amy0123

nurses have way too much on their plates during a shift. Prioritizing patient care often means we neglect our own basic needs, like using the bathroom or even staying hydrated. But it's critical to advocate for ourselves and push back against the culture that normalizes this. Taking a few minutes to go to the bathroom isn't just about comfort—it's about our health and well-being, which ultimately impacts the quality of care we provide. Companies / Hospitals need to address staffing and workflow issues so we're not forced into these unhealthy situations.

Thank you, that is an awesome suggestion! I can definitely spend a day shadowing in each area and pick a specialty. I'll contact the manager of each specialty. If the specialty is not a good fit for me, then I could stay as I am in my position. At least I could say I've tried

Hi everyone, I have been a medsurg tele traveler for a little over ten years, and pick up local per diem shifts in between assignments at home. After reviewing several travel nurse websites and all of their needs for specialties like OR, ICU, ER, PICU, NICU, L&D, I've been considering adding a new specialty for new opportunities and experiences. What would you pick if you were me? :) A few of my coworkers have transitioned to NICU and loved it. I remember always wanting to work with babies during my days in nursing school. After I graduated I was directed to start in medsurg and never really transitioned to another specialty. Now I'm considering NICU, as there are several positions available at my local facility. I feel I'm sort of at a crossroads. Learn a new specialty and stick with it for a few years or should I stick to traveling in medsurg tele? Have any travelers taken time off to train in other areas and then travel again? What was your experience? What would you recommend? What would you do?

I've worked at The Villages Hospital and Naples Community Hospital on Travel Assignments with AMN. They were both a great experience. I'm a med/surg/Tele nurse. Some friends I made in both places work in ICU and said it was great too. I would definitely go back to either hospital and work there again if the opportunity opens and I'm available.

nomad5150- this is old stuff and there is already a behind the scenes effort to clean up the worst of the practices (see www.natho.org ) :) as a traveler, you are not going to get a market wage in this economy as the agencies must take their bill rate (not as high as rumor has it) and allocate part to wage, reimbursements, taxes, overhead and profit. there's a traveler's conference in las vegas in september. some agency execs will be there to present, discuss and answer questions on travel wages, taxes and other things that'll help clear up these issues.

79Tango - please explain some facts. If the 4 companies I mentioned are the worst, what makes them the worst? what are the best? You seem to know. As an RN, the $15/h wage is not market value. Especially after working for American Mobile for 4 years. The companies mentioned as "best" had been recommended to me by several travelers in several states. And I've heard of the worst companies over and over. None were these.

I've been with American Mobile for 3-4 years. It's really sad how since fall of 2010 they've changed into a "tax advantage" pay program. This means to me that the company gets to take advantage of Travel Nurses on the tax and hourly rate. I was offered a contract to work $15/h. My recruiter said "you are really getting $24 hour with the $35/day per diem meal rate." I am looking forward to working for a company that is not lying or stealing for their own gain. What company does not follow this tax advantage program and honors a normal market pay rate? So far I am looking into OnAssignment, Freedom Healthcare, Aureus and Fastaff. These companies do not have a "tax advantage" program and do not cheat Travelers with below market wage salaries. It's great that American Mobile is such a large company with so many contracted hospitals under their umbrella. But it's sad that they've changed into this tax advantage wage with super low hourly rates. If I want to work in a specific location, American Mobile usually has it. Unlike other travel companies. That means for me that I may have to switch between companies to get the location wanted. More work for me. But the right thing to do.

I had the same problem. It was not easy. The process took weeks. I had the same situation. I had to explain to my loan officer what a travel nurse was and does. He said his mother was a nurse and new about travel nursing and she helped him to understand it better. She even lived near the home base of the travel agency. My loan officer had to convince the underwriter that I would be living in the home and not leaving it for long periods of time. I explained that long truck drivers, salesmen, flight attendants may leave their homes for weeks at a time and get mortgages too. My loan officer wanted to see proof of steady consistent income, (no gaps of time without paychecks), proof of employment and that I would be living there, employeed within the area and not commuting more than 50 miles. What it came down to was the steady income - that I've been working with the same company for years without gaps in time. Plus it helped that my husband was not a travel nurse and that his name was also on the mortgage. He can be there while I'm away. Shortly after the underwriter approved the mortgage, we went into closing.

Yes, their housing is clean and safe. Occupied by nurses. A condo-like setting. The hospital itself is located in Naples, mostly a retirement community. It's a beautiful area. The hospital's housing is about a 15 minute walk to the beach and a block away from the hospital. There are lots of places to shop along the strip that the hospital is located like Macy's, Sear's, several malls and country clubs. I loved it! I was at the beach almost most of my time collecting sea shells and dolphine watching.

Vassar Brothers starting pay is $29.67 per hourly rate. It goes up a dollar or so every year after. I'm not sure about St. Francis pay.

