will travel nursing last reddit

Travel nurses' gold rush is over. Now, some are joining other nurses in leaving the profession altogether.

Working as a travel nurse in the early days of the Covid pandemic was emotionally exhausting for Reese Brown — she was forced to leave her young daughter with her family as she moved from one gig to the next, and she watched too many of her intensive care patients die.

“It was a lot of loneliness,” Brown, 30, said. “I’m a single mom, I just wanted to have my daughter, her hugs, and see her face and not just through FaceTime.”

But the money was too good to say no. In July 2020, she had started earning $5,000 or more a week, almost triple her pre-pandemic pay. That was the year the money was so enticing that thousands of hospital staffers quit their jobs and hit the road as travel nurses as the pandemic raged. 

Two years later, the gold rush is over. Brown is home in Louisiana with her daughter and turning down work. The highest paid travel gigs she’s offered are $2,200 weekly, a rate that would have thrilled her pre-pandemic. But after two "traumatic" years of tending to Covid patients, she said, it doesn’t feel worth it.

“I think it’s disgusting because we went from being praised to literally, two years later, our rates dropped,” she said. “People are still sick, and people are still dying.”

The drop in pay doesn’t mean, however, that travel nurses are going to head back to staff jobs. The short-lived travel nurse boom was a temporary fix for a long-term decline in the profession that predates the pandemic. According to a report from McKinsey & Co., the United States may see a shortage of up to 450,000 registered nurses within three years barring aggressive action by health care providers and the government to recruit new people. Nurses are quitting, and hospitals are struggling to field enough staff to cover shifts. 

Nine nurses around the country, including Brown, told NBC News they are considering alternate career paths, studying for advanced degrees or exiting the profession altogether. 

“We’re burned out, tired nurses working for $2,200 a week,” Brown said. People are leaving the field, she said, “because there’s no point in staying in nursing if we’re expendable.”

$124.96 an hour

Travel nursing seems to have started as a profession, industry experts say, in the late 1970s in New Orleans, where hospitals needed to add temporary staff to care for sick tourists during Mardi Gras. In the 1980s and the 1990s, travel nurses were often covering for staff nurses who were on maternity leave, meaning that 13-week contracts become common. 

By 2000, over a hundred agencies provided travel contracts, a number that quadrupled by the end of the decade. It had become a lucrative business for the agencies, given the generous commissions that hospitals pay them.  A fee of 40 percent  on top of the nurse’s contracted salary is not unheard of, according to a spokesperson for the  American Health Care Association , which represents long-term care providers. 

Just before the pandemic, in January 2020, there were about 50,000 travel nurses in the U.S., or about 1.5 percent of the nation's registered nurses, according to Timothy Landhuis, vice president of research at Staffing Industry Analysts, an industry research firm. That pool doubled in size to at least 100,000 as Covid spread, and he says the actual number at the peak of the pandemic may have far exceeded that estimate.

By 2021, travel nurses were earning an average of $124.96 an hour, according to the research firm — three times the hourly rate of staff nurses, according to federal statistics. 

That year, according to the 2022 National Health Care Retention & RN Staffing Report from Nursing Solutions Inc., a nurse recruiting firm, the travel pay available to registered nurses contributed to 2.47% of them leaving hospital staff jobs.

But then, as the rate of deaths and hospitalizations from Covid waned, the demand for travel nurses fell hard, according to industry statistics, as did the pay.

Demand dropped 42 percent from January to July this year, according to Aya Healthcare, one of the largest staffing firms in the country. 

That doesn’t mean the travel nurses are going back to staff jobs.

Brown said she’s now thinking about leaving the nursing field altogether and has started her own business. Natalie Smith of Michigan, who became a travel nurse during the pandemic, says she intends to pursue an advanced degree in nursing but possibly outside of bedside nursing.

Pamela Esmond of northern Illinois, who also became a travel nurse during the pandemic, said she’ll keep working as a travel nurse, but only because she needs the money to retire by 65. She’s now 59. 

“The reality is they don’t pay staff nurses enough, and if they would pay staff nurses enough, we wouldn’t have this problem,” she said. “I would love to go back to staff nursing, but on my staff job, I would never be able to retire.” 

The coronavirus exacerbated issues that were already driving health care workers out of their professions, Landhuis said. “A nursing shortage was on the horizon before the pandemic,” he said.

According to this year’s Nursing Solutions staffing report, nurses are exiting the bedside at “an alarming rate” because of rising patient ratios, and their own fatigue and burnout. The average hospital has turned over 100.5% of its workforce in the past five years, according to the report, and the annual turnover rate has now hit 25.9%, exceeding every previous survey. 

There are now more than 203,000 open registered nurse positions nationwide, more than twice the number just before the pandemic in January 2020, according to Aya Healthcare.

An obvious short-term solution would be to keep using travel nurses. Even with salaries falling, however, the cost of hiring them is punishing.

LaNelle Weems, executive director of Mississippi Hospital Association’s Center for Quality and Workforce, said hospitals can’t keep spending like they did during the peak of the pandemic.

“Hospitals cannot sustain paying these exorbitant labor costs,” Weems said. “One nuance that I want to make sure you understand is that  what a travel agency charges the hospitals  is not what is paid to the nurse.”

Ultimately, it’s the patients who will suffer from the shortage of nurses, whether they are staff or gig workers. 

“Each patient added to a hospital nurse’s workload is associated with a 7%-12% increase in hospital mortality,” said Linda Aiken, founding director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research.

Nurses across the country told NBC News that they chose the profession because they cared about patient safety and wanted to be at the bedside in the first line of care. 

“People say it’s burnout but it’s not,” Esmond said about why nurses are quitting. “It’s the moral injury of watching patients not being taken care of on a day-to-day basis. You just can’t take it anymore.”

Jean Lee is an associate reporter with NBC News’ Social Newsgathering team in Los Angeles. She previously reported for the NBC News consumer investigative unit.

