Launching into traveling

[lightwalker]

I would like to transition into travel nursing sometime this fall. I've worked for 3 years on a busy general surgery floor, with floats to medical, ortho, cardiac, oncology, and neuro. This was my first job out of school, and I feel fairly confident now as an RN, and will get good references. Does anyone have tips about how to find a good agency, what to look for in assignments, what to expect, filling out the applications, etc. I have lots of life experience traveling, and chose nursing as a second career in part because it would allow me to travel. I want a good first experience so that I will want to keep at it. Also, I am taking a 4 month hiatus to hike the Pacific Crest Trail this summer and would like to get as much of the paperwork and bureaucratic issues out of the way before I take off in June. How realistic is this? I've looked at some forums ranking agencies, and am confused. Any advice, stories, encouragement, etc. would be very much appreciated. Thanks!

[AmandaWIRN]

Do lots of research before choosing a company- check out our review section to read about other traveler's opinion of different companies. If you want to get most of your paperwork out of the way now, I would fill out applications with a few different companies. Once they have your application materials on file, they can submit you to different assignments whenever you are ready. You will have to apply for licensure in the state you'll be traveling to, though, and I would wait to do that until you actually have an assignment lined up.

Things you should expect from travel companies- free first-day medical & dental insurance, 401k, travel & liensure reimbursement, free private housing, no less than $30/hr (more depending on where you travel to). There are enough travel companies that offer these things, that you should not settle for less.

[Aaron C.]

Just as Amanda said, do your research. Read our Travel Nurse Company reviews, but please take them with a grain of salt. A lot of times, people will seek out places to post a review specifically because they had a bad experience, however when nurses have a good experience with a company they are less likely to be as motivated to do the same.

I guess I'm saying if you hear one bad thing about an employer they may not be so bad, but if you hear or read a lot of bad things about an employer then that might sound some alarms.

You can have a travel nursing job tomorrow if you really want one, so don't worry too much about the time constraints.

Be very specific up front about what you are looking for, and how flexible you are or are not. When you are working on getting something set in stone please make sure things are clear.

Most of the time, it seems like if there are going to be problems, they are between the time the nurse moves into the housing and their first paycheck. Housing is not what it was made out to be. It might be farther away from the facility than you were lead to believe, or it might be smaller or some companies might even stick you with a roommate as crazy as that might sound. They might require a move in deposit from you that you didn't know about up front or might charge you extra if you have a spouse, etc.

As far as pay goes, just find out how often you will be paid and how you will be paid, and what comes out of your check each time for what.

Be clear about when you want to work, and how many hours a week you will be working, if there is call, weekends, how OT works, etc.

I won't go into all the details but if you go with a reputable company that has good reviews and you have a good recruiter you will be fine. There are some snakes out there though. Some companies just don't care about you, and sometimes, you might go with a great company but get a recruiter who has no idea what they are doing, is disorganized, or maybe just new to things.

I think if you enjoy traveling, and you enjoy nursing, you will love travel nursing. And after you get your first contract completed, you'll figure out how everything works and you won't have to worry about any of the pitfalls of getting into it.

[mikedougherty]

I have been a travel nurse for 4 years now and travel companies can really differ. One thing to know is that if you take your housing stipend instead of the housing they provide you can negotiate with them on the amount. If you can get a good recruiter then that is half the battle. Also, the bigger the company is not necessarily better. Sometimes the smaller companies give more personal attention and will try harder to keep you.

Kelly Dougherty, RN, BSN, CCRN
re:vitals
Fitness, Health and Wellness for the Nurse