Travel Nursing-where to begin?

xoyw01 · Jan 31, 2008

No answer for you Tilda, but I would like to add to your question. Do older nurses travel or is this more typical for young, traditional age students right out of school?

snowfreeze, BSN, RN · Jan 31, 2008

I am 50 and started traveling again, I traveled before about 8 years ago. Read the travel nurse postings on this site it was helpful for me.

Where to start? Decide where you want to go, what you want to see, how much you are willing to work for and check on cost of living in each city prior to committing.

What amenities would you want the agency to provide for you as part of your contract such as housing, linens, rental vehicle, air fare to and from, reimbursement of licenses, daily food allowance, mileage or relocation fee, insurances, continuing education, etc.

If you are relatively new to nursing or have only worked in one place try working for a couple local agencies as per diem in local facilities to see how quickly you can acclimatize yourself to a new environment. That is what I did for about a year prior to deciding to travel last time. You will only get 1 to 3 days orientation as a travel nurse and usually none as an agency nurse.

Good luck and have fun!!!!

CDNORRN · Jan 31, 2008

Subscribe to Healthcare Traveler magazine. I think a great deal of recruiting companies pay for the advertising in this mag but you can also get some great information from it too. It's free. Having travelled for a couple of years, travelers tend to stick together and you'll get all kinds of stories about experiences. I learned which companies to stay away from and how to negotiate the things I wanted. Overall, I might suggest CA has some great experiences to offer and great pay. A traveler friendly state overall. Keep asking lots of questions and you'll get answers to what you need to know.

Bklyngurl · Feb 2, 2008

As a new grad I have expeirence in an ICU as an LPN and always wanted to travel. I would like to know what companies are the best and actually care about their staff. I've worked with travelers before and I know at my hospital they do a 3 days one week and 4 days biweekly. I would like to know is this the norm throughout the east? In addition what about the West Palm Beach, FL area any recommendation on hospitals for RN travelers?

chuck1234 · Feb 2, 2008

$hawaii.jpg$

Photo: http://www.math.hawaii.edu

I will start from right here! Hawaii! Very beautiful!

ERRNTraveler, RN · Feb 2, 2008

I have been traveling for a little over a year, and have worked in WI, FL, NC, IA, & CA. You can find out about how traveler-friendly specific hospitals are by checking out the travel nursing forum on this & other sites. There is one site that has a review section that has reviews of different hospitals & travel companies. PM me for more info... Also, check out the articles available online at Healthcare Traveler magazine's website. Speak with recruiters from several different companies until you find one that you trust and that can offer the benefits you're looking for.

EmmaG, RN · Feb 5, 2008

I am 50 and started traveling again, I traveled before about 8 years ago. Read the travel nurse postings on this site it was helpful for me.
Where to start? Decide where you want to go, what you want to see, how much you are willing to work for and check on cost of living in each city prior to committing.
What amenities would you want the agency to provide for you as part of your contract such as housing, linens, rental vehicle, air fare to and from, reimbursement of licenses, daily food allowance, mileage or relocation fee, insurances, continuing education, etc.
If you are relatively new to nursing or have only worked in one place try working for a couple local agencies as per diem in local facilities to see how quickly you can acclimatize yourself to a new environment. That is what I did for about a year prior to deciding to travel last time. You will only get 1 to 3 days orientation as a travel nurse and usually none as an agency nurse.
Good luck and have fun!!!!

Excellent advice.

I started traveling after 20+ years... I truly believe it saved my career and kept me from turning into a crispy critter. I could literally feel the stress oozing out of me.

While (knock on wood) all of my assignments so far have been ok-to-great, something about knowing you only have to put up with it for 13 weeks is quite refreshing.