Should a new grad take a PRN position?

[kbachir]

Hello everyone! I graduated from PA school in December, and recently found out I passed the PANCE! I've completed the paperwork for my certificate to practice and should be ready to work within the next month.

 

During my clinical year, the ER I rotated at expressed that they would like to hire me if a position became available. There are currently no full time spots, but they said they would look into hiring me PRN for the time being, if I am interested. I really loved my experience at this ER, and am grateful that I was able to rotate there--the doctors, PAs, and nurses were all incredibly helpful and I learned so much every day.

 

Of course, I would search for another job if I were to work for them PRN. However, I have a feeling that this might not be the best approach for a new graduate. I know that many PAs, particularly those who work in the ED, are employed at more than one facility. It seems, however, that this is the case for PAs who have at least a few years of experience under their belt. As a new grad, I still have so much to learn, and really want to delve into the training process wherever I am hired. I am concerned that working for more than one hospital might be a bit overwhelming for me right out of school.

 

Perhaps I am overthinking this, but I really want to make sure that I have considered all of the implications or consequences which might go along with this decision.

 

Thank you in advance for your advice!

[SocialMedicine]

PRN as a new grad can be a challenge. Are they familiar with new grad PA's ? I guess PAs are on staff ?  In my experience a new PA (outside of maybe primary care, outpatient medicine) will often shadow a clinician and then have a mentorship period initially. But if they seem to be setting you up for success why not. Sep if you want ER it is VERY feasible to have a per diem position without overworking oneself.  

[gbrothers98]

Get the full time gig first, get comfortable then get the prn if needed.

If you are trying to get up to speed at both during same time frame, that is the steepest curve.

Just an obstacle you dont need when you are trying to be successful from the start.

Dont let your enthusiasm override professionalism. Tell the prn place you need full time, go search for full time.

Prn place will understand and likely there will be something available there in the future to reconsider.

Good luck.

G Brothers PA-C

[rev ronin]

I'll be a bit of a contrarian (but not Contrarian... haven't seen him in a while) here and say "take it".  You won't be getting paid much, but you can get your feet into medicine.  With a PRN position, you can study while you're not working, so that you shine in terms of how much and how quickly you come up to speed.  It's much easier to get another job once you already have one, and easier to move up with a field once you are already working in that discipline.

[Randito]

I think you should explore the PRN option. You're already familiar with the department and they should know what your skill level and capabilities are at this point. It may be that there is no FTE position in the department's budget even though there are plenty of shifts that need to be covered. A classmate of mine was hired PRN in similar circumstance, but given as many shifts as he would take. He eventually took a full-time position after about 6 months, when a FTE became available.

[taotaox1]

Will you have good support at the PRN position?  Has the group ever had a new grad PA before?  I think you could go for it, but I would want to be sure you are not going to left hanging out to dry....

[Febrifuge]

Best-case scenario: they know you and your skills, they have plenty of experience with new grads, they offer lots of structured mentoring and allow you to get a solid foundation over however-many months it takes. They make an effort to make sure your first 25 or 50 shifts are really low-intensity, and they respect every time you say "whoa, I'm not sure I'm ready for this."

 

(I'm not so sure this scenario exists in the wild, but others would know more than I about that.)

 

Worst-case scenario: they talk a good game while they're recruiting you, but soon after starting you have a heap of responsibility dumped on you, and it only gets worse if you try to ask for help, because there is no mechanism for slowing things down. You enter a spiral of under-confidence and supposedly-preventable errors, and wind up trying your damndest but still provide sub-standard care.

 

(Just because this happened to me 6 years ago doesn't mean it'll happen to you, but again, see what people have to say about how likely this type of thing can be.)

 

New grads have a tough situation. Either your new employer has to take the initiative and find a way to balance your need to learn quickly and ramp up to providing high-quality care with a healthy respect for your inexperience, or you do. Personally, I would rely more on yourself to be the one advocating for that balance. If you can get something in writing about how you'll progress from clueless newbie to rock star clinician, and the plan makes sense, consider the PRN gig. If you're a warm body to them, forget it.