Let’s get some terms straight just so we are all on the same page.

“BSN” is a bachelors degree in nursing. Again, just to be clear to the audience, you do NOT have to have a BSN to become an RN. Many nursing programs award the RN designation without having to complete an entire BSN program.

The short answer is no. You do not have to have a BSN to be a travel nurse.

I suspect the question was really “Do you have to be an RN to be a travel nurse?”

Again, the answer is no.

However, and this is a big however, far and away most of the available travel nurse opportunities are for RNs. The LPN and LVN postions are normally easier for an employer to fill simply because of the supply and demand issue.

So what do you do if you are an LPN/LVN and you want to be a travel nurse?

I would suggest that you apply to many, many different agencies. One easy way to do this is to fill out a short form at one of my sites, Nursetown or TravelnursingUSA. When you do this your application goes to all of the member agencies so you won’t have to go and individually contact each one separately. I always encourage applicants to use the “comments” sections of these “mini-apps” to make very clear exactly what you are looking for.

An even better solution is to take the time, money and energy to upgrade your licensure to RN. As I said earlier, you do not have to obtain your BSN. there are even online programs from very reputable schools that allow you to do this online. It is a real RN degree and it takes real work to complete. The great thing about these sort of programs is that you are doing them on your own time, at your own location. One program I know of is through Indiana State University. If you’d like more information on this click here.

Good luck!-Conrad

 

Yes!You can work at a hospital in your home town as a travel nurse. Not only that, you will also get all of the benefits a regular traveler gets, such as a housing allowance.

Not too shabby, eh? This is one way to try out the concept and the agency. On the other hand, you miss the best part of travel nursing.

Travel!

Good question. After all, this is what it’s all about right?

The fact is, in this day and age of the notorious “nursing shortage” your options are almost without boundary. (I’m talking about the United States right now but we’ll address international assignments in later postings.)

Some of this is just common sense. Larger metropolitan areas will have bigger needs for healthcare pros such as yourself. Communities with greater proportions of retired people will also have greater needs. But think about this. Todays retirement population of baby boomers are leaving the workplace in greater numbers then before and at younger ages where they are active and interested in having fun, active lives. They are going to places that lots of people want to live, (or go on travel nursing assignments.

Places like Florida, California, and Hawaii have tons of travel nursing jobs for this reason. But they aren’t alone. Virtually any of the larger cities in all fifty states have traveling nurse jobs. Many smaller communities face staffing problems because the younger folks are bailing out to go to the “bright city lights.” There are many pearls out there….small, friendly towns with lots to offer an adventurous soul.

So what I am trying to say is that there are almost unlimited choices. Keep an open mind and consider places you’ve never been to. Research the areas you think you might be interested in. Check the various seasons weather patterns and what the region may offer you on your times off.

One of my goals on my travel site, www.travelnursingUSA is to provide that kind of information along with the contact information for state nursing boards. If you want to see what is there for an area you are interested in you can go to www.travelnursingusa.com/resources and click on the state you want information about.-Conrad

 

One way to think of it is like good old fashioned temp work. Yes, the Kelley Girl has come to nursing. Healthcare hiring managers sometimes have no alternative. It may be because they are in small, out of the way locales or due to an opening they simply can’t, but must, fill. Occasionally there is a work stoppage and outside nurses must be brought in to keep the hospital open. But mostly, I would guess, it is a simple case of supply and demand. The nursing shortage means that hospitals are commonly unable to fill their needs with local talent and must spend money and energy to find quality nurses.

Travel nurses are contracted for short term assignments through agencies that specialize in travel nursing. Assignments are usually for about 13 weeks although in some situations they can be shorter or longer. Most of the time you can extend the assignment if you like where you are and who you are working with.

The agency normally supplies the travel nurse with housing and travel expense, help with licensing, benefits and payroll services. The hospital fills the position temporarily and the nurse gets paid above market wages to work and live in a new locale. Everybody wins.

I’ll expand more on the details in future posts but if you would like like to get more information now look here.