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Everyone has a story about how they became a travel nurse. We interviewed one nurse to see how he prepared before, during and after becoming an RN.
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When deciding to become a nurse, was travel nursing always a part of the plan?
Yes, before entering into nursing school I knew that I wanted to travel, but I did not know all the fine details about the role. Nursing schools hit the high points of what travel nursing is, but fails to deliver the overall positive experience a nurse can have from it. I knew this was something I wanted to do, but I did “tip toe” into travel nursing with a lot of reservations because if it sounded too good to be true, then it probably was. Much to my surprise I was wrong! It was everything I was told and much more.
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How did your plans to travel effect your nursing career?
I did not cater my nursing career to become a travel nurse. There was no need too. The most important qualities a nurse must have, in order to be a successful travel nurse is the ability to communicate, have strong and confident assessment skills, a sense for adventure, and be comfortable with changing work locations every three months or so.
Were there any travel nursing requirements that made you nervous?
The only requirements that I was made aware of was that you needed at least two years of experience, before applying to become a travel nurse. That frustrated me as a nursing student because two years seemed so far away.
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What was the biggest challenge you had when starting your travel career?
The most difficult part was getting my first contract. I did not know where to start and was overwhelmed with the process.
How did you overcome this obstacle?
For me, the key was finding the right travel nursing agent to represent me. Choosing the right company made what could have been an overwhelming experience a breeze.
Did travel nursing play a part in choosing your specialty?
Travel nursing never played a part into my decision of getting into critical/acute care. For me, I enjoyed the critical care world. I loved helping people in the most critical times of their lives, so I was naturally drawn into that specialty. Then when I decided to become a travel nurse, they found open jobs for me based on my experience and current certs. Nurses with specialty jobs always get paid a little more also, so that’s always a nice perk!
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To learn more about Kyle and his decision to become a travel nurse, check out A Journey into Travel Nursing.
For more on this series:
Interview With A Travel Nurse: Preparing for a New Facility
Interview With A Travel Nurse: How to Recover From Failing the NCLEX
Interview With A Travel Nurse: How To Prepare To Be A Rock Star Travel Nurse – Before You Are One
Interview With A Travel Nurse: Sure-fire Signs You’re Working With The Wrong Staffing Agency
Interview With A Travel Nurse: What Was Your First Travel Assignment Like
RNs can make up to $2,300 per week as a travel nurse. Speak to a recruiter today!
There are a lot of compassionate people in the world, but in my opinion nurses go above and beyond the typical standards of compassion. Here are some reasons why nurses prove they are hardwired to care for those need.
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Yes, nurses are awesome! We value the time we are able to spend helping people both professionally and personally. Nurses who work in the hospitals generally work three 12 hour shifts, during the work week allowing us to spend time with loved ones outside of work.
During those twelve hour shifts we are fully devoted to our patients. Bottom line is that nurses love helping people. It is one of our natural abilities as nurses.
Having a flexible work schedule allows us to help both patients and our loved ones. I have often been known to use the phrase that I am in the business of “people helping people.”
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Nurses show compassion by handling difficult and complex situations while maintaining a calm and professional manner. This is because we are constantly thrown into unpredictable and chaotic situations. Some of these situations are often medical emergencies.
We consistently train, practice and unfortunately have to take part in emergent situations while giving care to people. The next time you see a nurse jumping into an emergent situation or simply helping you out with a really bad cut to your finger, take notice at our overall calm demeanor.
With years and years of practice, it becomes very natural for us to handle difficult situations calmly and effectively.
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We have this ability where we can smile and hold our breath at the same time, without anyone noticing or picking up on it. The more experienced nurses can even talk while doing this. I know it sounds crazy but when you are caring for a person that is often helpless and is covered with bodily fluids, you quickly learn the smile and hold your breath technique.
We show our compassion by helping patients without making them feel uncomfortable, but we are human and do have noses that are exposed to a lot of bad smells. So trust me when I say we can handle any gross and fowl smelling thing you present to us. Don’t worry or ever feel embarrassed, odds are we have probably seen and smelled a lot worse.
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All of the above mentioned traits are but just a few reasons why nurses are compassionate. We have to be, afterall we are in the business of people helping people.
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I think most nurses would agree with me when I say we get asked a lot of questions. We get asked everything from “what do you think this is?” or my favorite “can you explain what that doctor said because I have no idea what he just told me.” But since I am a male nurse I honestly get asked the question, “So what made you want to become a nurse” the most. My response is always something like this, “I never wanted to be a nurse, I just wanted to help people. Then the whole RN thing just morphed into my signature.“ But in all seriousness, becoming a registered nurse was very challenging but it has become a very rewarding career path. Being a nurse has become second nature to me and I’m proud to call myself one.
When I was younger, I never imagined that I would become a nurse. I say that because while I was growing up in the Midwest I played a lot of sports, and let’s just say I did “OK” in school. I liked sports because they challenged me not only physically but mentally as well. Naturally I thought I would become a star athlete after high school and make millions of dollars. Boy was I wrong! But playing sports has helped develop one of my strongest characteristic – my competitive edge. I have always accepted every challenge my boss’ have ever given me, and then I take it to the next level. I’ve prided myself on being the hardest and most efficient worker. I just the love the thrill of being the best at what I do whether it’s providing the best patient care or just simply doing paper work. I love knowing that I put 100% effort and accuracy into my work. I mean after all wouldn’t you want your healthcare provider to put 100% effort into you care?
