1) Build your network.

Just like all professionals, travel nurses benefit immensely from a strong, well maintained network of connections. Whether it’s a recommendation from a former colleague, or passing along a job opportunity only to receive a favor in return, there are endless ways your network can support your career. Check out this Onward Healthcare blog post about Twitter networking tips and this episode of the Travel Nursing Insider about social media for travel nurses if you need any refreshers to keep your network working for you.

2) Sharpen your skills.

Make 2012 the year that you outdo yourself by taking all your expertise and education to the next level. Keeping your skills sharp is the perfect way to impress future employers, and build a great reputation. Your career will benefit from a boost in know-how, so why not go for that certification you’ve been thinking about? Onward Healthcare also offers continuing education to all nurses. Your career, plus your patients and colleagues, will thank you for it, so don’t forget to ask your travel nursing recruiter for more details.

3) Broaden your horizons.

Along the same lines of keeping your skills sharp, make broadening your horizons a priority this year. Think about all the different places you want your career to take you and make it all happen. If that means working in a city all the way across the country, go for it! If that means expanding your skills to include a new specialty, why not? Dream bigger this year because your career in travel nursing is all about what you make of it!

4) Challenge yourself.

Were there any assignments or job opportunities that you shied away from last year?  Behind some of the most uncomfortable and challenging scenarios in your career lies some of the best learning and growth experiences you’ll ever have. The next time an assignment comes up that seems a little bit less than ideal, go for it. You never know who you’ll meet, what problems you’ll solve or what you’ll experience that could make a huge difference in your career.

5) Treat yourself right!

Amidst all the traveling, moving, orientation, and settling in, you can’t ignore the investment you must make in keeping yourself healthy and happy. When you’re well rested, exercising enough, eating right and feeling supported by friends, family and loved ones, all the stresses that can come from a travel nursing career will roll off your back much easier. Plus, feeling your best means your performance on the job will improve as well! Refer to the Onward Healthcare Travel Nursing Tips article about maintaining a healthy lifestyle on assignment for a great start to a healthy 2012.

If you need any more information, guidance or inspiration for making your travel nursing career the absolute best it can be this year, don’t hesitate to contact your travel nursing recruiter. They look forward to helping you start off the New Year right!

Here are some easy but effective research tips that will ensure you walk into your next interview fully prepared and ready to impress.

Research The Facility Where You’ll Be Working

Since you’re going to be working there for the next few months, you’ll want to find out everything you can about a potential hospital or medical clinic. How big is it? Has it received awards? Does it contain specialized departments or any other unique facilities that you should be familiar with? This information will prepare you for working there and help you impress your interviewer with your initiative and interest in the facility.

Research Who You’ll Be Working With

Once you find out who is interviewing you, look them up on Google, LinkedIn and even Twitter. The more you know about them, the more you can tailor the interview process to them. Perhaps they used to work in a part of the country you’re familiar with or maybe they graduated from the same school you did. The more you know about this person, the more chances you’ll have to connect with them and the less intimidating they’ll seem during the interview.

Research The Area Where You’ll Be Working

This research will not only help you during the interview, but also once you land the assignment. For the interview, showing your prospective boss that you know what’s happening in the local area will give the impression that you’re not just some stranger from out of town. Your knowledge of nearby events, attractions and culture will help you connect with each person you meet from the area. Once you land the assignment, knowing more about the local scenes will make getting comfortable in the area that much easier!

Research Yourself Online

This is an important pre-interview step for every job seeker, and travel nurses are no exception. Get on Google and search for your full name. A majority of hiring managers do this exact search before they meet with candidates to learn more about them. If you discover an awkward Facebook picture or a less than professional comment you left on a blog, you now have the chance to clean these things up before your future boss sees it. We at Onward Healthcare recommend you do a quick search for yourself at least once a year just to keep up your professional online image as a travel nursing professional.

We hope these tips bring you that much closer to a very successful interview experience. If you have any additional questions about how to prepare for your next interview, don’t hesitate to contact any of the dedicated Onward Recruiters. They’re happy to help you ace your next interview!

Twitter is a great way to network with hospitals, staffing agencies, and fellow travelers.

Whether you use it or not, you’ve probably heard what a powerful tool Twitter can be when it comes to boosting your career. Even travel nurses can leverage this micro-blogging platform to expand their professional network and broaden their career horizons.

Onward Healthcare is all about giving you the best resources and information to support your travel nursing goals, so whether you’ve never tweeted before or you’re looking for the best people to follow, this guide will help you network successfully using Twitter.

1) Putting Your Best Profile Forward.

Your Twitter bio and profile are your calling card to the rest of the Twitterverse so it’s important that they share the right info about you. Choose a head shot, preferably one with a smile, as your picture to give your profile a human and approachable quality. If your goal is to connect with other travel nursing professionals and organizations, list your profession and any other industry related interests in your profile to attract like-minded followers.

