How Long Are Travel Nursing Assignments Typically?

Travel nursing, an trade that’s been flourishing for years, is without doubt one of the most enjoyable profession choices for nurses. Travel nursing was developed to fill gaps within the provide and demand fluctuations of the US well being care market, resembling to cowl shifts when a employees member has to go away instantly, to fill in throughout shortages, and to pitch in throughout seasonal fluctuations.

While the size of journey assignments can range, wherever from two to 26 weeks, the usual journey contract is 13 weeks. Across the board, the vast majority of companies are in search of journey nurses to fill 13-week contracts, which is what most hospitals choose as properly. Of course, whereas that is the usual, what shifts a journey nurse works and the variety of hours they work can range considerably from one task to the subsequent.

Why 13 Weeks?

According to the New York Times, over the previous 30 years hospitals have adopted a staffing mannequin that exactly matches nurses to the variety of occupied beds. Patient census and staffing numbers are continuously altering, so this mannequin requires flexibility.

Travel nurses added the pliability this staffing mannequin requires. As journey registered nurses turned built-in into hospital staffing ratios, the 13-week contract emerged.

Read more: How Long Can a Travel Nurse Stay in One Place?

In addition to assembly the wants of this new staffing mannequin, there are different causes that the majority journey nurse contracts are for a 13-week interval. Healthcare amenities choose it as orientation and onboarding durations for brand spanking new nurses can take wherever from 4 to 12 weeks, that means journey nurses can present protection as new, completely employed employees nurses to acclimatize. Additionally, with the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) offering staff with as a lot as 12 weeks of depart, journey nurses that tackle a 13-week contract can adequately cowl these durations of leaves of absence. Housing is but another excuse, as commonplace condo contracts for 13 weeks are simpler to seek out than contracts for shorter durations, making life simpler for nurses who wish to discover their very own, in addition to for companies that safe housing for his or her nurses.

A 13-week task can be preferable to many nurses. It’s the best size of time for atravel nurse to get to know the vacation spot and keep away from having to drive to a brand new task each different week, spending a lot of their time on the street. The task is lengthy sufficient to offer stability and maybe study some new methods, whereas nonetheless with the ability to go to 4 distinctive locations yearly. In different phrases, it permits them sufficient time to take pleasure in the advantages of a brand new metropolis, however is brief sufficient to fill their quest for brand spanking new experiences and adventures.

That mentioned, iftravel nurses discover that they’re having fun with their task and wish to stick round longer, and the hospital continues to be in want, it’s usually potential to resume by extending the task, generally a number of instances if all are in settlement.

Shorter Length Assignments

With instances altering, there was a shift in staffing wants, new expertise, and life preferences, all of which has resulted in some journey contracts being extra versatile. For instance, with the emergence of trip rental on-line marketplaces like Airbnb, it’s now simpler for journey nurses to rearrange their very own housing, with out being held to 13-week contracts for residences and different lodging.

Read more: How Long Can a Travel Nurse Stay in One Place?

Shorter contracts of 4 to 6 weeks do often turn into accessible. For instance, if a hospital has somebody out on short-term incapacity, the power may have a short lived nurse for a shorter time frame. Nurses all in favour of taking shorter assignments ought to speak to their recruiter about it in order that they’ll maintain a watch out for these extra distinctive alternatives.

Factors for a Travel Nurse Assignment

Despite fears that the journey nurse trade would wane because the Covid-19 pandemic ends, a current report by Bloomberg News signifies that journey nurses are in demand now greater than ever. Pent up demand for well being care providers that weren’t accessible in the course of the pandemic mixed with staffing shortages has saved the journey nurse trade sizzling. Now is a superb time to hitch the journey nurse trade.

How quick can a journey nurse task be?

The shortest journey nurse contract is a fast response contract. A fast response contract is an employment settlement through which a healthcare facility hires a journey nurse to fill a place rapidly. Rapid response journey nursing is intense. Travel nurses in these contracts are anticipated to hit the bottom working with little or no orientation or hospital oversight. The major profit of those contracts is larger pay. Experienced journey nurses who can begin a brand new place rapidly can benefit from these exhausting to fill positions to earn some huge cash.

As a results of the pent up demand for providers, many nurses at the moment are wanted for these shorter-term, high-intensity assignments. Nurses who’re educated, skilled, and might begin rapidly, and have a compact license or a number of state licenses, are probably to be employed for these assignments and might earn considerably greater than journey nurses in commonplace 13-week assignments.

Read more: How Long Can a Travel Nurse Stay in One Place

Rapid response journey nurses have higher flexibility in task lengths with shorter contracts accessible. They usually want to have the ability to begin sooner, in as little as two days to 2 weeks. Traditionally these nurses have been used for difficult-to-fill, or very distant positions, in addition to surprising fluctuations in employees or affected person hundreds in the course of the flu season, for instance. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many nurses at the moment are wanted for these shorter-term, high-intensity assignments. Nurses who’re educated, skilled and might begin rapidly, have a compact license or a number of state licenses, are largely prone to be employed for these assignments and might earn considerably greater than journey nurses in commonplace 13-week assignments.

Can an task be longer than 13 weeks?

Yes! A contract extension of a journey nurse contract is commonly potential.

With the continued nursing scarcity, journey nurses are discovering it simpler to increase their contracts. The key to securing an extension is sustaining glorious communication with the recruiter. If an task is the correct match for private {and professional} targets, advocating for a contract extension could also be useful. Notifying a recruiter as quickly as an extension is being thought-about could put your software on the highest of the checklist.

FAQs

How many assignments do you need to take as a traveler?

There isn’t any set variety of journey nurse jobs a nurse should take, nevertheless it’s good to know in regards to the one yr rule. Travel nurses who stay in the identical location for greater than 12 months lose their meal stipends and housing stipends and advantages as a result of they may not be thought-about a short lived worker by the IRS. In order to be eligible for these perks, journey nurses should be categorized by the IRS as momentary staff.

What is the very best journey nurse contract?

For any journey nurse, it’s necessary to contemplate all choices and what task size is finest for his or her explicit scenario. Keep in thoughts that it may be tougher to seek out assignments which might be longer or shorter than the standard 13 weeks (though as famous, in the course of the pandemic there may be prone to be extra flexibility with a higher variety of nurses wanted, and rapidly). Having an intensive dialogue along with your recruiter is one of the best ways to seek out the best journey nursing contract you’re in search of.