Trusted Health Blog

Transition Back from Crisis: The Future For Travel Nurses After COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted and continues to impact everyone worldwide. It’s no surprise that healthcare systems and travel nurses still are being impacted and experiencing significant changes. But how has the pandemic changed the world of travel nursing? Let’s discuss the state of travel nursing during the pandemic, the future of travel nursing , and ways to transition for travel nurses.

The State of Travel Nursing During COVID-19

Travel nursing has always been a high-in-demand field. During the pandemic, the state of travel nursing changed worldwide. Let’s explore how the pandemic affected the state of travel nursing.

Demand For Travel Nurses

The demand for travel nursing during the COVID-19 pandemic exploded. The average hours that travel nurses worked increased to over 23% in January 2022 . This number reflects the total number of travel nursing hours worked as a percentage worked by nurses in hospitals. This is a tremendous increase compared to less than 4% hours pre-pandemic numbers.

Hospitals were experiencing and continue to experience nursing shortages due to a variety of reasons. Reasons include staff nurses contracting COVID-19, patients needing a higher acuity of care, or a lack of safe nurse-to-patient ratios. Also, a large number of staff nurses left their full-time jobs. Staff nurses were seeking higher wages, scheduling flexibility, and the opportunity to travel, all of which travel nursing offers .

Changes to Safety Protocols

Safety protocols have also changed during the pandemic. Nurses have always needed to wear personal protective equipment (PPE). Pre-pandemic, PPE most of the time included only surgical masks and gloves. However, since COVID-19 is an airborne illness , this changed PPE and safety protocols worldwide. Travel nurses now additionally wear surgical gowns and N-95 masks or respirators , which protect against airborne droplets.

Sick leave protocols changed because of the pandemic as well. If nurses were experiencing any flu-like symptoms or had a mild headache, they called out sick. This is because COVID-19 symptoms present differently in everyone. Nurses were required to receive a negative COVID-19 PCR test before returning to work. These return-to-work protocols are still changing and vary per healthcare system.

In addition to COVID-19 testing, hospitals have been more lenient on sick time for nurses. Before the pandemic, it was more often than not that travel nurses worked when they were sick. Now, it has become more accepted that it’s ok to not go to work when you are sick-even if it’s not with COVID-19.

👉 Read more: Trusted Benefits

Changes in Pay and Incentives

Travel nurses made approximately $1,673 per week before the COVID-19 pandemic . During the pandemic, travel nurses saw an increase in hourly wages. Sometimes wages were up to three times their pre-pandemic salary. They were also offered sign-on and assignment completion bonuses. Travel nurses were willing to work longer hours due to better benefits and hourly pay. This helped fill the gap with hospital staff nursing shortages.

👉 Read more: Trusted Guide to Nurse Pay

Adaptations To Work and Living Conditions

Travel nurses also had to learn to quickly adapt to the ever-changing work conditions. Early pandemic safety protocols were changing daily, which travel nurses had to keep up with.

Most travel nurses were afraid to visit or go home to family members and friends. This is because, in the early stages of the pandemic, much was still unknown about safety and transmission. Many travel nurses opted to not return home or waited 14 days in quarantine after completing their assignments for fear of transmission to loved ones. 

Many travel nurses have worsening stress levels and burnout rates . Nursing can be a stressful career, but COVID-19 added another layer of stress. Many nurses are seeking counseling from mental health professionals.

👉 Read more: The State of Mental Health in Nursing in 2022

How Will Travel Nursing Change as We Move To a Post-pandemic World?

Now that it appears the pandemic is winding down, it continues to impact the future of travel nursing . There are several ways travel nursing will change as we move post-pandemic.

For instance, healthcare systems are now transitioning back to hiring permanent, full-time nurses, instead of travel nurses. Some travel nursing contracts are being canceled . During the pandemic, many travel nurses were asked to extend their contracts. Now, it’s becoming rarer that healthcare facilities are asking for contract extensions.

Pay rates for travel nurses are starting to decline as well and are returning closer to pre-pandemic numbers. While the demand for travel nursing will decrease, travel nursing contracts will still exist. Many travel nurses will likely return to permanent, full-time positions for more stability. However, they may ask for higher wages, sign-on bonuses, and benefits.

Most likely, healthcare facility and mask safety protocols will not change. While masks are optional outside of healthcare facilities , it’s unlikely this will change inside hospitals for quite some time, if ever.

Call-out and sick protocols have also been impacted by the pandemic. If travel nurses are sick, it requires a negative COVID-19 test to return to work. If they are positive for COVID-19, an isolation period is required before returning to work. Due to the high transmission rate, this protocol will unlikely change in the years to come.

How Can Travel Nurses Adapt to This Transition

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted travel nurses pre- and post-pandemic. During the pandemic, travel nurses have overcome unforeseen challenges. Now that we are slowly transitioning into a post-pandemic workplace, let’s review how travel nurses can adapt to this transition and the future of travel nursing .

Prepare For Financial Impacts

The need for travel nurses will never completely go away. However, travel nursing contacts are beginning to decline when compared to mid-pandemic numbers. This can have a large impact on travel nurses financially . While salaries are still higher than pre-pandemic numbers, travel nurses should expect to receive less pay.

To prepare, make sure you are saving at least six months of living expenses. 

Another way to prepare is to accept a lower-paying contract that is guaranteed for a longer time frame. This way, it may help you financially prepare and give you a long time to find another contract after your current one ends. Always have a backup contract in mind and voice this to your travel nursing recruiter. Voice your concerns for financial stability to your Nurse Advocate , and most likely, they will help you create a backup plan in case something goes sour.

Lastly, see if your travel nursing agency offers local assignments. As most local assignments have a 50-mile minimum radius, this will allow you to work closer to home. The pay and stipends may be slightly lower than a true travel nursing assignment. But your wages will still be higher than accepting a permanent staff nurse position. Also, if you work closer to home, then you may be able to work another part-time job or find another local assignment.

Update Your Resume

Since some travel nursing contracts are being canceled, it’s also a good idea to start updating your resume . There are several resume writing companies that specialize in travel nursing that can help you update it.

