Edewald Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 Just how much can a PA in EM work in a month? It seems like the normal is about 15-20 12 hour shifts per 30 days. How does scheduling work, choosing day/night shifts etc?... You get so tied up in the application/interview process- fun to finally think about your career once you're in school! I have not started rotations yet. I'm sure these are questions that will be answered once they begin. I'd appreciate any bit of offered awareness. thanks! - Ed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted June 30, 2015 Moderator Share Posted June 30, 2015 15-20 is a lot of 12s. 12-14 is more common for full time. you can always get overtime shifts. I try not to do more than 15, but often end up with as many as 20. hard on the work/life/school balance...226 hrs this month while taking a class. too much, but I will survive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jen0508 Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 In EM you can work as much or as little as you want (many of us moonlight - which means having an extra prn job). My full time is 15 10-hour shifts, I usually work about 3 extra days and max out at 180 hours a month (18 10-hour shifts). I'm single with no kids so I do not mind working extra right now for extra $$$. Once I settle down, I will go down to 15 days per month Our schedule is pretty complicated. We have 7 different shifts at 2 locations, and there are some who prefer to work one location vs the other and some who prefer morning shifts vs evening, etc. Our scheduler is a PA in our group and is pretty good at making the schedule fairly while giving people their preference. I work about 4 morning shifts a month, 4 late shifts (ending at 1am-3am) and the rest are evening shifts ending at 11pm. I'm not a morning person so I have less morning shifts than others. Your schedule will vary depending on where you work. Thankfully we dont have any overnight PA shifts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nonlegit Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 15-20 is a lot of 12s. 12-14 is more common for full time. you can always get overtime shifts. I try not to do more than 15, but often end up with as many as 20. hard on the work/life/school balance...226 hrs this month while taking a class. too much, but I will survive. EMED I have seen you mention your schedule many times, do you mind explaining why so many shifts? I wonder sometimes if its just desire to work or if you are doing a required amount of per diem shifts at ancillary facilities or something. Surely you have enough seniority to not work that many hours if you don't want to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted July 1, 2015 Moderator Share Posted July 1, 2015 NONLEGIT- I have 3 different jobs for variety; 1 full time (urban trauma ctr), 1 part time (rural double coverage) and 1 per diem (rural solo coverage). I have to give each place a range of the # of shifts I want per month. if all the places give me the low end of the range, I have a reasonable schedule. if they all give me the top of the range I have 220 hrs or so. it's a delicate balance because I don't want to find myself with less than 150 hrs, at the same time I would really prefer not to have more than 180. I am hoping to transition to either the part time or the per diem job and drop the full time job completely in the near future. Transitioning to the part time job would require my wife agreeing to move (I have a standing offer for full time) and transitioning to the per diem job would require the full time guy(who is around 60) to retire. I have to ingratiate myself with jobs 2+3 in order to keep my prospects open, while at the same time do at least the min at job #1 to keep benefits, etc. If I was content to stick it out at the full time job and not work anywhere else I could work very little to keep my benefits due to my seniority there. unfortunately, that job is getting more unpleasant each year with increases in volume and a new emr coming on board next month (we have been doing paper charts to this point). I frequently see 25-32 pts/12 hr shift and I know that my efficiency and productivity(which feeds directly into my salary) will go down significantly when I am required to use an emr. historically everywhere that I have worked that went from paper to emr had to double staff to see the same # of pts in the same amt of time because the emr kills 30-50% of ones productivity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nonlegit Posted July 2, 2015 Share Posted July 2, 2015 NONLEGIT- I have 3 different jobs for variety; 1 full time (urban trauma ctr), 1 part time (rural double coverage) and 1 per diem (rural solo coverage). I have to give each place a range of the # of shifts I want per month. if all the places give me the low end of the range, I have a reasonable schedule. if they all give me the top of the range I have 220 hrs or so. it's a delicate balance because I don't want to find myself with less than 150 hrs, at the same time I would really prefer not to have more than 180. I am hoping to transition to either the part time or the per diem job and drop the full time job completely in the near future. Transitioning to the part time job would require my wife agreeing to move (I have a standing offer for full time) and transitioning to the per diem job would require the full time guy(who is around 60) to retire. I have to ingratiate myself with jobs 