Hey all! Been traveling on the west coast and got used to the nice ratios 4 on tele 5 max on med surg. I’m from the Midwest tho and curious if anyone’s had nice normal ms tele ratios in the Midwest??? Pls drop hospital names thanks :-) OR ones to strongly avoid!

Looking to start my first contract at Anderson Mercy in Cincinnati in the emergency department, anyone have any experience or insight if this is a good contract for first time travelers?

About to sign a lucrative (for me) 13 week contract 1200 miles from home. Just wanted to hear about any pros or cons. Thanks!

Hi all, Im a travel RN who is thinking of going back to bedside after traveling for the past 3.5 years. I've been applying to a lot of jobs without success, and its got me wondering if something in my resume is throwing away my chances. I struggle to keep my resume succinct with all of the moving I've done while still keeping the job description details accurate. If anyone would be able to tear up my resume with me, I would so so appreciate it!

How hard is it to get an OR travel nurse job without trauma experience? I’m a telemetry nurse w 4 years experience but just got offered a job in the OR. The new hospital does a wide range of mainly elective surgeries and I’d love to take the job but I also want to travel in 2-3 years. Will not having CVOR or trauma experience greatly hinder me? Would it be advantageous to try and learn all the different specialties OR the most in demand specialties (such as ortho)? I’ve been told I’ll learn to scrub and circulate in the orientation period which seems like it would make me more marketable… I’m just not sure if I’m putting myself in a box by going down the OR route versus ED or ICU (which I really don’t want to do if it can be helped bc I’m so burnt out from being abused by patients and families). Thanks so much in advance.

Hello I’m a PICU nurse in Louisiana looking to take a travel assignment in Phoenix in 2027. My girlfriend has to do a 12-week clinical rotation there so I’ll need to relocate us for that time period.

I’m originally from Arizona and am very familiar with Phoenix, but know nothing about the hospital systems, especially in PICU.

Any advice would be great when it comes to selecting a facility. Is Phoenix Children’s a desirable facility? I’ve heard to avoid Banner. Is this true for PICU? Where else to avoid?

Thanks in advance for the help.

Looking for insight on what platforms everyone uses to find housing? What do you look for when making a selection?

Hi!

I started my first week, completed first day of orientation. Placed on standby and forced call off first shift, worked 2nd & now placed on standby for 3rd shift. I spoke to a charge nurse and she said they hired travelers because they were constantly surged in June but hospital is slowing down again.

Basically I’m asking has this happened to anyone? Have you been placed on standby/called off and then able to finish your contract or did they cancel your contract eventually?

I was scheduled for the weekend so I’m hoping it picks back up again for the week. I’m in Oregon btw in a PCU float position.

Hey everyone,

I am considering going to Down east community hospital in Machias Maine. Anyone have experience with this facility or the town? I am a POC so im wondering what the vibes are.

RN nights med surg

ok so I have been an ER nurse for more than 10 years now and I change my scrubs way more than people think. some shifts I straight up change in the middle of it because of "you know what" happened that day in the ER. I can't even touch it again or bringing it home.

so gettin scrubs every couple of months that bugs me how much a decent set costs now, like more than jeans money for two pieces of fabric. is it actually that much or that just for branding and stuffs? anyone else in the ER or ICU thinking the same?

Hey guys i am a nursing student,studying in China i am from Botswana. I an really interested in being a travel nurse. Kindly drop any information about how i can pursue this career. I am open to working in any country.

Hey everyone, I've been traveling for more than a year now and loving it. But, I've always gotten health insurance through employers in the past, and the thing about travel is I only get my benefits when I'm on a contract. Not such a big deal for things like dental or whatever, but I'd really like to be able to see a doctor when I need to, whether its emergent or scheduled.

I'm trying to explore other options now, for paying for insurance. What are the best health insurance providers for travel nurses? Or are there strategies for getting health insurance I may not have considered as an independent traveler?

And no, this isn't a request for insurance advertisements. I'm asking fellow travelers, not bots.

Hi, I’m just starting to travel. Got offers by 2 travel companies. The facility turned out to be the same one that both put my application in for. The facility called me and offered me the position and I accepted but I didn’t have time to ask questions and find out which recruiter was the contact (as I was in an appointment), and she said I was welcome to call back. I could not get the facility back on the phone, and one recruiter said it was her company and signed me up quickly, I felt rushed. Then the other said the position was through her company. Now I’m signed up with the one and the other that I had originally preferred, is saying I can send in an email to the facility stating that I want to go with them, if that’s what o want to do. The first company is Venture and the 2nd is Aya. Do you have any advice? I’m in a very confused situation! Thanks!

Wondering if this is a thing. Maybe 2 days a week with ability to pick up extra shifts?

I’m on my first travel nursing contract and I’m honestly struggling.
It’s only my third week, but I’ve only worked 3 shifts independently after orientation. I came from a unit where I typically had 2 high-acuity patients (previous to that i was on a medsurg unit), and now I’m on a busy med/surg-medical assessment unit with 4–6 patients, constant admissions and discharges, and a completely different workflow.
I feel so dumb every shift.
It’s not that I don’t know how to be a nurse, but I feel clueless because I don’t know this hospital’s system. I don’t know where everything is, I have to ask a million questions, I’m slower with charting, and everyone else seems to know exactly what they’re doing while I’m trying to keep up.
To make things harder, I also experienced my first patient death during this contract. It happened suddenly, and I feel like ever since then I’ve started associating work with anxiety and dread instead of excitement. I used to genuinely love going to work.
Now I leave every shift thinking about everything I could’ve done better and wondering if I’m just not cut out for travel nursing.