2) Finding the Best Connections.

With millions of users posting hundreds of thousands of tweets every day, it may seem daunting to find other travel RNs on Twitter, let alone real people that you can connect with professionally. Use hashtags and Twitter’s advanced search options to find other travel nurses based on what they’re tweeting about and where they are located. With a little bit of searching, you’ll find yourself connected with other travel nurses and healthcare professionals whether they are located down the street or across the globe.

3) The Best Ways to Participate.

If you’re brand new to Twitter, you may wonder, “What should I tweet about?” or “How do I get started?” The best way to participate is to share your thoughts, your questions and your ideas. Honest, genuine interaction is highly valued on Twitter so you’ll find the greatest networking success comes from sharing your ideas, asking questions and just being yourself. If you focus most of your comments and questions on topics that affect travel nurses, you’ll find more connections that are relevant to your industry.

4) Your Best Network.

If you’ve been using Twitter for a while, perhaps you’re eager to expand your existing network. Along with the tips above, have you tried providing more value to your followers? By sharing the latest travel nursing industry news and developments, plus your own opinions, you’ll build an excellent professional reputation of being knowledgeable and helpful. A reputation like this will precede you and lead more opportunities to your door.

5) Be the Best Connection.

If you want to get the  most out of your network and your networking efforts on Twitter, give match-making a try. No, not the romantic kind. When you find an opportunity that might not be perfect for you, but is ideal for a fellow travel nurse, tell them about it! Both parties involved will remember that you took the time to reach out and make the connection happen and you can’t put a price on professional karma like that.

Twitter is an excellent tool to add to your professional networking strategy. Whether you’re interested in getting started or want to strengthen your connections, just be yourself, offer value to others and you’ll be well on your way to Twitter networking success!

Marketing Director, Steve Dobrowski

In the tenth episode of our Travel Nursing Insider podcast, marketing director Steve Dobrowski (pictured), discusses the effect that social media sites have had on the travel nursing industry. He gives his first hand account of which sites are most prevalent amongst the travel nursing community and how nurses can utilize them to stay connected to family and friends while on assignment, as well as get the latest news and offerings from a variety of different travel nursing agencies. Finally, he touches upon how social media has revolutionized the job search process for travel RNs and where they should go to look for the latest and greatest travel nursing assignments. To listen to the show, visit the Travel Nursing Insider home page or click the link below to find it on iTunes.

"Travel Nursing Insider" offers inside knowledge and advice for nurses embarking on travel nurse jobs.

Onward Healthcare is excited to announce the launch of Travel Nursing Insider, a podcast for travel nurses. Travel Nursing Insider will act as an additional avenue to inform and educate registered nurses about a travel nursing career, as well as the latest job trends and advice for life on the road.

The first episode titled “Travel Nursing 101″ is a two-part conversation between Deb Shea, vice president of travel nursing, and Sera Cullen, director of travel nursing. The discussion focuses on how the travel nursing process works, what a typical assignment entails, as well as why many nurses choose to travel, while the second part expands upon how to get started in a travel nursing career and the importance of an online application.

Future episodes will take listeners through the early stages of how to get started in a travel nurse career, and eventually evolve to tips and advice for working travel nurses. Upcoming topics will include how to maximize your travel nursing salary, what to bring on a travel nurse assignment and how to get acquainted to a new city.

The episodes are available on the Onward Healthcare Travel Nursing Insider page or free through the iTunes store by searching keyword “Travel Nursing Insider.”

The top physical therapy resources differs slightly from the travel nursing list in that it focuses entirely on industry specific sites for physical therapists, physical therapy assistants, physical therapy job seekers, PT students as well as travel physical therapists.  The list was broken down into eight categories, which consist of PT links to informational sites, interactive resources, PT Blogs and social media sites, as well as an extensive list of nationwide physical therapy organizations and sections of the APTA.

We hope that this list proves to be a valuable resource to the physical therapy community, and will act as a one-stop web page to bookmark and come back to for your physical therapy news and needs.  For those travel physical therapists looking for additional information on relocation, we encourage your to visit our Top 101 Travel Nursing Websites and check out the last nine categories, which focus on travel, housing, getting settled and staying connected to family and friends.

Click here to view the Top 51 Physical Therapy Resources on the Web.

If your organization was named as one of the Top 101 PT Resources, please visit the page to find out how to download an award’s badge to place on your website.

If you have any suggestions for additional physical therapy websites, please email us or leave a comment below.

The links range from nursing specific sites and organizations to online communities in which to meet new people in your area and find local clubs, groups and social organizations. Click on the link below to view the entire list.

View the 101 Best Travel Nursing Websites.

If your organization was named as one of the Top 101 Travel Nursing Websites and you would like to download an awards badge for your site, please click on the link below.

Download your winner’s badge as one of the best travel nursing websites.