PRN Nursing

frankie · Oct 9, 2002

daisy - prn nursing can mean different things, depending on the facility. and some facilities have renamed what we all knew as prn nursing with things like part time tiered staffing without benefits and other such blah blah blah. prn nursing traditionally was a job where the employer made you no promises of work, and you made the employer no promises of work. no benefits were involved. no sick or vacation time. sometimes one could pruchase health insurance, when it used to be cheep. what would happen is you provided the employer with your availability and the employer provided you with needs - and when the 2 matched, there you were - working. you had the benefit of having days off of your choice, no weekends or holidays, etc... the pitfalls of course was no work available - you do not work. and also, you were the first asked to not come in if not busy. we still do this in our facility - we have a nurse who works 3 days a week from 8am to 2pm. (i work in an iv clinic) - she is a great help and is the first to say - i will leave - during slow times. so it is not so bad - depending on your needs. frankie

jnette, ASN, EMT-I · Oct 10, 2002

Also a good way to make a few extra $$ if you already have a full time (or even part-time) job, for that matter. I work in a dialysis clinic, but am applying to a nearby hospital for some prn nursing now and then.. to utilize other nursing skills (as dialysis is so dialysis specific) and to make a few extra dollars to boot!

SmilingBluEyes · Oct 10, 2002

I do PRN nursing. Some places, it is called "per diem" or "supplemental" but it usually boils to a similar meaning in terms of how and when one works. Where I work it means, I work "as needed"...am not necessarily PROMISED hours,but work when I want to. In one hospital where I work, the self-scheduling of nurses allows me to fill holes as I desire, a full 6-8 weeks in advance. In the other, I am actually on the schedule every Friday night (to meet the requirement to work a certain amt of weekend time) and also cause it's a hard spot to fill. I hope never to work anything BUT PRN again.....after working FTE for 3 years , this is so much more agreeable for me in so many ways.

Perhaps the biggest advantage I see is I stay out of workplace backbiting, drama and politics. And I make my own schedule, working when my husband is home so my kids are with one parent at all times. I also receive a nice pay differential for being PRN at both places that pads my checks nicely----also I have the opportunity to do lots of time and half shifts. The money is there to be made if you are willing to work, even PRN!