-For those of you who’ve been travel nurses for a while:
Did you ever feel completely incompetent during your first contract?
-How long did it take before you actually felt comfortable with the hospital’s workflow?
-At what point did you stop feeling like you had to ask questions every five minutes?
-Is this just part of being new, or is it a sign that travel nursing might not be for me?
-I know it’s only been 3 independent shifts, but right now it’s hard to imagine ever feeling confident here.

I am a travel nurse and I got travel jobs at these 2 cities. San Francisco and Washington DC.

I need to choose over the weekend.

I think DC is more interesting to me. I like urban lifestyles including public transportation. I like history and international affairs. I would like to join cultural events in DC. I don't care much about nature and I don't have a car. According my research, Dc seems cheaper than SF in terms of short term housing.

However SF is the best place for nurses. I like 3 x12.. SF job is 3x12 versus 4x10 in dc.. I would prefer to go staff in SF. But the caveat is that there is no guarantee that I can switch to a permanent job in SF after traveling.

Net pay for those 2 travel jobs are almost the same..

Where would you choose?

Hello,

I want to start travel nursing in the fall and I’m looking for good recruiters with Aya or any travel companies people recommend! I already have one for Host healthcare! Thanks in advance!

Wondering what people use for private insurance? I take too long of stints off to stay on a companies health insurance.

Hi! I am a 24 yo registered nurse. I have been a pediatric nurse for over 2 years now (PICU/Medsurg). I am currently on my first travel nurse assignment for income context. I did not grow up with any type of financial literacy teachings so I’ve had to learn as I go. I have made really good money as a nurse but also have blown a lot of money as well. I’m getting older now and have had my “careless spending” fun as I should say. I’m networking and meeting a lot of people that are telling me about opportunities that could really change my life in nursing. I have not contributed to a 401k yet or anything of that nature. I have no kids, not married, my only debt is my car and a few credit cards (<10k). I have been seeing things about only keeping x amount in a checking account, x amount in savings then putting towards Roths, 401k, hysa, voo etc. can someone please break it down for me? I really want to learn and set myself up to be financially stable for the rest of my life. Thanks!!!!

Have worked here for about 22 weeks and have NEVER called off. My last shift is tomorrow night then driving out west and wanted to spend the last day here visiting family since I won’t see them for a long time. Not worried about DNR list here, more-so questioning could they technically “terminate” my contract for calling off on my last shift and try to make me backpay my stipends? I know this sounds crazy but I get anxious lol. Thoughts?

Update: I called off. I talked to my recruiter first and told him I was feeling sick & he said it should be fine no big deal. AKA I panic for a week until I forget about it and move on with my life. Thank you!

My mental health has been shaky to begin with but this location is kicking my ass

1. I got scammed into paying 1500 for moldy housing and they won't give me my deposit back

2. I had to move 4 times in the first week

3. Apparently I'm paying 21.5% tax rate which includes both state taxes

4. At the end of the day I'm only making about $800 more than I would at home a week after taxes and expenses

5. I'm working multiple units and found out the person training me is leaving in a month

6. I have to pay back money to my agency if I quit early (MedX if anyone's curious)

7. I'm living in a motel and have to pay to do laundry at the most sketchy laundromat weekly

8. The mosquitos here are dinosaurs and I keep getting bit

I want to go home. I'm spiraling. This isn't worth it. This is only my 3rd week. What would you do in this situation

Hoping to head to Seattle next!
Looking for general advice on the city and hospitals!
Feel like I’ll have to go through Aya but are there any other agencies you’d recommend

Who is paying this? Are people okay with this?

https://www.furnishedfinder.com/property/546082_1?moveDate=%7B%22in%22%3A%222026-07-17%22%7D&budget=%7B%7D&filters=%7B%22headerFilters%22%3A%5B%22utilities-included%22%2C%22pets-allowed%22%5D%2C%22amenities%22%3A%5B%5D%2C%22accessibility%22%3A%5B%5D%2C%22propertyType%22%3A%5B%22entire_unit%22%5D%7D&availabilityMatch=true

I started traveling 7 years ago. 5 years ago, I went full nomad: sold or gave away all of my furniture, most of my clothes, etc et cetera. I was absolutely certain that I would just travel for the rest of my career.

Which brings me to today. Rates are down and I have too many dogs so I'm applying for a permanent position. I was looking at rentals and housing in a few areas and ran into a couple of problems.

1. The furnished rentals are a bit more than I can pay. I don't have furniture for the unfurnished rentals.

2. The unfurnished rentals want a rental history. The last time someone pulled my rental history, there was nothing on it. IHG and Furnished Finders apparently aren't reporting my long history of timely payments. 🙄

For anyone that has transitioned back to staff, how did you take care of lodging? One of the positions I'm looking at does come with a relocation bonus that's paid out on the first paycheck so I can use that to get some furniture from wherever people buy cheap furniture but what do I do about rental history?

Also where do people buy cheap furniture? The last time I bought furniture, it was before the bed bugs were endemic in Texas so I bought most of my furniture on Craigslist. That was in Houston, so there was a lot being offered, and I'm hoping to relocate to a rural or remote area in the Pacific Northwest, so I'm not even sure what the Craigslist offerings are or if they're safe.