New to travel nursing

[Phxbound]

I want to move to Phoenix, AZ with a job lined up but I live in IA at the moment. I have had no luck in my out of state job search. I want to try travel nursing so I've contacted a few agencies and one guy gave me the run-around, another I can never get a hold of - I leave messages and receive no return calls.

I have 1 year experience in med/surg and 1 year in dialysis.

Any suggestions from experienced travel RN's??

[NedRN]

You are at the bottom of the heap experience wise and it is very unlikely you will find a travel assignment. You can try the dialysis companies such as Frenisius but if they don't have a staff job to offer you, it is unlikely they will have a travel position for you. You need more experience as staff. Medsurg nurses with more experience than you are having a difficult time.

[dimplechinRN]

If you have a recruiter giving you the run around and one you cant get a hold of you may wanna drop em. All recruiters I have ever had call or email like crazy. Try to do a search for companies that specialize in the area you want to move to. I think your experience is a pretty good combination. Things may pick up better when the holidays start to roll around. Stay positive something will open up.:)

[miam]

you might want to dit tight at your job for at least another year, maybe try to get some ER or ICU experience. you are going to have a really hard time trying to get a travel job right now ith such limited experience. Or at the very best you are going to wind up taking one that more experienced travelers know not to take. That can wind up in a very negative experience for you.

[NedRN]

Just to add to my prior comment, why do you want to move to Phoenix? Unless you have a compelling personal reason, like an SO that lives there, why move to an area with no jobs? Fair enough if you can't stand where you live, but only consider places with jobs. Traveling to find a place to live is a fine idea, but you do need to be on staff somewhere first until you are more employable as a traveler.

[sweetgurly25]

try banner health. they hire seasonal nurses i dont know about right now but towards the end of the year they hire alot.

[trackhead, APRN]

Not much going on in the Phoenix area this time of year, but in the next four weeks, more positions will open up as the season for snowbirds gets closer.

[trvlngstethoscp]

Are there less travel jobs available, in general, or for RNs with med-surg experience? I have 7 yearsICU/CCU/CVICU experience.

[NedRN]

Curious question. Are you considering med-surg? There are indeed less jobs available in med-surg only assignments. Tele and up is what I would recommend before leaving staff.