Quitting staff job to travel

Specialties Travel

Published

I have a staff job but I really want to travel. I'm really nervous about quitting my staff job (even though I hate it) because I'm the primary breadwinner of my family and I'm apprehensive about leaving a stable job to travel. I thought traveling was more stable until I read horror stories about nurses being canceled in the middle of their contract and not being able to find another contract right away. So I want to know:

1) Did you have a staff job right before your first contract?

2) If so, how soon before your first contract did you quit?

3) Has there ever been a time when you've been scrambling for a contract?

4) Do you feel the industry of travel nursing as a whole is stable?

They wont hire and train a new grad, but they'll hire a traveler with 1-2 years of experience? I dont get it.

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It takes at least 4 months to train a new grad. At least one month of that orientation is spent in a classroom so the new grad is kinda useless during that time, especially if the census is high. A traveler can just jump in and start working. Orientation for a traveler is usually one day and it's like, "The bathroom is over there. The Pyxis is over there. Here are your passwords. Here's your patient assignment. Now go! "

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Yea, but alot of staff orientations are like that if they hook u up with a lazy preceptor. Even tho this is a travel job for me, I am going to voice my concerns w the manager during my eval next week. This floor hired a bunch of new grads,and 9 out of 10 preceptors sit on their butt at the desk while poor new grads are stressing out and running their asses off. Grrr.

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Specializes in Emergency.

Anyone have any insight on the need for ER nurses? I am always seeing stuff for L&D and med surg.

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ER is middling completive, middling commodity. Lots of assignments, lots of ER travelers. Pay is better than medsurg, but not as good as OR and L&D. You are better off traveling in ER than medsurg for sure and will not have difficulty finding assignments.

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Does anyone know about the traveling need for NICU nurses?

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There are close to 400 agencies that can help you with that question! Yes there are NICU jobs.

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lucky you are l/d nurse so many jobs paying good money in cali, take advantage of it. As for the experience part you need 1-2 years. I say 2 years before traveling. they expect you to know what you are doing with little to no orientation. I hated being a staff ( miserable) couldn't wait to travel, like you said you are sick of the politics try something else. Ai gencies give benefits day 1 some 30 days later call and ask. I set up a roth with fidelity to start investing so i really don't need a 401k from one company.

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Can't PM just yet, thank so much for reaching out--- wish i could talk to you more but i don't have enough posts to DM

God bless you

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