Travel nurse agencies place RNs in short-term assignments around the country and the world. They recruit nurses, match them with hospitals, find housing, and more. The agencies also offer perks like low census pay, paid sick leave, and tuition reimbursement. They also often assist travelers with obtaining licenses to work in their chosen states.
Recruiting Nurses
A travel nurse agency provides a service that fills gaps in staffing needs for hospitals and facilities across the country. These gaps may arise for several reasons, such as seasonal population fluctuations or planned absences like maternity leave. To find the best candidates, healthcare organizations must thoroughly define their requirements. They should include everything from the type of unit a candidate should work to specialty training or licensing needs. They should also detail the shifts needed and how long a travel nurse will be required to stay on an assignment. Another critical component of recruiting nurses is fair compensation. It’s vital to offer competitive wages and attractive benefits packages. This is because it will attract and retain qualified candidates eager to accept a position with an agency. Recruiters must thoroughly submit applicants’ resumes, skills checklists, and references. This can be time-consuming and challenging, but it’s necessary for a successful travel nursing placement. When choosing a travel nurse recruiter, ensure they know about the industry and have a positive relationship with healthcare organizations and travel nurses. This will help them secure the right match for each client and ensure a successful recruitment experience for both parties.
Recruiting Hospitals
Recruiting hospitals is one of the essential parts of running a travel nursing agency. Once you have secured financing and set up your business, you need to start talking to hospitals and convincing them to hire you as their agent. Ideally, you want to get mailing lists and directories of hospitals in your target areas. These are available from mailing list brokers, state licensing agencies, and nurses’ organizations and associations. Creating these can be a lot of work if you still need them. But it’s worth the effort. When you work with a travel nursing agency, you’ll be assigned a recruiter who will be your main point of contact and help you find the perfect assignment. They’ll also be your advocate if any issues arise during the project or while you are on the job. They’ll make sure you are taken care of with medical malpractice insurance and can help you with the licensure process if necessary. In addition, they offer benefits like free health and life insurance, discounts, and 401k plans. Then, if you ever decide to return to a full-time permanent nursing job, your recruiter will be your point of contact and can help you with the resume writing and interviewing process. This is an excellent benefit for many nurses looking to advance in their nursing careers.
Recruiting Housing
Recruiting housing is one of the critical functions of a travel nursing agency. This is because housing can be one of the most time-consuming and challenging parts of traveling. For this reason, a good travel nurse agency will have an entire team focused on recruiting travel nurses and their housing needs. The staff will be trained to help you find the perfect housing option, no matter your budget or preferences. Some agencies offer a lodging reimbursement equal to or greater than the per diem rate. However, this is only sometimes the case. Another essential factor is the tax implications of taking company housing or lodging reimbursement. Many travel nurses balk at paying taxes on lodging they’ve already paid for. It would be best to cover insurance and credentialing costs independently as an independent contractor. These can include background checks, drug screenings, occupational health physicals, and blood work. If you change hospitals frequently, these fees can add up quickly. Fortunately, most travel nurse agencies will cover these expenses for their travelers.
Recruiting Travelers
Agencies hire travel nurses to work on short-term assignments around the country and the world. These assignments typically range from eight to 36 weeks. Recruiters also help nurses find housing and arrange transportation and itineraries, which can be time-consuming and a lot of work for smaller agencies. A good recruiter is patient, understanding, and receptive to the needs of their travel nurse clients. They also take the time to explain job requirements and answer questions. They also have extensive knowledge of the best hospitals and markets for their nurses. This is essential because the market is constantly changing, with new legislation and seasonal needs. Another essential quality experience in the travel nursing industry. An experienced travel nurse recruiter can guide their candidates through the application process and ensure they’re ready for a challenging assignment. Many travelers will tell you a good recruiter can be their best friend on an assignment. They can support and inspire them to achieve their goals while helping them to stay focused on the task at hand.