance. with kids at home this is not an option.

being the sole provider, i need a miracle right now because the creditors are not sympathetic.:uhoh3:

i live in brooklyn, ny and if anyone knows of a descent place to work that are hiring permanent rns please let me know. my particular area of interest is l&d and i guess med/surg since it is what i'm currently doing.

thanks.

Specializes in Psychiatric mental health.

My PRN job pays the same as a regular staff :( plus no shift differential :(

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Specializes in Medical/Surgical.
i'm from your area, and i'm always looking up job ads for rn's and lpn's(for myself :) ), so if i see anything i'll send it your way.

aww thanks for the help.:hug:

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Specializes in Medical/Surgical.
so then why the poll? :confused: i love working prn jobs and make at least $10 an hour more than my regular job's pay. they have allowed me to almost double my base salary every year so i can't say anything bad about it.

again, per diem nursing does seem like it's working for you and thats great. as far as the poll goes, i simply want to utilize the features of this website. obviously others did reply.

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It wouldn't be for me if I were in your shoes either, especially the way it is handled where you work. Every facility is different but overall it is better suited for those that can take the financial hit if and/ or when they get canceled . Also not for those that need benefits.

I see a trend that hospitals are hiring more per diem because with varying hospital census, during low times, the hospital is not paying benefits to regular employees that are getting canceled, the per diems are canceled. It gives the hospitals more flexibility.

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I think it is working for me, my hospital has a lot of positions right now. Most float nurses here do this for a year or less and then they take a full time position if they don't like it. Most of the pool nurses been full time nurses in this place so it easier to switch back and forth. I live in South Georgia may be that is why there are lot of postitions because the pay is not as fantastic for full time RNs compared to other states or cities. We float all over the hospital; sometimes you can work in one department for as long as they want you if the director likes you. We are to work 48 hours in a 2 week period but I usually work 36-48 in a week. My husband carries insurance so, that part is covered. I am happy doing this, I wish I started it long time ago. Been working here as an RN for 7 years but just started floating this year.

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I think you should look into staffing agencies. You have the experience and you'll get paid a lot more to work assignments for short term periods

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I work PRN at one facility and it is akin to slave labor. They schedule me or call me whenever they want, which is all the time because they are always short staffed. I work a lot (practically full time on many occassions) but because I'm PRN and my hours are not consistent I do not recieve any benefits. In my opinion it is an excellent deal for the facility but a bad one for us.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

My only job at the present time is a per diem/PRN position. When census is not low, I typically receive three to four shifts per week. In addition, this PRN position is paying me approximately $11 more per hour than a full-time staff position would.

Unfortunately, PRN/per diem jobs are the wave of the near future. Employers do not want to provide health coverage, retirement accounts, and other costly benefits to their employees, so offering a bunch of non-benefited PRN positions is the perfect solution to save money for the corporations.

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Not all per diem positions are in a float pool. Some are assigned permanently to specific units and/shifts. Again differs from place to place.

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