TRAVEL NURSING FOR BEGINNERS

Have you ever thought about moving into the lucrative field of travel nursing? Do you have friends or co-workers that have leaped into travel nursing and rave about the freedom, fun, and oh yes great salary they are getting. Are you not sure where to start? Let me share some tips and tricks.  

#1.  You don’t have to be a nurse. Shocker, I know! but medical travel agencies are not limited to Registered Nurses with Bachelor’s Degrees.

These agencies provide staffing to all areas, 

Nurse Practitioners

LPN, LVNs

Respiratory Therapists, 

Case Managers

Physical Therapists.

CNA’s

Mental Health Social Workers

Although the demand is highest for nurses, all the other specialties can benefit from travel assignments.

#2.  Make sure you have the proper licensing. There are compact state licenses that cover multiple states, but some states like New York, and California require separate licensure.

 It took me almost 6 months to acquire a California license. In addition to the application, I had to provide college transcripts, and this is becoming more popular in other states. Getting that information to the state takes time and can delay your application.

#3. Make sure you have current titers or documentation for all those vaccines we nurses get:

HPV

MMR

Covid 19

#4.  Check out the companies. 

They are not all the same. Contracts and benefits differ from agency to agency. Some provide free health insurance and 401k options from day one. Others have benefits that don’t start for 30 days. 

You may have to work an off-shift if you want to go to a popular area, think Las Vegas. or Aspen in the winter months.

That big-dollar salary figure they wave in front of you often includes fees that are then taken out of your pay. Ask questions. Get the details of everything.

#5.  Contact the Agency and start working with a recruiter.  

He/she will guide you through the documents needed and will forward all of the information for your housing. You usually need to get there on your dime, but with the Pandemic, some agencies are providing airfare and rental car. 

You also will need to decide what you are going to bring. Just want to bring scrubs and a toothbrush. You can get that assignment but you will be charged for a long list of items needed for housing, like sheets, towels, pots, pans, utensils, etc.

If you have the luxury of staying with family and friends and don’t need housing, you receive the greatest amount of salary.

#6. READ, READ, READ the contract, and then read it again. 

Contracts are negotiable. I once had a contract that gave me guaranteed work hours. When the patient census dropped, travel nurses are the first to go home. That happened twice before the hospital looked at the contract. OOPS.

Once you have your destination, contract and facility identified it is important to scope out the area. 

If you are traveling alone, make sure safety is at the top of your list.

 Google map the area and find out your distance from the apartment to the facility.  

What kind of security is provided if you work nights and are coming in ON CALL at 2 in the morning for that emergency C-Section?

 If you have any concerns at all, you have the right to contact the agency and demand safe housing. Don’t be afraid to speak up. You are an expensive commodity. 

The agency does not want anything to happen to you and does not want a review showing up on yelp that involves dangers encountered by a travel nurse.  After that,  START PACKING