I've worked with American Mobile for 3 years. I started my first travel assignment with them and I'm still working for them. They're a well known company and therefore have more assignments available in more states. I would say for a new traveler, I would rather start out with an experienced company than a new small company for stability reasons. I almost signed up with a company called Voyager and they went out of business a few months later. A friend suggested me to join them. I would have been in a bad position if they went out of business in the middle of my assignment. Glad it wasn't me! From experience, I haven't had any conflicts with them. At some hospitals, I met other travel nurses that worked for different agencies. I'm usually the highest paid and I work with American Mobile! For example, in Hawaii I made $27.50/h. My coworkers made $18, $20, and $22 - I don't remember what agencies they were with. Another example was in Florida; I made $24/h, someone from CrossCountry was making $20/h but we both had great housing. She needed to buy plates and bowels. Not all hospitals are great. Sometimes you don't know what you are walking in to! Just be ready to hit the ground running. Staffing may be poor, expect large nurse to patient ratios (1:8), over-worked staff, lack of aides, lack of help, pharmacy slacking with bringing up meds, outdated equipment, outdated protocols... I've seen all of this and more. As a Travel Nurse, You're providing relief into over stressed facilities. In a great hospital, sometimes there are no major issues, and the only reason why you're there is to relieve the high census. For example, Florida has a higher census in the winter due to tourism. And when you're there, the nurse ratio changes from 1:8 to 1:6. What a relief for everyone! Housing comes with furnishing/linens/kitchen items in safe areas. It has been a great experience. The commute can be far from the hospital. In one place, it was a 45min commute. In another place, it was about a 20 minute commute. Sometimes it's safer to commute to a busy city than live in it, plus it depends what housing is available and what kind of area you're in. I've had 3 different recruiters. The one I'm currently with is new since last week. The one before her worked with me for 2 years (left because she had a first baby) - She was the best & I miss her. The one before her worked with me for only 4 months (left because she was promoted). Hope this helps.

You're right. Most people do not care. However, I think there are very few who do. And they will be very frustrated.

If every state mandated the H1N1 vaccine like the NY government has, I wonder what the response would be from health care workers from all 50 states. Would some states refuse and rally? Would those nurses also lose their argument for free choice and be fired?

united nations international law: http://www.un.org/en/law/ world trade organization law: http://www.wto.org/english/news_e/news_e.htm obama announces plan to expand fight against global h1n1 pandemic http://geneva.usmission.gov/news/category/health/h1n1-swine-flu/ "in terms of preparedness, the world is also fortunate to have the revised international health regulations. this treaty, which is designed to protect public health, also has provisions aimed at preventing undue interference with international trade and travel." http://www.who.int/dg/speeches/2009/influenza_a_h1n1_situation_20090504/en/index.html [color=#4557a0]

The military gets involved: "Representatives from 10 U.S. government agencies are holding a two-day table-top exercise in cooperation with the government of Panama to assist in responding to any future influenza pandemic Sept. 16." "The representatives discussed how the United States and the Panamanian government can manage an influenza outbreak by utilizing their agencies' assets to combat a pandemic." http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=48357 "When this is declared Pandemic level 6 we are no longer under US law. This is the important thing- at that point we are under United Nations and World Health Organization law." http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread503575/pg1

Forced to be immunized as a condition of employment. http://nursing.advanceweb.com/editorial/content/editorial.aspx?cc=207252

the law: subpart 66-3 - health care facility personnel - influenza vaccination requirements http://www.health.state.ny.us/regulations/emergency/docs/2009-08-13_health_care_personnel_influenza_vaccination_requirements.pdf can a health care worker who refuses to be vaccinated be fired? "again, steps like reassignment to non-covered duties is suggested. each organization must comply with this regulation, just as the organization assures that health care personnel must be immunized against measles and rubella." http://http://www.health.state.ny.us/diseases/communicable/influenza/seasonal/providers/questions_and_answers_-_health_care_worker_mandatory_influenza_immunization.htm [/url] "additionally, the organization is responsible for identifying the measures that are needed to protect patients from influenza transmission from personnel who are exempt due to a medical contraindication. the organization covered by these regulations which provides the vaccination must provide it at no cost to their personnel" http://www.health.state.ny.us/diseases/communicable/influenza/seasonal/providers/2009-08-26_health_care_worker_mandatory_influenza_immunization.htm

