Travel Nursing

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Hello! So lately I’ve been curious about travel nursing. I worked on a medical progressive care unit for a little over one year and I’ve been in a neuro ICU since April 2019. I definitely want to wait a few years before going into traveling to gain some experience, especially because I’d like to stay in the ICU. Here’s a few of my questions:

1. I currently live in an apartment. Do travel nurses keep some sort of permanent residence somewhere? Or would I be better off ending my lease? If so, is it hard to adjust to not having a “home”?

2. Would my time in the neuro ICU be adequate to prepare me for for being an ICU travel nurse? Since I started, my unit has only really been 50% neuro patients; everyone else is medical and occasionally surgical overflow. We don’t get cardio-thoracic patients, so I don’t have experience managing swans or anything like that.

3. My boyfriend is in a respiratory therapy program, and I’d like to travel with him after he graduates. Do Travel Agencies work with RTs too? Would they help us find assignments together? Or would my boyfriend and I have to coordinate that on our own?

4. What are the schedules like? Can you negotiate straight dayshift/nightshift, holidays off, etc?

5. Do you really make more money? Between downsizing, moving/travel costs etc? I’m mostly interested in traveling for the adventure, but I’d also like to speed up the process of paying back my student loans!

6. Would travel nursing help me learn/grow as an ICU nurse more than a traditional job? I feel like I’d get more exposure to different things in travel nursing, but in a traditional job I’d be able to find mentors in doctors, midlevels, more experienced nurses, etc.

Thanks!!!

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On 8/16/2019 at 3:01 AM, mph53953 said:

Hello! So lately I’ve been curious about travel nursing. I worked on a medical progressive care unit for a little over one year and I’ve been in a neuro ICU since April 2019. I definitely want to wait a few years before going into traveling to gain some experience, especially because I’d like to stay in the ICU. Here’s a few of my questions:

1. I currently live in an apartment. Do travel nurses keep some sort of permanent residence somewhere? Or would I be better off ending my lease? If so, is it hard to adjust to not having a “home”?

2. Would my time in the neuro ICU be adequate to prepare me for for being an ICU travel nurse? Since I started, my unit has only really been 50% neuro patients; everyone else is medical and occasionally surgical overflow. We don’t get cardio-thoracic patients, so I don’t have experience managing swans or anything like that.

3. My boyfriend is in a respiratory therapy program, and I’d like to travel with him after he graduates. Do Travel Agencies work with RTs too? Would they help us find assignments together? Or would my boyfriend and I have to coordinate that on our own?

4. What are the schedules like? Can you negotiate straight dayshift/nightshift, holidays off, etc?

5. Do you really make more money? Between downsizing, moving/travel costs etc? I’m mostly interested in traveling for the adventure, but I’d also like to speed up the process of paying back my student loans!

6. Would travel nursing help me learn/grow as an ICU nurse more than a traditional job? I feel like I’d get more exposure to different things in travel nursing, but in a traditional job I’d be able to find mentors in doctors, midlevels, more experienced nurses, etc.

Thanks!!!

Hey , travel nurse is amazing specially if you have someone to travel with. I recommend you to get more experience in ICU, at least 1 year- when you travel they give you a 1-2 day orientation and they expect you to know your stuff- depends on the department , most of the time you are on your own- nurses tend to hate travelers because we make more money so they will let you drown- That’s why I’m telling you to have a strong experience -

schedule wise - yes you can schedule vacations , holidays etcs- keep in mind that this hospitals during the holidays so that’s why you are hire - a lot depends on your recruiter too— -a lot of times they will require you to work 4 days a week , that’s why you make the good money because of the OT- other places will require you 3- there are different companies that will pay you high hourly rates low stipend - others high stipend and low hourly rates -/ it depends on you -

as growing as an ICU nurse — wel from experience I learned most of mine experience at my old job— I worked ina level 1 trauma center -/ you will be in different hospitals wirh better and also worse equipment so your ability to adapt will be tested —

if you are going to travel - end your lease - sell everything- if you put it on storage for a year or 2 - you will be paying more in storage fees that’s what’s your stuff worth — some nurses own houses and that’s a good investment - but to rent I would end it— you can also ge an RV -

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Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.

Moved to the Travel Nursing forum

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