2+3 in order to keep my prospects open, while at the same time do at least the min at job #1 to keep benefits, etc. If I was content to stick it out at the full time job and not work anywhere else I could work very little to keep my benefits due to my seniority there. unfortunately, that job is getting more unpleasant each year with increases in volume and a new emr coming on board next month (we have been doing paper charts to this point). I frequently see 25-32 pts/12 hr shift and I know that my efficiency and productivity(which feeds directly into my salary) will go down significantly when I am required to use an emr. historically everywhere that I have worked that went from paper to emr had to double staff to see the same # of pts in the same amt of time because the emr kills 30-50% of ones productivity. All makes sense now. I should have thought of that. The old multiple-job-minimum-shift-responsibility.... Hope you end up in your dream job. I think about that often. I figure I could always go and be a tranport medic with a flight company or something if I wanted adventure.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FancyPAntsy Posted July 5, 2015 Share Posted July 5, 2015 12-14 shifts is typical. 150 hours/month is about ideal, some people (who are crazy people) do 180 hours in a month. I like 120-140 hours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evolute Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 I'm one of those crazy people. for the past 5 years or so I've worked 200-250 hours/month. I just spent the last 6 months working 360 hours/month (two full times jobs). I don't recommend it. You spend all your time at work....at work (duh), and all your off time in a haze. not real good for the family...or yourself for that matter. since June, I'm only working 268 hours/month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted July 7, 2015 Moderator Share Posted July 7, 2015 I'm one of those crazy people. for the past 5 years or so I've worked 200-250 hours/month. I just spent the last 6 months working 360 hours/month (two full times jobs). I don't recommend it. You spend all your time at work....at work (duh), and all your off time in a haze. not real good for the family...or yourself for that matter. since June, I'm only working 268 hours/month. I did that about 12 years ago while taking classes to go back to medschool with a pregnant wife at home....glad I'm not that nuts anymore... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delco714 Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 I'm one of those crazy people. for the past 5 years or so I've worked 200-250 hours/month. I just spent the last 6 months working 360 hours/month (two full times jobs). I don't recommend it. You spend all your time at work....at work (duh), and all your off time in a haze. not real good for the family...or yourself for that matter. since June, I'm only working 268 hours/month.That's absurd..why?! Holy Crap Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWR Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 EMEDPA, You seem to be on the fast track for burnout. Don't you find your medical acuity in diagnosing and treating is jeapordized with the long hours and number of patients seen? You work in a high intensity specialty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted July 8, 2015 Moderator Share Posted July 8, 2015 EMEDPA, You seem to be on the fast track for burnout. Don't you find your medical acuity in diagnosing and treating is jeapordized with the long hours and number of patients seen? You work in a high intensity specialty. I have 3 different jobs so the variety keeps it fresh. it's still too many hours and I am working on that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evolute Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Delco- its not as bad as it seems. OK, working the 360 hours/month thing sucked, but that was short term and has ended. My current hours of 268 seems like a lot (and it is) but I still only work 12 days/month. At one hospital I work 4, 19 hour shifts, the other I am contracted for 8, 24 hour shifts/month. this ED/hospital is slow enough that I mostly work 48-72 hour shifts. I don't need to work this much, my family and i could easily get by with just the 8, 24's/month. With the 19 hour shifts I'm able to max out my retirement savings. so there is a bit of method to my madness.....thou my wife would beg to differ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted July 9, 2015 Moderator Share Posted July 9, 2015 I'm working on tryinjg to get a a schedule of 4 24's and 8 12s/mo. between 2 places and leaving my primary job. that would be great. 192 hrs, but 144 of them high acuity low volume with a lot of sleeping at night.166 is also a possibility, which would be even better. depends if one place will allow 1 24/week plus a 12 every other week or if they want a 24 and a 12/week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evolute Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 E- sounds like a great schedule if you can swing it. My full time job is high acuity low volume also. the other is high acuity moderate volume. those shifts can get long. You need to come to my state. you could damn near have your pick of jobs/schedule. disclaimer: some facilities you have to cover the inpt's and in some, walkins in the clinic thou. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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