Anyone know any psych travel nurses?

[solagratia]

Hi, I've been thinking about traveling, just got my RNC in mental health and have a little over 2 yrs experience in psych (acute unit, adult, adolescent, admissions) and love this specialty. (also have 1 year experience on a stepdown unit). Anyone have any travel psych experiences they'd care to share? (Or advice?) I would want to travel in pysch only - meaning no floating. I'm researching companies at this time, will probably be traveling by summer, hopefully!

Thanks!

[NPAlby]

Was just about to log off and then I saw your post and it literally spoke to me. I'm addicted to this board. I'm a travel psych nurse. I did a year on staff on a geri-psych floor prior. I work with a relatively small agency and they have mostly state contracts. That means two state psych hospitals both on the forensic side. I thought I would hate it but found both places to be great learning experiences. I was on an admissions unit the first place and now I float at the current one. I float but it's not like they float me to med/surg. Thank God! I would be completely lost. This hospital has 7 wards and they range in acuity but I found it to be more long term than anything else, not as many take downs as the first.

Like I mentioned earlier my agency works mostly with state facilities. There are others that work with "regular" hospitals. I encourage you to look around and ask in advance if they do a lot of psych placements. I found that many do not and wasted my time by not being more truthful. That being said I hope I was of some help. You can PM if you want detailed info about the agencies. Good Luck!

[suzanne4, RN]

You will be limited in agencies as well as placement, as there are not that many strictly psych units in many facilities. Most are complete psych hospitals and that is all that they do.

Doing a travel assignment in any other type of facility, meaning full service hospital with all other services, you normally would be required to float when your census is down.

[NPAlby]

Suzanne, do you know about the floating from first hand experience? I haven't do any travel assignments other than at psych hospitals so just wandering. I've been offered assignments at full service medical centers just haven't accepted one yet. I've close to zip med/surg experience and would not be safe to practice on a med/surg floor. Wouldn't they be in violation of the contract if they tried pulling something like that? I know I wouldn't do it and would go ballastic if they tried.