The Travel Nursing Jobs Guide is built upon a survey of over 200 of Onward Healthcare’s nationwide travel registered nurses. Their responses about professional motivations, favorite career perks and various job experiences make this guide an reliable source of real-life information about what it’s like to work as a travel healthcare professional.

Onward Healthcare is proud to be the leading provider of educational materials in the travel nursing space, and invites all members of the travel nursing community, as well as those who are interested in starting their own travel nursing career, to check out and share the new Career Guide to Travel Nursing Jobs!

Identify Potential Costs

Before you step out the door, or pack your bags for that matter, identify where and when in your trip you’re likely to spend money you can save instead. If you’re taking a flight, will you be tempted to buy things you can bring with you instead? If you’re embarking on a road trip, is it possible to avoid tolls and pricey meals? No matter how you’re getting to your next assignment, you can always plan ahead to avoid spending when you don’t have to based on how long you’ll be traveling and where you’ll be.

Research Your Route

There are plenty of opportunities to save money while traveling as long as you research your route. Plan your stops off the highway based on regional and seasonal attractions and sales. Take advantage of a layover by coming equipped with coupons for local businesses. Book your room only after you’ve compared rates and availability at smaller hotels as well as national chains. The more you know about what lies between point A and point B, the better your chances are of saving money.

Travel In Pairs (or more!)

Buying in bulk and saving a ton isn’t just for paper towels and frozen foods. Group discounts and cost sharing are a great way to cut your travel expenses significantly. Look online for group deals on everything from airline tickets to dining and lodging. Know someone who’s hitting the road as well? Ask them if you can tag along, or if they’d like to join you. You’ll end up splitting everything from gas and dinner bills to hotel rooms (if you don’t mind the room mate).

These are just a few ways you can save money while traveling between your nursing assignments. For more tips on traveling, as well as the best advice for your travel nursing or therapy career, check out the Onward Healthcare Resources for Healthcare Travelers page. It has everything you need to find your next dream travel job and build the career you want!

Marketing Director, Steve Dobrowski

Our newest episode of Travel Nursing Insider from Onward Healthcare explores the best ways to work a job fair or exhibit hall at a nursing conference with Job Fair Tips for Travel Nurses.

Getting the most out of  nursing job fairs and conferences is important to the success of your travel nursing career, so Onward Healthcare Marketing Director Steve Dobrowski (pictured) joined host Peter Clayton to share his advice and tips for networking success at your next event.

Steve highlights value of mapping out a game plan before the conference or job fair so you arrive with resume in hand and a list of companies and people you want to connect with. Once you’re there, making the best impression is important, even if you don’t have a formal interview scheduled. Arriving prepared will help you appear more professional, organized and approachable to everyone you meet.

Peter and Steve wrap up this great episode with helpful tips on organizing all your conference takeaways, solidifying the connections from the show and what shows Onward Healthcare will be participating in over the coming months.

To listen to the show, visit the Travel Nursing Insider home page or click the link below to find it on iTunes.

It's good to balance comfort with adventure as a travel nurse.

The excitement of a travel nursing career comes from the frequent change in scenery, the eye-opening new places you’ll see and all the discoveries you’ll make about yourself while you’re on the road. If you’re just starting out in your travel nursing career, all this change will take a little getting used to because getting comfortable in this line of work doesn’t always happen instantly.

If you’re having a little trouble adjusting to your travel nursing career, don’t worry. Onward Healthcare offers the following advice and guidance to any travel nurse who needs a little comfort.

Remember the value of taking a breather

Between the travel and the moving and the new places and people to get accustomed to, it’s no wonder you’re feeling a little bit overwhelmed. Stopping for a few minutes during your day and taking a deep breath can work wonders especially if you need to chat with someone briefly or shake some of the day off. Just remember, you’re in one of the most exciting and rewarding nursing fields out there and while it may take some getting used to, it’s going to be worth it!

Leverage your flexibility

When you’re starting out, you may be a little tempted to choose assignments that send you cruising all around the country. This aspect of a travel nursing is an excellent perk, but it might leave you exhausted. Since you have the opportunity to stay longer in some assignments and you choose work that doesn’t send you across multiple time zones, why not take advantage of that? You might have the wanderlust, but you certainly don’t have to cater to it at the expense of your comfort or your career.

Focus on your passion

You probably started your travel nursing career because you are compassionate, academically driven, and you want to help people, not because you wanted to get stressed out. Keeping a sharp focus on the reasons why you are passionate about being a nurse will help you be more resilient and tuned into what’s important in your career. Without that focus, you may get caught up in the uncomfortable details. But with that focus, you’ll feel more empowered and motivated to roll with the punches and be at your best.

If you need help, ask for it

Just like any career, starting out often requires the assistance of those who are seasoned professionals. They’ve been in the game longer and their experience lends itself quite well to helpful advice for others. If you feel uncertain about the direction of your new career or your comfort level with traveling and changing assignments all the time, simply reach out and ask for help. Whether it’s a head nurse at your new assignment or your dedicated Onward Healthcare recruiter, there’s always someone within reach who can offer advice and guidance any time you need it.

1) Work with a Tax Advisor.

