OR travel assignments

[arianaRN]

Any OR travelers out there that can offer good advice on companies that specialize in OR travel assignments?

My previous jobs have been in hospitals where RN's only circulate & OR techs scrub, thus I don't have scrub experience. Has anyone out there done circulating assignments only?

Has anyone had a bad experience they can share that would shed light on things to be careful of or warrant asking particular questions about when interviewing for an assignment?

Do most OR travel assignments require call, or not? I've heard conflicting responses on this so far -- some say that hospitals don't want to pay the big bucks for travelers on call. Others say that travelers are put in the regular call rotation.

Also, what do travelers usually do for health insurance between assignments? The companies I've talked with say they cover 2 weeks-30 days between assignments, beyond that you pay COBRA (super high rate). Also, I need coverage for my husband, which I've been quoted anywhere from $280-$400/month from the agencies. Does that sound reasonable with what you're experiencing? How negotiable is insurance?

Lots of questions.

[RNERHOUSESUPOR]

I am in the middle of my first assignment in the OR. Am working at an HCA hospital in South Florida. It's not what I expected when I accepted the assignment but it's not bad enough to leave. I was offered and accepted a contract to scrub in the CVOR. When I arrived I was told that the census in the CVOR had gone down and I was needed in the General OR instead. I'm a RN but don't Circulate. I would have felt comfortable taking call for the CVOR but with the number of varied cases in the General I chose not to take call there. It was a pay cut but I am surviving. I will be looking at obtaining my own health insurance soon as I think I will try to take a perdiem job back home at a higher hourly salary since they won't allow me to take a leave of absence for my visits to the south for the winter. It would be nice if the new insurance objectives of the government has in mind comes through where all Americans can get affordable insurance and pay for it pre tax like you can if you are on an employers plan.

Good luck with your travels

[maritimegirl]

I'm an OR traveler, and am currently only on my 2nd assignment, but I'll tell you what I can. I don't know of any companies that specialize in OR, but most have quite a few OR assignments available. For my first assignment, I was with Medical Solutions. I loved them, they were excellent to work for, and my recruiter was awesome. I had to go to another company for this assignment because I wanted to go to Florida, and they don't have contracts in Florida, but I plan to go back to them next time.

Don't worry about the fact that you don't scrub, most jobs are looking for RN's to circulate. Call varies with each facility. My last assignment, I did the same schedule as everyone else, but at this one I do no call and no weekends because it costs too much to pay a traveler. Just ask during the interview so you'll know up front. Also make sure you ask about floating to other areas...if you're like me, the thought of floating out of the OR is terrifying, so you'll want to find that out before you accept an assignment. I can't really answer you're questions on insurance, cause I'm still trying to figure all that out myself. Hope this all helps.

[nurseontheloose]

do not take an or assignment in bentonville, ar, not travel friendly. most all companies have or positions. i only circulate, no scrubbing. as for insurance, i have my husband to keep insurance on the family.

there are some great companies out there and good or's to work in. but like everyother place. they have some sort of issues that may be hard to over come. there is a reason, what ever it may be, that they do not have full time staff, and are using travlers. You have to make the best of what you have and what you can do.

good luck