Which agencies are the best?

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Does anyone know which agencies are ok to work for? Since all my problrms I am very leary to work for any of them, so if some one could stear me in the right direction I would be ever so grateful

Specializes in ED, ICU, PSYCH, PP, CEN.

Nursefinders on Mockingbird lane in Dallas is AWESOME

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I have a good luck with Nurses PRN http://www.prnhealthservices.com. They have alot of needs in the Chicagoland area; if you want to travel to the Midwest or if you live in that area but they are a nationwide company.

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Specializes in LTC.
Generally I say that locally owned agencies tend to be the best from my experience. The big national agencies tend to have a high level of turnover in the offices and from my experience many have some pretty major financial problems. Established local agencies often have a better grasp on the market and have better relationships with the facilities.

This is just what I have experienced in my years of agency nursing.

My first agency was locally owned and totally mom and pop. The owner was a whacko and would book me without first offering me the shift. He also refused to pay my holiday pay because the facility would not pay it (even though the employee manual says time and a half for specific holidays). Was a joke working for him.

I switched to Nursefinders and love working for them. They have kept me busy and offer daily pay. Guess it all depends on the situation. :)

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Specializes in ED, ICU, PACU.

Another route that can be taken is to call the Nursing Office of the individual hsopitals and ask themwho they use. Certain Nursing Supervisors have established relationships with agency recruiters & your chance of finding a good agency, with first pick at openings, could be from a referral of a Nursing Supervisor. Where I am now, Nursefinders and Favorite have this type of relationship with the area hospitals.

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Specializes in Long term care & rehab.
Around here, in Virginia, I've found, over the years, that 2 agencies seem to work out best for me. One is Nursefinders and the other is Maxim. I prefer Maxim because of their benes and paid 1 week vacation after 480 hours. This might vary from state to state. Others that I've tried have been pretty much as "fill-ins" for slow periods. No benes or regular work. Some are speciality agencies like "peds" or "home health". I like to keep 2-3 agencies available so I can pick and choose what I want, or to keep me busy when it gets slow.

MY EXPERIENCE WITH MAXIM THE ARE ALL CHEAP!!!! THE FIRST JOB WITH THEM WAS IN ARIZONA, WITH $15 DOLLARS AN HOUR, WHICH IS TERRIBLE FOR A TRAVEL ASSIGNMENT!!! THEM I TRIED THEM AGAIN HERE IN WASHINGTON STATE, AND IT WAS WORSE, I WAS DRIVING FROM MOSES LAKE TO SPOKANE EVERY DAMNED DAY FOR ABOUT TWO WEEKS AND I QUIT THEM AND WENT BACK WITH MY LOCAL AGENCY, FIRST RESOURCE MEDICAL STAFFING THAT ALWAYS PAYS ME $25 PER HOUR PLUS HOUSING, PLUS CONTRACTS FOR 13 WEEK ASSIGNMENTS!!! GUARANTEED HOURS OF 40 PER WEEK, DIRECT DEPOSIT IN MY BANK ACCOUNT!! THERE ARE TWO OTHERS THAT HIRED ME IN TWO DIFFERENT STATES, ONE IN MONTANA, WITH A 13 WEEK CONTRACT, DROVE THERE FOR ONE DAMN SHIFT THE NURSING HOME CANCELLED THE CONTRACT, THE ONLY MONEY I GOT WAS ENOUGH TO GET GAS MONEY TO GO HOME THREE STATES AWAY, THE NEXT ONE SENT ME TO NEBRASKA, GAVE ME $200 TO GET THERE AND THEY THOUGHT THAT WAS ENOUGH FOR THE LICENSE, AND BACK AND FORTH TO WORK FOR TWO WEEKS, THE TRUTH IS WAS JUST ENOUGH FOR ME TO GET TO THE HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS!!!! 16 MILES FROM THE JOB!!! MY CAR WAS OUT OF GAS WHEN I GOT TO THE HOLIDAY INN!!! THEN I HAD TO BORROW MONEY FROM A FRIEND, THEN PAY HER BACK ON MY FIRST CHECK, I KEPT WORKING FOR THREE WEEKS, THEN THAT NURSING HOME HIRED TWO NEW GRADUATE NURSES WITH NO EXPERIENCE AND THEY CANCELLED THE CONTRACT!!! THEN THE AGENCY ONLY FED-EX ME $200 FOR ME TO GO HOME!!!! NOW IT WAS 6 STATES TO GO HOME THROUGH!!!! I ENDED UP GOING TO THE LOCAL PAYDAY LOAN THAT I KNEW I COULDN'T PAY THEM BACK, BUT WITH THE $200 FROM AGENCY AND ANOTHER $200 PAYDAY LOAN WAS JUST ENOUGH FOR ME TO GET HOME!!!

THE AGENCIES YOU NEED TO NOT DEAL WITH: MERIDIAN IN COLORADO, AND aedon360!!!! IN ARKANSAS!!!:angryfire I HAVE BEEN AN LPN FOR THIRTY YEARS, AND MOST OF THE TRAVEL EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN GOOD, BUT YOU DO NEED TO BE CAREFUL OF THE ONES I USED!!! FROM DEB B. IN WASHINGTON STATE

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Hi Daberg 211

I worked with Maxim it is horrible agency to work. They assigned 3 nurses for the same assignment, they pay me sooooo low. They did not gave enough hours to work. It is just a mess place to work.

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Specializes in NICU.

Anybody know of any good agencies to work for that will staff for NICU nurses in the Chicago area? Please feel free to PM me!

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When I worked in Chicago I used an agency called AMR pronurse. They always had work for me and paid well. I also liked them because they worked in the staffing offices of the hospitals so I always got the pick of shifts I wanted. I think they might have been bought by medical staffing network now but either way they are the one to use.

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Specializes in Tele, Medsurg, Stepdown.

Has anyone used Intelistaf to travel to New York city? If so, what was your experience like?

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Would someone please recommend someone near Alabama. I've been laid off since July, and I'm desperate.

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Specializes in med-surg, teaching, cardiac, priv. duty.

Looking through this long thread, I notice a lot of negative opinions regarding Maxim (with a handful of positive experiences). I think it is possible, but unlikely, to have a good experience with Maxim simply because of their business structure. Inexperienced 21 yr old men run the offices, and do all the scheduling and communicating with the nurses and families. I don't want to get going...I have very little positive to say about Maxim!

Here is a site with Maxim reviews. Might want to check it out. And write a review yourself.

http://www.jobvent.com/maxim-healthcare-services-job-reviews-C5175?PageNum=1

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I guess it depends on what office and where it is, plus your own personal experience. I worked out of a Maxim office for 10 years. They always had work for me, and pay could be negotiable, if you were unhappy. I moved last year and hoped to transfer to another Maxim office, but the new one treated me pretty poorly. I went to another agency.

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