Travel nursing is a dynamic career path where registered nurses take on temporary assignments—typically 8 to 26 weeks—in hospitals or healthcare facilities facing staffing shortages. It offers a unique blend of clinical experience, adventure, and financial reward
A travel nurse works a temporary contract to fill gaps in coverage at underserved areas. For example, you might fill in for a nurse in a pediatrics office who is on maternity leave for ten weeks, or you might fill a vacancy in an ER for two weeks while they hire a full-time employee after a suddenly vacant position. These temporary jobs are also common in underserved locations, such as urban or rural areas, or areas with a lot of patient fluctuation, such as tourist areas.
What Does a Travel Nurse Do?
A travel nurse has the same duties as a staff nurse at the facility. Specific responsibilities vary based on the particular type of nursing job, but in general, you can expect to:
- Care for the patients on your caseload
- Interact with patients and their families
- Administer medication
- Collaborate with other members of a patient’s care team
As a travel nurse, you’ll be expected to jump in with both feet on your first day, so you’ll have to adapt quickly to new systems, technology and expectations. You’ll report to the lead nurse, just like every other nurse on the team.
Benefits of Becoming a Travel Nurse
Working as a travel nurse comes with its challenges, like any job, but it has several key benefits that make it a promising career option for many nurses.
1. Opportunity to Travel
Many people can’t travel because of work obligations, but when traveling is part of your job, it makes it easy to see the world. Whether you’re staying in your home state, crossing state lines or seeing the world, you’ll be able to pack in a lot of adventure as a travel nurse.
Because you’ll be living in the area, you can explore on your time off. Hit the beach, visit historical sites and meet new people as you eat like a local.
2. Higher Salary
Many travel nurses are filling vacancies at places in desperate need of nurses to maintain required nurse-to-patient ratios. As a result of this high demand, many facilities will pay more. In addition, you’ll be able to work where pay is naturally higher due to a higher cost of living (although you’ll likely have to pay more in housing).
3. Housing Stipends
Nurse staffing agencies recognize that you’ll need money for a place to live while fulfilling your contract, so in addition to your take home pay, you’ll receive a housing stipend. These stipends are untaxed, so whatever you don’t spend on housing stays in your wallet. The key is to find housing that is less than your housing stipend so that you can pocket the rest as part of your income.
4. Bonuses and Incentives
In addition to a housing stipend, some contracts will include untaxed stipends for travel or food. Some agencies also provide a bonus when you complete a contract or a referral fee when you refer another travel nurse. Depending on where you travel, the agency may also cover your licensing fees so you can practice in a new state.
5. Job Satisfaction
Burnout in nursing is real, with 45.1% of nurses reporting that they feel burned out at least a few times a week. But travel nurses have more flexibility in when and where they work, which can increase your work-life balance and decrease burnout. For example, you can choose to take two weeks off between every contract to decompress or catch up on other aspects of your life.
As a travel nurse, you can also avoid office politics since you’ll only be there for a few weeks or months. Plus, if you are unhappy at your site, you can rest easy knowing it isn’t a permanent position and you’ll be able to leave when your contract is up.
Find a Nurse Staffing Agency
When you are ready to start looking for travel jobs, find a nurse staffing agency. These agencies work with healthcare providers to find travel nurses to fill short-term positions in exchange for a percentage of your contract.
While you can find travel nurse positions on your own, it’s a time-consuming process. Nurse staffing agencies make this much more manageable. They also provide health insurance and retirement benefits you wouldn’t receive working a short-term job.
Once you’ve signed with a nurse staffing agency, they’ll send you job opportunities and serve as the go-between for you and the facility that needs you. They can help you find housing and advocate on your behalf if any problems arise in your contract.
Gain Field Experience
Because most travel nurses need to be able to hit the ground running, it’s a good idea to get at least one year of Clinical Experience in the relevant specialized area under your belt before you start applying for travel nursing positions. Most nurse staffing agencies require at least one year of experience in your specialty, but some may require more.
Common travel nurse specialties include:
- Emergency Room (ER)
- Intensive Care Unit (ICU)
- Neonatal
- Progressive Care Unit (PCU)
- Labor and Delivery (L&D)
- Pediatric
REFERENCES
1.American Hospital Association, “Study Projects Nursing Shortage Crisis Will Continue Without Concerted Actions,” last modified April 13, 2023, https://www.aha.org/news/headline/2023-04-13-study-projects-nursing-shortage-crisis-will-continue-without-concerted-action.
2.Travel Nursing. “Top 10 Highest-Paying Travel Nurse Specialties,” Travel Nursing, last modified July 23, 2023, https://www.travelnursing.org/nursing-specialties/.
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