Consider adding new skills to your resume. For example, maybe you are a medical-surgical nurse but floated to the cardiac step-down unit several times. Make sure to add that you cared for COVID-19 patients. Including these shows versatility, commitment to nursing, and learning new skills. 

Also, consider obtaining certifications for your nursing specialty . Certifications will make you stand out amongst other travel nursing candidates. It shows commitment to and advancement in your field of nursing.

Take Care of Your Mental Health

During the pandemic, mental health declined and burnout rates increased amongst travel nurses. Since we are transitioning to life after a pandemic, remember that it’s important to take care of your mental and physical health. Set aside time for self-care activities that you enjoy, such as reading, getting a massage, or meditation. Promoting self-care can improve your mental health and stress levels. 

Since the pandemic, many have reflected on the importance of interactions with family and friends. Talk and plan events with your friends and family to help boost your mental health. If you have a busy schedule, plan phone dates with family and friends. Maintaining healthy relationships can help provide a strong support system. Strong support systems are often needed amongst travel nurses since you’re often far away from home.

If you feel like you are struggling with your mental health, seek support from a licensed therapist or counselor. They can listen to your concerns and improve your mental health. If you feel like you don’t have time to see a mental health professional, there is also Telemedicine. Telemedicine connects you with mental health professionals via smartphone apps.

Take Care of Your Physical Health

It’s also important to take care of your physical health. It can be difficult to take breaks while on shift, making it that much more imperative to take care of your physical well-being. Make sure you are eating healthy. Consume the required amount of vitamins and nutrients in your diet to boost your immunity. Exercise at least 30 minutes five times a week to boost your cardiovascular health. Try activities like walking, riding a bike, or doing yoga.

Remain Flexible

Travel nurses are prime examples of flexibility. It’s crucial to remain and communicate your flexibility when considering nursing assignments. Remaining flexible may help you land your next travel nursing assignment over other candidates. While floating to other areas of the hospital is not always ideal, still, be open to the idea. 

Stay Positive

It’s also imperative to keep a positive attitude. Staying positive can help boost your mood and the moods of those around you. If your travel nursing contract isn’t going as planned, remember that it’s only a few weeks. You will get through it!

Practicing gratitude is another great way to stay positive. Remember that a lot of coworkers and travel nurses are under the same pressures as you. Express your gratitude to them whenever possible by writing them a thank you note or offering to pay for their lunch. A little gratitude goes a long way!

Trusted Health is here to help you navigate the future of travel nursing

If you’re looking for your first or next travel nursing assignment, try Trusted Health . They offer many travel nursing resources, guides, and articles. Trusted Health’s many job listings and travel nursing recruiters will help you navigate the post-pandemic future of travel nursing .

‍ Sign up or log in to get started today!

Amanda Marten NP-C, MSN has been a certified nurse practitioner for over three years. With eight years of nursing experience, she has worked in a variety of specialties including urgent care, travel nursing, post-surgical, and intensive care.

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Is Travel Nursing Dead? A Look at the State of Travel Nursing

Hospitals are phasing out travel nurses . Meanwhile, travelers are complaining that their contracts have been cut short. Signs point to major challenges in the industry — but is travel nursing dead ?

Travel nursing has long been a stellar opportunity for nurses to explore the country while gaining valuable experience. However, the pandemic caused a dramatic surge in demand for nurses willing to travel. As a result, many first-time contractors were attracted to the field. Now, many people are questioning what is going on in travel nursing, as facilities return to pre-pandemic staffing levels. This post explores the current state of travel nursing and how nurses are affected.

Looking for open travel nurse assignments? Speak with a recruiter today!

The Demand For Travel Nurses in 2023

Source: Unsplash

According to Timothy Landhuis, vice president of research at Staffing Industry Analysts, there were approximately 50,000 US travel nurses pre-pandemic — approximately 1.5% of the country’s registered nurses. That pool doubled to at least 100,000 as COVID spread.

However, complex factors have contributed to a decline in travel nursing positions over the past year.

Most clearly, the cost for hospitals to bring in travel nurses is prohibitively expensive. Contract labor expenditures soared by more than 500% in 2022, as hospitals sought out travel nurses to help with pandemic staffing shortages.

Rather than depending on travel nurses for temporary solutions today, hospitals are increasingly looking for permanent, full-time nurses. Large health systems are developing new programs that allow employed nurses to travel to different facilities within their network. The drop in demand has meant there are fewer opportunities for travel nurses and lower pay rates.

St. Charles Health System in Oregon is a prime example. A recent report showed they ended last year in the red. In response, the hospital is cutting back on travel nurses . One man complained to a local news station after his surgery was canceled. His doctor told him that he should seek care elsewhere due to the travel nurse layoffs.

Despite the decline there are still openings for all specialties , particularly in rural and underserved areas. These settings often lack permanent staff or rely on travel nurses to replace vacancies in their bare-bones workforce to meet the community’s needs. Likewise, some medical facilities continue to lean on travel nurses for short-term staffing needs.

According to Becker’s Hospital Review , the highest-paying jobs for travel nurses have been in intensive care units, emergency departments, medical surgery, and home health. Contract labor rates are expected to stabilize at 15% over pre-pandemic levels in 2023.

Find available, high-paying travel nurse opportunities.

Travel Nurse Salary Drops to $3k Per Week

The coronavirus and successive variant waves exacerbated hospital staff shortages, resulting in exorbitant contract nursing fees.

As the average travel nurse salary rose across the country in 2020, so did the number of nurses who quit their full-time employment to travel . More nurses abandoned staff employment, and the turnover worsened shortages.

During the omicron surge in the winter of 2022, national rates for travel nurses rose to $150 per hour . This was three times more than the national average for full-time staff nurses. One of the most profitable professions quickly became even more lucrative. Some accused travel nurse staffing companies of price-gouging . Legislators even discussed options to cap nurses’ pay .

Source: Healthcare Dive

Three years later, many travelers are returning home for stable staff positions. NBC News announced last fall that “ the travel nurses’ gold rush ” is over. Hospitals are now negotiating down contract rates with travel nurse agencies by as much as 50%. Though not what it once was, travel nursing is far from dead, and the pay is still above average. The mean travel nurse income has stabilized at around $3k per week in 2023. Given that compensation has fallen since the unprecedented pandemic pay, so have the number of travel nurses, making jobs less competitive.

