PACU travel

NedRN · Nov 16, 2020

If your contract does not specify no floating, floating to units of competence is the facility's prerogative.

jnewcomb1026 · Aug 22, 2021

I traveled as a PACU nurse for 2 years back in 2014. I worked at 4 different facilities over the course of that time and was never floated to other units mainly because the needs were in PACU, which is why they needed travelers in the first place. I did work at a Level 1 trauma center with several PACUs and would float between those, but my contract stated no more than 1 float per shift...or something to that effect. One assignment I only stayed 13 weeks because once I got there, they needed me in their outpatient pacu instead of inpatient. This was the only hospital I've seen that had their units separate, which was strange, but they had a separate outpatient PACU that ran like an ambulatory surgery center (endos, kids ENT stuff) and nothing that went to inpatient beds. They were totally separate units and I think I only ever floated to the inpatient PACU once that entire assignment.

My best advice is to interview with the managers and get a good idea of the unit and what you will be doing once you get there. Then make sure your recruiter has what you discuss in your contact before you accept. You have to be your own boss...and not trust your recruiter to do that work for you on the front end.

Best of luck!

I haven't floated during covid, so this may not the be best answer but I would still get it in your contract that you will only float to xyz units no more than 1x per 12 hr shift. Then you have a leg to stand on when you get there and they try to get fancy.