I've been a travel nurse for about six years. And based on my experience, I don't think there are many other nursing jobs that can compete with travel nursing.
Really...what is there not to love about this job?
Think about it. They pay for your travel to the new job assignment. They provide you with a furnished apt. FREE rent. You don't pay utilities, trash, etc. You only work 36 hours per week and get paid decent money to do so. You get medical/dental FREE with no monthly payment. If you see a PMD, you only have to pay the co-pay. Then you get paid for your travel back home once your assignment is finished.
It is better than vacation because instead of being there for only a week or two, you are there for at least three months! You get a chance to feel what it is like to live in a new area; you get to experience it all!
Besides getting to travel to new places, you also get to meet different people and make great friends along the way. I have friends from all around the country-which is great for networking. You get a chance to see how different hospitals work, different ways of running things, and how union vs. non-union hospitals operate. You become rich with experience and become more flexible in the process.
I have worked at 13 different hospitals, with different kinds of equipment, different ways of charting and doing things. This all broadens your knowledge base. Not to mention, you get a chance to work in some amazing and top-rated hospitals, such as Stanford, Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, etc. Some people might say that another positive aspect of traveling is you don't have to get involved in the politics of the hospital.
There really isn't anything boring about this job, no more than any other nursing job. Patient care is patient care. If anything, it is more exciting than a usual staff nursing job, because you are in a new place enjoying new experiences.
If I had to pick one downfall about the job it is this: I hate the packing and unpacking of my belongings! If I had someone to pack up all of my stuff, ship it and unpack, and set up my new apartment, it would be the perfect job!
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January 14th, 2009 at 5:09 pm
Hi,
Have you ever been a travel nurse in New York City? I’m planning on doing travel nursing and this is my top choice, but I’d love to hear from anyone who has done it there. If you haven’t done it, do you know of anyone who has? I’d just like to know what it’s like. Thanks!!
Holly
February 7th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
Nicole,
I’m halfway through my education and have had my sites set on travel nursing for many years. Every time that I research this lifestyle I come up with more questions. Currently I have two questions that are nagging at me.
1- Maybe you aren’t “forced” to dive headlong into hospital politics but I’ve been told that you are ostracized immediately by the perm staff since you are not part of the “team”. You seem to be pretty omptimistic about moving to new locations even after so many years. How do you avoid this, and is it even true?
2- I’ve read up on the ways to circumvent tax issues (having a tax house, living beneath your means, etc.) come tax time, but I’d like to know just in your own opinion, when tax season is upon you does it take some of the glam and glitter out of the job?
Thanks for your time and I hope you’re having a great experience wherever you happen to be.
Tamara
May 20th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
Dear RN Family:
My favorite travel nursing job was watching my sister Blanche and
taking her to the beach! The ice cream served at stands on the beaches of Southern California cannot be beat!
I like assisting in urology doing radical prostatectomies to bad men! ha,ha!!!
BJ Hudson, RN