Still, a number of factors, such as whether a hospital is dealing with a natural disaster or strike, as well as market demand in that region, can cause assignments to attract higher prices. According to ZipRecruiter, the average annual travel nurse salary in the United States is $105,021 or $50/hr as of May 2023. This is much higher than the national average for registered nurses, which is $77,600 per year or $37.31 per hour, according to the BLS .

Find open positions today for your specialty.

Source: Nurse.org

Unexpected Contract Changes

NBC News reported that demand for travel nurses fell 42% in 2022. It seems that many nurses have had their contracts cut short as a result.

Fierce Healthcare told the story of Tiffanie Jones, who was on the road from Florida to Wyoming when she found out her travel nurse contract was canceled without warning. The same article mentioned another nurse who relocated her entire family to find out her contract was canceled during orientation. Cancellations or pay adjustments mid-contract have become so common that nurses are taking legal action against more than 35 staffing companies.

“We’re hearing from nurses all over the country who just felt absolutely taken advantage of,” said attorney Austin Moore, who has filed four lawsuits on behalf of 11 traveling nurses. The litigation targets Aya, Maxim Healthcare, NuWest Group, and Cross Country Healthcare. Moore also told Newsweek that over 100 companies had engaged in similar practices.

The attorney said he has over 400 cases of travel nurses reporting pay cuts from 25% to 70%. He reported that many staffing agencies were “ breaching their contracts ,” while others were “committing outright fraud.” Moore said that most staffing companies who participate in these practices have arbitration clauses in their contracts to prevent nurses from suing them.

Travel Nursing Is Still A Viable Option For Nurses

Travel nursing is still a viable employment choice for the nursing profession. Travelers can earn better salaries with stipends and bonuses than their counterparts, with benefits packages and affordable living arrangements . Another perk of travel nursing is schedule flexibility. Nurses enjoy the option to work 13-week assignments with breaks in between.

Another common attitude expressed by travel nurses is that contract work allows them to focus on patient care. They can avoid the bureaucracy of dealing with management and leadership that some face in staff roles. Travelers also choose which hospitals they will work in. They can refuse facilities that they’ve heard have dangerous conditions or too many patients per nurse. California is the only state to regulate nurse-to-patient ratios. It requires one nurse for every five patients in most departments and intensive care units to have a 1:2 ratio.

Travel nursing is perfect for those who want the freedom to choose the assignment and department that fits their lifestyle and interests. It allows nurses to obtain experience in a variety of settings while having the freedom to travel. Despite the current economic downturn, travel nursing remains a feasible employment option for healthcare workers with the right mindset and skills.

Internal Traveler Programs

An attractive option for nurses who enjoy traveling is internal travel nurse programs . These are contract positions offered by health systems that allow nurses to travel on a short-term basis to associated hospitals. The pay is often higher, but in some cases, benefits may be limited.

“These positions are enticing for anyone interested in a higher base pay, while foregoing many traditional health and wellness benefits — perhaps nurses who are still eligible for health insurance under their parents or guardians, or those who already have coverage through a spouse’s employer,” said Denise Neely, BSN, Senior Vice President and COO for Bronson Methodist Hospital and Chief Nursing Officer for Bronson Healthcare.

Source: Facebook Travel Nurse Community

Other facilities offering similar internal travel programs include:

• University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
• Mercy Health System
• Advent Health
• UC Health Colorado
• OSF HealthCare

These arrangements also relieve some of the pain points that travel nurses have, such as having to learn new policies and procedures, having to repeat new hire and HR orientation, and worrying that the hospital may cancel the contract.

What Does the Future Have In Store for Travel Nursing?

Industry analysis suggests that the US may face a shortage of up to 450,000 registered nurses by 2025. According to one nationwide assessment of the nursing workforce, nurses are retiring in greater numbers, with the typical nurse’s age rising from roughly 43 in 2000 to 52 in 2020. This reality, combined with the impending influx of elderly Baby Boomers who will require more care, is expected to exacerbate the situation. These facts suggest that there will always be choices for experienced nurses in all specialties who want to travel.

Technological advancements and virtual care will continue to have an impact on the ever-changing world of travel nursing. And while some features of travel nursing may evolve, traditional short-term assignments will remain a popular option to meet facility needs. Overall, travel nursing is very much alive and an attractive career choice for nurses with a promising outlook for the future.

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The Future of Work Issue

‘Nurses Have Finally Learned What They’re Worth’

As the coronavirus spread, demand for nurses came from every corner. Some jobs for travelers paid more than $10,000 a week. Will the boom last?

Chris Detten earned enough as a traveling nurse to make a down payment on a home in Lubbock, Texas. Credit... George Etheredge for The New York Times

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By Lauren Hilgers

• Published Feb. 15, 2022 Updated June 15, 2023

Listen to This Article

Open this article in the New York Times Audio app on iOS.

In the early morning on Mother’s Day in 2020, Solomon Barraza walked into an intensive-care unit in Amarillo, Texas, and, with the fluorescent lights clicking on above him after the night shift, flipped through the stack of papers attached to a gray clipboard — his roster of patients and nurses for the day. Barraza, who was 30 at the time, had only recently become a charge nurse at Northwest Texas Healthcare System hospital. He was technically still a “baby nurse”: Just over a year earlier, he started working his first shifts in the I.C.U. Now he was responsible for overseeing the care of everyone there, making sure his nurses and patients had whatever they needed, answering questions and directing care in case of an emergency. As he looked through his roster, he saw that there were 11 patients on his floor; eight had Covid-19, and five of those were intubated. Then he looked at the other sheet of paper. There would be four nurses working for the next 12 hours. He needed at least six.