some major concerns about the h1n1 vaccine that have not been addressed: http://www.falseflagflu.com/pdf/fliers/swinefluvaccinefactsheet.pdf  fast tracked by the fda, very little testing for safety  will only be tested a few weeks on a few hundred adults and children  going to give it to the children and pregnant mothers first  one-size fits all- babies will get the same vaccine as a 280lb man; this is not sound science and carries grave risks for the children or those who are immune sensitive.  we now have a whole generation of children who are immune compromised and are suffering with autism, adhd, seizure disorders, diabetes and asthma. these children could potentially have severe reaction to this vaccine.  first responders will be next, police, firemen, ems, nurses... 4  2001 a bill was passed that totally protects any vaccine manufacture free of all liability from injury or death!  drug companies were given billions of tax dollars to develop experimental flu vaccines last year  many of these vaccines are coming from europe where some ingredients are not approved in the united states for use in the vaccines. squalene is one example. the childhood vaccine safety act of 1986 set up very clear safety guidelines to include the following measures. 1. provide written benefit and risk information to parents before giving vaccines 2. accurate written record of manufactures name and lot number must be kept 3. childs medical record must have this information recorded 4. close monotoring after vaccinations and reporting of all serious health problems that develop after vaccines and all adverse events must be reported to the vaccine adverse events reporting system vaers. question: how are the schools going to insure that these safety rules are followed? how are they going to comply with this act if they line children up in schools like cattle and vaccinate them? are parents going to have the right to say no? there are reports across the country from people who have gotten the flu shots in the past that they have had the worst flu ever! there is compelling evidence that people who get 5 consecutive flu shots in a 10 year period are 10x more likely to get alzheimers because of the accumulation of aluminum and mercury. hugh fudenburg, immunologist. references: toronto sun, feb 27, 2009 http://www.newswithviews.com/tenpenny/sherri6.htmhttp://www.novaccine.com are vaccines safe? dvd, mary tocco

http://www.newsday.com/long-island/nassau/li-nurses-to-rally-against-mandatory-swine-flu-vaccines-1.1465858 hong kong health care workers leery of h1n1 vaccine http://www.thejobcure.com/reuters_article.asp?id=20090826publ003.html risks of the swine flu vaccine http://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/usnews/health-care/1813 "time constraints mean that clinical data at the time when pandemic vaccines are first administered will inevitably be limited. further testing of safety and effectiveness will need to take place after administration of the vaccine has begun." http://www.trustedhealthproducts.com/blog/tag/guillain-barre-syndrome what is the reason not to inform the public on the tv news about the facts of the swine flu? it seems a bit eerie how fast this vaccine was mandated along with the limited research and trial testings.

Metropolitan hospital had an inservice on the H1N1 and flu vaccines. We were told this is mandated by the government and the state. If the vaccines are refused by Nov 30 then you will be suspended without pay for 2 weeks, and a research report must be written and turned in about the vaccine benefits. After 2 weeks of suspension, you turn in the report with a final decision. If you refuse then you're unemployed and will not be allowed into the building. The only excuses accepted is: #1 severe anaphylactic reaction to eggs. #2 Guillian Barre history. With documented proof, a doctor's OHS, license number for tracking, tracing and investigating. There's no exclusion for conscience decision or religion. Is NY the only state madating this?

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/documentation-books-260860.html I have a book on nursing notes, The Complete Guide to Documentation ,LWW the above thread is also helpful.

With all the hiring freezes, layoff's and budget concerns any temporary positions would be great to work if you manage to get one. There's more nurses applying and not enough travel positions available - from what I was told. Especially a popular place like in NY. If you can't find a position in the fall then Per Diem would be another great option.

Take the stipend. Look in the papers for a furnished apartment or room close by the hospital. Sometimes hotels offer discount monthly rates like the Ramada or Extended Stay. You could speak to the person who set-up the housing but they may take longer to arrange for a new place.

I was not a good test taker. I became a better test taker with practice. While some of my classmates were out with friends, I was in my dorm room studying and practicing questions to pass the HESI. We had to take a HESI exam at the end of each semester. What helped for me was to do 50-300 practice questions per day, and I timed myself. I gave myself 1 minute (the maximum) to answer each question. I used the NCLEX practice questions mainly from Saunders Review and the big blue Mosby's comprehensive book. I also ordered the HESI Review CD from their website and went through all the questions. What helped the most was my personal punishment: For every question answered incorrectly, I had to look up why and write the rationale for the answer. Not only did I understand the answer better, I remembered it.

recent thread: https://allnurses.com/travel-nursing/cruise-ship-nursing-374178.html my old study buddy and i were interested about cruise ship nursing. we read articles online, asked around and found requirements. years of er and icu/trauma experience is required along with an acls/ccrn/pals certification. most ships hire experienced rn's with advanced degrees. i was told most time is spent in the cruise. room/board/meals are covered. you're oncall when not working. i don't know about hubby. here's a thread from here that would be helpful for some of your questions: https://allnurses.com/general-nursing...rn-284735.html thread: https://allnurses.com/travel-nursing/...243-page2.html another thread: https://allnurses.com/travel-nursing/...ing-54647.html good luck!