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Before I jumped into nursing school I was actually enrolled at a college to become a Physical therapist. When I was in college “studying” aka playing football with my friends, I learned that becoming a physical therapist didn’t really feed my appetite to help people. I know this because I worked for years as a rehabilitation technician with some of the most amazing physical and occupational therapist around. I learned how valuable their role is in regards to patient recovery, but that inner athlete in me was craving for more. So during my time as a rehab tech, I got to work closely with the nursing staff. I learned how demanding and important nurses actually are to patient care. I saw firsthand how every day was a new challenge and obstacle to overcome. I watched and witnessed how nurses collaborated and assessed, diagnosed, planned, implemented and evaluated their patient care. When it was done correctly and efficiently the whole patient care team benefited from it, including the patient’s outcome. After witnessing this, I changed my major to nursing and started on my journey.
While in nursing school I quickly learned how to properly study and commit myself to my school work. I also discovered that I was drawn into acute care. I loved helping people when they needed my help the most. So after I passed the dreaded NCLEX it was time to start my nursing career. I started working as a floor nurse on a progressive care unit. I learned all of my basic fundamental and nursing assessments skills there. I also met and built some lasting friendship with people. I moved around within the hospital, working in different units. I was trying to find a new home, which would feed that inner athlete in me. I kept on wanting to do more while helping people. Then that’s when I was introduced to travel nursing. I reached out to an old friend I met while working on the progressive care unit. She was already traveling and seems to love every minute of it. So I reached out to her and the next thing I knew, I was a travel nurse.
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I love traveling! So working as a travel nurse was an easy decision for me. Basically I got paid to travel! What more could you ask for? So for my first assignment, I set my eyes on the west coast mainly because I have never been out west. Why not take this opportunity to do so, and I am so happy that I did. It was an amazing experience! I was able to learn and work with some of the most experienced nurses and Physicians anywhere. I was also able to learn how to deliver care to a new patient population, and I gained valuable experience and some great memories that I will never forget.
Today, I am a Medical Administrator for an occupational health company. I work with acute injuries that people sustain while working on the job site. In my free time, I write articles and post YouTube information videos to help aspiring travel nurses. I am always looking for my next opportunity to help people. Yes, I still get asked the same old questions but recently someone asked me, “If you could go back and do it all over it. Would you choose a different career?” I politely put my smile on and said “No because I don’t think I would be as lucky the second time around.”
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Networking as a nurse is something you simply don’t learn during nursing school. Believe it or not, you are actually networking right now as you read this article. Networking is simply interacting with other people in order to gain information to better yourself. This is huge in nursing and there are a variety of ways you can do this. Like I said before you are already utilizing one method of networking, which is by searching and reading articles on the internet. The internet has a huge database of information that is just sitting there waiting for you to read.
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Another way you can better fine tune your networking skills is by representing yourself as a nurse. You can do this by joining some of the many professional websites that are out there. By representing yourself in a positive way, it can help you build outside relationships with people and could help you find new opportunities to grow as a nurse. Before I applied for my current job I utilized the internet in researching the position and company. I talked to several key contacts I have made over the years by networking and I was able to check on the company I was applying for. These skills help me land a great job as a Medical Administrator with a fantastic company.
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Some of the credible websites I have used in the past are LinkedIn, American Nurses Association, and the American Association of Critical Care Nursing. These websites can help you do research on current evidence based practices, discuss topics, and learn about other companies and jobs out there for nurses. Some sites require a membership fee or a monthly due, but in return you get a ton of articles and current research to read from, as well as current events that are going on. Some companies will even mail you a monthly magazine.
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There is also a vast amount of social media blogs you can join. Within these websites you can also discuss trending topics while connecting with other nurses. This connection will allow you to build a solid bridge of networking and develop a good business relationship with others. By building these relationships with people you will start seeing your networking profile grow, and it will allow you to build a more professional image to co-workers and future hiring managers. Another way to network is by simply reaching out to co-workers, job shadowing and meeting new people within your current organization. You will eventually develop a relationship with that person that could open a door of opportunity for you in the future.
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If you are a Travel nurse then you already know the importance of networking. The power of networking allows you to reach out and find those much desired contracts. The reason networking is so important for a travel nurse is because she/he represents themselves 24/7. They are not working with a permanent hospital which allows them to move through the ranks. They also do not have a boss who will watch you grow and recommend you for a promotion. Travel nurses only have themselves to rely on in order to grow. By networking with other nurses or your recruiter, it will keep your professional image buffed to perfection in which by doing so could land you a permanent job at a hospital after your contract expires.
So as you travel it is important to keep in contact with your new friends. You could try utilizing social media sites such as Facebook and twitter. Just be careful what you post and what you say because it could reflect your professional imagine in a negative way. If you are a travel nurse and want to grow your networking skills within the company you work with, simply pick up the phone and reach out to your recruiter who can help you get started and build a new professional profile for you to use.
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Whether you use internet, social media, or by simply looking up travel nursing videos on youtube.com, networking will allow you to grow professionally and personally. I learned this skill early as a nurse and have met and worked with some of the most amazing people around. By utilizing the skills listed above I went from a typical floor nurse, to a travel nurse, to blogger on YouTube about travel nursing, which brought me to writing articles online, all the way to finding my current position. Where will your networking take you? I hope it’s as rewarding to you as it has been for me. Look me up on LinkedIn or YouTube and start networking!
RNs can make up to $2,300 per week as a travel nurse. Speak to a recruiter today!