He could see the day play out: a cascade of emergencies, a cacophony of beeping alarms and running feet, disasters that ended with overwhelmed nurses and patients crashing alone. And so for the first time, Barraza made the decision to call for “safe harbor” under a Texas law that can be invoked to protect nurses’ licenses while working in conditions that are potentially unsafe for patients. Barraza grabbed a form from the nurses’ station, and one by one, they all signed it.

Almost immediately, the emergencies began. “You need to get over to 18!” someone shouted. Barraza grabbed his mask and ran. He started hand-pumping air into the patient’s lungs with a ventilation bag while two other nurses hooked the bag up to oxygen. They stabilized that patient, and Barraza jogged down the hallways to check on the other seven. One person’s blood pressure was dropping precipitously, and Barraza was preparing to go inside the room when he thought to check on another patient, one door down. That patient’s blood-oxygen level had dropped into the 40s, far below the normal range of 95 to 100. “So what do I do?” Barraza said. “Who do I help first? There are multiple people’s lives at stake at the same time. What if I pick wrong and someone dies?”

A year and a half later, Barraza was sitting on the desk in the middle of the cardiac-intensive-care unit, or C.I.C.U. — which handles both coronary and Covid patients — looking around the group of nurses, remembering those first months of an ongoing crisis. “There were some funky things going on with staffing back then,” he told the group. Nurses were leaving the hospital to take traveling jobs in New York. The rest of the hospital was shut down, so the I.C.U. floor was the chaotic heart of a ghost town. The hospital had yet to hire traveling nurses to pad its local staff, and Mother’s Day felt like a turning point. It was the day Barraza recognized that the pandemic would be defined by twin emergencies, two figures that he would watch anxiously as they rose and fell: the waves of patients on ventilators in his I.C.U., and the number of nurses available to take care of them.

In 2020 alone, Northwest lost 185 nurses — nearly 20 percent of its nursing staff. In the I.C.U., that number was closer to 80 percent. Many of those nurses left to take jobs with travel-nursing agencies, which placed them, on a temporary and highly lucrative basis, in hospitals throughout the country. When the nurses at Northwest quit, the hospital eventually hired its own travelers, who flowed onto Barraza’s floor to work for weeks or months at a time. There have been days when the unit was barely staffed and days when 20 travelers showed up unexpectedly. Barraza has watched friends burn out and retire. He has watched nurses leave for better pay or less stressful jobs. He has welcomed the strangers who have come to take their place — befriending them, folding them into his I.C.U. team and then watching them leave all over again.

Bedside nursing has always been, as one hospital chief executive put it, a “burnout profession.” The work is hard. It is physical and emotional. And hospitals have built shortages into their business model, keeping their staffs lean and their labor costs down. When the pandemic hit, shortages only increased, pushing hospitals to the breaking point. Nationwide, the tally of nurses with both the skills and the willingness to endure the punishing routines of Covid nursing — the isolation rooms, the angry families and the unceasing drumbeat of death — is dwindling. In a survey of critical-care nurses last year, 66 percent of respondents said they were considering retirement.

Sitting on the desk that day, Barraza didn’t know why he kept reflecting on May 2020. He had stabilized those two patients that morning, but that would not always be the case. For the most part, he said, the days bleed together in his mind. Sometimes it felt as if he had spent the last two years running the world’s longest marathon, his adrenaline pushing him from patient to patient, watching people die and trying his best to pause for a moment, just enough time to recognize each as an individual without being overwhelmed by emotion.

“That was the first time we called for safe harbor,” said Matt Melvyn, a veteran nurse who has stayed with Barraza throughout the pandemic. “But it was definitely not the last.”

In the flood of resignations, retirements and shortages that have redefined workplaces across industries these past two years, nothing has been as dramatic or as consequential as the shifts taking place in nursing. The scramble for bedside nurses is tied to everything from how we run our hospitals to the way we value the work of caring for others to our understanding of public health and medicine. And if our health care system has faltered under the weight of the pandemic, it will need hundreds of thousands more nurses to build itself back up.

For at least three decades, hospitals across the United States have followed a model that aims to match nurses precisely to the number of occupied beds. It’s a guessing game that has charge nurses performing daily tallies and hospital administrators anticipating the seasonal movements of illness and people — winter flus and migrating retirees. Many hospitals don’t offer nurses clear paths toward career advancement or pay increases. Depending on demand, they may trade nurses between units. When there are shortages throughout the hospital, they will send out emails and text messages asking nurses to come in and take an extra 12-hour shift. And when the shortages are too great, hospitals turn to travelers.

Even before the pandemic, there were many reasons to hire travelers. Nurses would be brought in for a season, a maternity leave or the opening of a new department. This kind of gig work grew increasingly common, and from 2009 to 2019, according to data from Staffing Industry Analysts, revenue in the travel industry tripled, reflecting a work force that was already in flux. There are hundreds of staffing agencies in the United States — national agencies, regional agencies, agencies that specialize in bringing in nurses from other countries, agencies that send American nurses abroad. In mid-March 2020, there were over 12,000 job opportunities for traveling nurses, more than twice the number in 2019.

Then, as the coronavirus spread, demand came from every corner. By December 2020, there were more than 30,000 open positions for travelers. And with the help of federal dollars — from the CARES Act Provider-Relief Funds and the American Rescue Plan — their salaries started climbing. Job listings in Fargo, N.D., advertised positions for $8,000 a week. In New York, travelers could make $10,000 or more. The average salary of a staff nurse in Texas is about $75,000; a traveler could make that in months.

Nurses often refer to their jobs as a calling — a vocation that is not, at its core, about money. At the same time, nurses have spent years protesting their long hours and nurse-to-patient ratios. In 2018 alone, there were protests in California, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania and several other states. When the pandemic hit and travel positions opened up in hospitals all over the country, nurses suddenly had more options than ever. They could continue serving patients, continue working grueling hours in frantic conditions, but they would be paid well for it. Travelers were valued. Their work was in demand. The money would be enough that after a few weeks or months on the job, they could go home and recover.