While you’ll receive unparalleled support when you’re working with Onward Healthcare, it’s always best to seek tax advice from a tax professional. They offer guidance based on your individual situation which is the best way to approach your taxes. If you’re not connected with a tax advisor already, check out the recommendations at the bottom of the Onward Healthcare Travel Nursing FAQs.

2) Ask if reimbursements are negotiable as tax-free.

Along with other negotiable elements in your assignment contracts, you may be able to negotiate terms that make your reimbursements tax-free. It never hurts to ask and you might end up with housing, travel and personal expense reimbursements that aren’t treated as taxable income.

3) Understand how your home state taxes work.

It’s best to ask exactly how your home state will tax your income since you’ll be earning it in many different locations. Questions like this are great to bring up with your tax advisor so you can both arrive at a tax strategy that works best for you.

4) Keep your records organized.

There’s nothing worse than needing a copy of an important document and not having it. Considering all the different contracts, expenses and trips you’ll amass over a given year, keeping all those records organized along the way will make them easier to review and provide to others if needed.

5) Be prepared to survive an audit.

An IRS audit doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve committed fraud or some egregious crime. Travel nurses are often audited simply because of the nature of their claims and tax situations and because IRS audits are on the rise for all professions. The trick to surviving an audit is remaining cool and having all your records and documents in order. With the help of your tax advisor and a well maintained set of records, you’ll get through the audit with no trouble and find yourself wiser from the experience.

With all the wonderful opportunities and experiences that come from a career in travel nursing, don’t let the annual tax season trip you up! Be prepared, stay organized, and if you have questions, don’t hesitate to contact  your Onward Healthcare representative for help.

Travel nurse recruiter, Suzanne Johnson

In the latest edition of Travel Nursing Insider, we continue to debunk some of the most common misconceptions about travel nursing careers with Fact vs. Fiction, Part 2. Onward Healthcare travel nursing recruiters Suzanne Johnson (pictured) and Lindsay Francis join host Peter Clayton for more insightful discussion on what to believe and what to ignore when it comes to hearsay about travel nursing careers.

Some of the myths addressed in this episode include how “assignment hopping” can affect your resume and whether or not you really have a choice in the location of your assignments. Lindsay and Suzanne also cover trends in seasonal travel nursing needs and how to handle an emergency that might take you away from an assignment, which makes this episode a wonderful resource of all travel nurses regardless of experience level. To listen to the show, visit the Travel Nursing Insider home page or download the episode from the TNI podcast page on iTunes.

Travel Nurse Recruiter, Lindsay Francis

In our brand new episode of Travel Nursing Insider, we tackle the most common misconceptions about working as a traveling nurse so you can tell the difference between fact and fiction. Travel nursing recruiters Lindsay Francis (pictured) and Suzanne Johnson  dive into the reality behind common travel nursing myths including career stability, cost of living and the length of assignments.

They also discuss how permanent and temporary employees tend to get along, plus whether or not there’s an age limit for travel nurses. Whether you’re considering a career in travel nursing or you’ve been in the industry for years, this episode is definitely worth a listen. To listen to the show, visit the Travel Nursing Insider home page or download the episode from the TNI podcast page on iTunes.

Onward Healthcare Travel RN, Billy Ray Wilson

Travel nurses are accustomed to flying more than the average person, and of course, they’re very accustomed to working directly with those whose health often requires immediate professional attention. But how often do travel nurses have to utilize their medical expertise during a flight?

For one travel nurse who has been working with Onward Healthcare since 2005, the answer is; just the other day. When Billy Ray Wilson prepared to leave his home town of Atlanta on October 28^th for his next assignment in Houston, he found nothing out of the ordinary about his traveling plans. Even the flight delays caused by inclement weather weren’t that big of a deal. When offered a seat on an earlier flight, Billy Ray graciously opted out in favor of a business class seat on his original flight, and it’s a good thing he did.

An hour into the flight, Billy Ray noticed the flight attendants acting frantic about something near the lavatory. When one of the flight attendants reached a shaky hand to the intercom and requested the attention of a healthcare professional, he calmly approached the front of the cabin and immediately went into nurse mode.

He saw a young man lying on the floor, cold, clammy, not breathing and unresponsive. With the stethoscope and blood pressure cuff he keeps in a travel case at all times, Billy Ray checked the man’s vital signs and asked all the right questions about his medical history without missing a beat. Shortly after Billy Ray began CPR, the young man regained consciousness and was able to sit up much to the relief of his wife and child. Billy Ray stayed with the ailing young man and kept track of his heart rate until the plane made a priority landing where paramedics were waiting.

Billy Ray’s flight turned out to be one he will never forget, and a demonstration of why travel nurses are so important. Whether they’re on the ground or en route to their next travel nursing assignment, their talents are always appreciated by the people who need them the most.

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.

via Travel Nursing Jobs Can Change Your Life : Geo Travel Blog.

One of the under looked perks of a travel nursing job is the ability to continually build your resume as you move from assignment to assignment. Sure it’s tempting to travel to a beach front location in the summer or choose that assignment paying $55/hr in the winter months. But many RNs benefit from travel nursing jobs by finding the assignment that will best help them the best in the long run.  This may involve taking a low paying assignment in a prestigious teaching hospital or working as part of a team to open a new unit at a hospital.  Having this experience on your CV when you are looking to finally settle down in a perm nursing job will often give you a leg up on the competition and land your ideal dream job.