First Assignment in Vanceboro

[moonunit1130]

Hey! I'm thinking of transitioning to travel nursing next January and am seriously looking into an assignment in Vanceboro, NC at Craven Correctional. I have never worked corrections before and my recruiter says corrections experience is not necessary as long as I have acute care experience. I've been at my current job for just over 2 years as a float pool nurse in a Level I trauma center.

Do any of you have any experience at this particular facility? I see a lot of listings for it so I thought maybe that means they staff a lot of travelers? Also, any insight into taking a contract for a corrections job with no prior experience? I imagine it's very different from hospital nursing so how long do they give you on the job training?

I'm nervous but excited about this new opportunity. I'm determined to go to this area to be close to my significant other and I just wanted to give traveling and corrections a shot so I know if I like the area before applying at hospitals/signing the lease on an apt/ etc. I would also appreciate any advice on getting into traveling in general. My application was with Supplemental Health Care.

[NedRN]

A lot of listings could just mean a lot of agencies staff it. Difficult to know without talking to an agency or the facility. There are a number of posts here that discuss corrections work, a search in the box on the upper right should give you a good idea of the working conditions. What I hear is that it is quite safe, and the prisoners are very respectful.

[moonunit1130]

Thank you for getting back to me! I guess what I'm worried about is I don't know how long travelers typically get to orient to a new place when they get there before they are "on their own." I'm a pretty quick learner and within my hospital have been able to learn different units in 2-4 days, then I am able to function on my own, but I know this will be completely different from anything I've done before.

[NedRN]

It very much depends on the facility and your ability as well how long orientation will be. I would suggest discussing the nature of the work and length of orientation during the facility interview.