Hospital associations were already beginning to see the steep costs of these workers, but they had little choice in the matter. The shortages were too severe, and they would only get worse. In July 2020, Texas established a statewide emergency staffing system, coordinated by select regional advisory councils. The state has put $7 billion in relief funds toward supplementing staffing, which has allowed hospitals like Northwest to attract travel nurses without shouldering the full cost. “The problem is that their salaries were so much higher than our employee salaries,” said Brian Weis, the chief medical officer at Northwest. “Our employed nurses were doing the same job, but they’re saying, ‘Why are we getting paid a fraction of what these nurses are?’”

The following year, the demand for travel nursing broke loose from Covid. In April and May 2021, as case counts dipped, hospital requests for travel nurses only grew exponentially. “They now know what pent-up demand does to a health care system, and it’s not healthy,” said April Hansen, the group president at Aya Healthcare, one of the largest providers of travel nurses in the country. “If you look at our demand today, it looks like our demand pre-Covid in terms of specialties: med surge, telemetry, I.C.U., emergency room, surgical. It’s just the volume that is being asked for in every specialty.”

It isn’t the traveling-nurse boom alone that has transformed the market. There are also more job opportunities beyond the bedside than ever. Nurse practitioners treat patients in doctors’ offices; insurance companies employ thousands of nurses; Microsoft and Amazon have hundreds of open nursing jobs. Today, only 54 percent of the country’s registered nurses work in hospitals. “There was competition for talent before the pandemic,” Hansen said. “But the pandemic took a small crack and made it as wide as the Grand Canyon.”

To make things worse, the nursing shortage is part of a worker shortfall that spans the entire health care industry. “This is labor across the hospital,” said Rose O. Sherman, an emeritus professor of nursing at Florida Atlantic University. “This is respiratory therapy. This is lab. This is dietary, environmental services. They have not been immune to having an Amazon warehouse open up and losing a significant chunk of their staff.” If labs are backed up, patients have to wait for a diagnosis. If rooms aren’t cleaned, nurses step in to do the work themselves. Barraza has been known to empty bedpans when the housekeeper is too busy.

Even as hospitals have scrambled to hire travel nurses, many have been chafing at the rising price tag. A number of states are exploring the option to cap travel-nursing pay, and the American Hospital Association is pushing for a congressional inquiry into the pricing practices of travel-nursing agencies. Sherman, however, believes that the problem will not be solved until hospitals start considering how to make bedside jobs more desirable.

After two years, nurses have borne witness to hundreds of thousands of deaths. They have found themselves in the middle of a politicized illness and faced countless angry, grieving family members. Many, now, are moving on. They are looking for jobs outside the hospital. Others are simply uprooting themselves — leaving their homes and their families and continuing to do their jobs for a higher salary. “Nurses have finally learned what they’re worth,” Nora Shadix, one I.C.U. nurse, told me. “I don’t think they’re going to go back to the way it was before. I don’t think they’re going to settle.”

One of the nurses who has cycled through Barraza’s staff is Kulule Kenea, who was furloughed from her job as a nurse practitioner in Minneapolis in March 2020 as part of the city’s initial lockdown. She spent her early years working in I.C.U.s and trauma wards. Her uncle was a registered nurse, as was her cousin. It was something she had always wanted to do. Kenea, who is 33, liked her job. She never had that itch to travel or move. Even before starting her furlough, she got text messages from travel agencies looking for nurses willing to fly to New York. She wasn’t sure how the agencies got her number, but the offers kept coming. “I saw and heard other nurses too,” she said, “just getting mass texts out of nowhere.”

Many nurses like Kenea started traveling in the early months of the pandemic. They were nurses who had also been furloughed, nurses whose personal circumstances allowed them to travel, nurses who felt the call to help people in an emergency and nurses who were drawn by the salaries. Ivette Palomeque, who lives in Texas, traveled to Florida during her divorce. Shadix, who was working at BSA Health System in Amarillo, the hospital across the street from Northwest, decided to travel for six months starting in the summer of 2020 after her boyfriend at the time gave her the number for a staffing agency. Susie Scott, a charge nurse in Abilene, Texas, left her job in the fall of 2020, after 19 years at the same hospital; it had become so short-staffed that Scott was doing the jobs of two or three people. Traveling was an escape. “Now, what I do,” Scott told me, “I go in, I take care of my patients and that is it.”

“People were so desperate for this particular skill,” Kenea told me. “My only responsibility at home is to water my plants. I don’t have kids. I don’t have any other responsibilities. It felt wrong. It felt unfair to be able to just sit at home in the comfort of my house when other people are suffering.” Kenea took a contract to travel to New York and was on an airplane within days — there were only a handful of other people on her flight. She spent a night in a hotel, woke up the next morning and boarded a bus heading to a hospital in Harlem. She was assigned to a medical surgical unit and, on her first shift, was given 11 patients, compared with the typical four or five. It was, Kenea said, unreal. “It did not feel like America.” She worked 14 days in a row, 12-hour shifts, compared with the three-day-a-week standard before the pandemic. She did chest compressions on one patient while another was in the room, watching her, terrified.

Kenea’s father sent her text messages daily, asking her to come home and to stop risking her health. “He would send me all these statistics,” she said. “And I would be like: ‘I’m in the hospital. I know.’” A few months later, in July 2020, Kenea contracted with a traveling agency called Krucial Staffing, which specializes in emergency disaster response. She knew her assignment would be in Texas but had to call in to learn which city — the agency was working primarily with nurses who were willing to go anywhere at a moment’s notice. Kenea would have about a day to get her bearings, taking quick tours of I.C.U.s, notebook in hand. The alarms in each I.C.U. have their own sounds. The charting systems change from place to place. “You need to know the pins for certain doors and a telephone number or email for a manager or somebody who can make stuff happen for you quickly,” Kenea said. “You need to get those things down pat first within the first couple of hours: eyes wide open, ears listening sharp, constantly aware of things.”

Kenea was sent to Corpus Christi and assigned to an older part of the hospital that had been reopened to help accommodate the influx of Covid patients. Not long afterward, she was transferred to another ward, where many of the nurses were younger than she was. Kenea worked a relatively manageable five days each week, although the job was still grueling. “I am not afraid of running toward the fire,” she told me. And the staff nurses were welcoming. Some stopped to ask Kenea for advice on how to start traveling themselves.

Barraza’s unit sits on the fourth floor of a tower on the north side of Northwest. It is brightly lit and wide, and most doors have a yellow sign alerting everyone to the need for personal protective equipment. The medical intensive-care unit, or M.I.C.U., where Shadix has been working as a staff nurse after her stint as a traveler, is separated from the C.I.C.U. by a bank of elevators. There, the lights are dim, and most of the patients have been medically paralyzed so the ventilators can work without resistance. Alarms beep, and monitors are facing the glass, the oxygen levels of each patient blinking toward the hallways.

I.C.U. nursing demands a particular set of skills. Nurses here monitor life-support equipment, track patients’ reactions to medications and respond quickly in an emergency. It can be physical work — it takes multiple people, for example, to turn a patient without unhooking any equipment. I.C.U. nurses are trained to titrate several medications and drips. Good nurses can anticipate when a patient is about to crash. They’re expected to handle situations that are unpredictable and patients who are unstable. “If you don’t use those skills,” Kenea said, “you lose it.”

In December 2020, Kenea arrived in Amarillo for an assignment on Barraza’s team. By that time, the hospital had already seen waves of travelers come and go. Before the pandemic, potential travel nurses were carefully vetted by agencies for expertise and good standing. They were required to have clocked at least a year in their specialty, sometimes two or three. Kenea, for her part, had eight years of nursing experience under her belt. During the early days of the pandemic, however, with hospital staffs suffering from shortages and looking for immediate relief, many local nurses and administrators had doubts about the level of experience of some of the travelers who were landing in their I.C.U.s.

When groups of travel nurses started arriving in Amarillo, Barraza barely had time to connect with them before they disappeared. Their contracts didn’t stipulate how long they needed to stay in any particular hospital, and some would be gone within weeks. Barraza worked shifts in which he was the only member of the core staff, unsure of who had the experience to handle an emergency. “There were some travelers that came, and they were amazing,” he told me. “They were some of the best nurses I’ve worked with. But then there were the ones who shouldn’t have been there.”

If the challenge for travelers, before and during the pandemic, has been to do their job in an unfamiliar environment, the challenge for the nurses who stayed was to offer consistency amid the chaos. Barraza knew early in the pandemic that he would stay. He took on the job of keeping up morale and arrived at his shifts with the energy of a favorite aunt. He started taking in baskets of candy and snacks. He knew the moods of his nurses and which patients were feeling scared and in need of company. He knew who needed a break and who could keep going.

As time went on, the work of boosting morale became more difficult as nurses found themselves facing an unprecedented level of hostility from the outside world. A majority of Covid patients now in the I.C.U. at Northwest are unvaccinated — the region hovers below a 50 percent vaccination rate — and restaurants and malls are filled with unmasked people. Melvyn, the veteran on Barraza’s team, said that one of the most difficult parts of the job is walking outside the hospital into a world where it seems that the pandemic is already over. “You are here and it’s a war zone, and you walk outside and there’s no war,” he said. “My whole life we’ve been preparing for a pandemic, but in none of those meetings, in none of those drills, did anyone say, ‘What if there’s a pandemic, and nobody believes it’s a pandemic?’”

Families of patients now yell at staff daily, asking for unproven treatments or accusing nurses of doing harm. They oppose intubation or refuse to wear masks. Shadix still remembers the time a family blamed her for the death of their loved one. “I will always have compassion for my patients,” she said. “But I’m running out of compassion for the families.”

Nurses have compassion fatigue, fatigue fatigue and alarm fatigue, becoming desensitized to the beeps of monitors. Nurses at Northwest have nightmares about crashing patients, nightmares that they’re being intubated themselves, nightmares that wake them up doing chest compressions on their mattresses. Shadix turns on cartoons while she falls asleep to drown out the soundtrack of alarms that plays in her head. A lot of nurses are stoic, she said. They hold it in. They make jokes. “Surely the Lord is going to bless me for putting up with all of this crap,” one nurse told me.

On bad days, Barraza holds the nurses’ hands while they cry. “We have a pretty well versed nurse that has been a nurse for a long time,” he told me. “But there was a day when her patient was going to be intubated, and she was in the hallway crying, saying that this isn’t fair and she couldn’t do it. I hugged her, and I said: ‘It sucks that it is this hard, but you’re here for a reason. I am here for you, and you’re here for me, and we’re here for these people.’” He went on: “I’m still trying to keep holding on to that aspect of my personality and who I am. If I start losing that part of me, then I need to get out.”

When Shadix was traveling, she left her daughter in the care of her mother and ex-husband and struggled to leave her work at work, she said. For months she took it back to her hotel rooms and Airbnbs — the faces of the patients she lost, the feeling of doing chest compressions, the fear in people’s eyes when they came in. Now when she loses someone, she counts to 10 and allows herself to feel all her emotions. Then she takes a breath and does her best to put them aside.

But for many other travelers, the exhaustion and the hostility they regularly face is blunted by their ability to do something staff nurses can’t: leave. Kenea thinks that moving around has helped her navigate the emotional toll of the pandemic without losing hope — she has witnessed death firsthand, but in episodes, each hospital providing a change of scenery. And when she “decommissions” from an assignment, she allows herself a break before she takes a new job. She feels overwhelmed at times but never burned out. At the end of each shift, she assesses her day, and if she feels she has done everything she can, she lets go of it as soon as she leaves the parking lot.

Then, of course, there’s the pay. Kenea has made enough money to help cover the tuition to become a nurse anesthetist. Shadix’s six-month stint as a traveler allowed her to put a down payment on a house. Chris Detten, a traveler at Northwest, was also able to afford a down payment. Adrian Chavira, Detten’s friend and another traveler at Northwest, said the money has made it possible for his partner to stay at home with their new baby. “Money is a very good motivator,” Detten said. There’s a sense that all the hard work is being rewarded. “You don’t have to worry about the politics of the hospital you’re in.” The power plays, the interoffice dramas, the personalities you can’t escape — the travelers are insulated from it all.

“I appreciate that they’re here,” said Karen Hammett, a longtime charge nurse at Northwest. “Am I a little salty that they’re making more than me? Yes.” Hammett was a veteran of the hospital. She had made it through every wave of the pandemic. But last year was her hardest. “It’s having to deal with the secondary stuff that gets to me — the hate is what sucks. And it’s the worst it’s ever been.” She had her last shift at Northwest on Nov. 21. After nearly 20 years at the hospital, she quit.

As I.C.U. beds in city hospitals filled up and staff nurses started leaving in droves, another story of a precariously overextended health care system was unfolding in smaller hospitals across the country. Rural hospitals, which have long sent their most acute cases to larger hospitals, were left with patients they were ill equipped to handle. Many of these hospitals, with lower profits and wages, struggled to retain nurses and compete with the enormous salaries offered by travel agencies. With no padding, entire departments shut down. Only 40 percent of rural hospitals in Texas offer labor-and-delivery services, and with staffing shortages, many deliver babies only a few days a week. There are 71 counties in the state with no hospitals at all. Across the country, 22 rural hospitals have shuttered in the past two years. According to one 2020 study, 453 more are in danger of closing.

Hereford Regional Medical Center is roughly 50 miles southwest of Amarillo. Shortly before Christmas, hospital officials there declared an internal state of disaster — all the travelers had gone home for the holidays, leaving the remaining staff and administrators struggling to keep the doors open. Administrative staff took shifts over Christmas and New Year’s to avoid a complete shutdown. Nursing teachers from Amarillo drove in to help bridge the gap between the departing and arriving traveling nurses. The hospital had stopped performing surgeries and was sending its labor-and-delivery patients to other hospitals. It could no longer take referrals — serving only the people who showed up in the emergency room — and none of the larger hospitals nearby were able to take its acute cases.

Other rural hospitals are reeling from similar shortages. In Missouri, one rural hospital was unable to transfer a patient with acute pneumonia after contacting 19 different hospitals. A nurse saved the woman’s life by staying up all night, loosening the mucus in the patient’s lungs with a hand-held massager. Rural hospitals in New Mexico have reported calling 40 or 50 hospitals in order to find a bed for acute patients. Candice Smith, the chief nursing officer at Hereford Regional, said: “We need staff, we need supplies, we need medicines. We have spent multiple hours on the phone to try to get patients out of here. If they’ve had a stroke or a heart attack or a traumatic brain injury, we’ve been getting them to Dallas or Oklahoma.” Smith sent a request to its regional advisory council asking for more travelers, but she was unsure of when, or whether, they might show up. “As a rural hospital, we can’t pay for them forever,” she told me. “It will cripple the health care industry.”

“There has been an evolution in the travelers,” Smith continued. “Now they don’t come here or to any facility and say: ‘What can I do? I’m willing to work any day you tell me to.’ Now they say: ‘I’m only going to work Sunday, Monday, Tuesday. I’m going to take off for Christmas.’” When I asked Smith if there was anything else she wanted to share, she said simply, “Just tell people to pray for us.”

In light of the grim staffing numbers, both city and rural hospitals have tried to focus on retention efforts, in some cases mirroring the benefits of the travel-nursing industry. Northwest now offers higher overtime rates for nurses who take extra shifts, and BSA started offering better pay overall. In Florida, hospitals are hiring recent nursing graduates and placing them in nursing teams with more experienced personnel. UAMS Medical Center at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences is offering a signing bonus of $25,000 to qualified nurses willing to stay for three years. At Parkland Health and Hospital System in Dallas, doctors have been helping ease the burden on nurses by performing some of their duties.

Ronda Crow is the chief nursing officer at Moore County Hospital District, a nonprofit that serves Dumas, Texas, and the surrounding rural areas. She has spent nearly 10 years working on hiring and retaining nurses, including implementing scholarship programs to help local students through nursing school. Everyone was paid a full salary throughout the pandemic whether they were scheduled to work or not — an incentive, Crow hoped, to stay. “We’re lucky here in Dumas,” she told me. The hospital has the backing of a foundation that helps with funding. During the pandemic, Crow has managed to increase her staff and now has the ability to open every bed in the hospital. “By staffing up, it gives me the opportunity to grow nurse leaders,” Crow said. “Is it an expensive gamble? Yes. Will it pay off in the end? Yes.”

Other rural hospitals, however, will continue to struggle. Without state support, many can’t afford to pay the higher wages that nurses are commanding. Fewer patients are insured, and many are older, their illnesses more severe. And experienced nurses are continuing to leave for other, lower-stress jobs. There are around 153,000 new nurses being licensed every year, but based on projected demand, it will not be enough.

For Barraza, each new spike in Covid patients seems to happen overnight. He may know a surge is coming. He may worry about families gathering for the holidays, but the influx always feels sudden. In the fall, Covid cases in Amarillo dropped, and the hospital was assigned fewer state-subsidized nurses. But the moment the travelers started to leave, a wave of new Covid cases began to fill the hospital’s beds. Northwest scrambled to bring in travelers again. Then the Omicron variant arrived. The hospital’s exhausted nurses went into overdrive. In late December, Shadix texted me a GIF of an exploding house.

“It’s bad,” she said. “But it’s fine. We’re fine.” There were new nurses in the medical intensive-care unit, people who had just graduated, and Shadix was watching them flounder. “It’s a sink-or-swim situation,” she said. “And you learn to swim really quickly, because otherwise, people die.” She had taken on many of the hard conversations with families — telling them that their loved ones would probably not make it. “They started calling me the hospice queen,” she said grimly. Families were allowed to enter the I.C.U.s, and Shadix let them, hoping that once they saw how bad things were — how low the quality of life was for their family members — they would start to let them go. Early in the pandemic, Shadix told me, nurses in the M.I.C.U. tried to stay positive, to offer family members a ray of hope until the end. Now they are more realistic. They need to set expectations.

By January, Northwest had made appeals to the regional advisory council and FEMA for more nurses. Covid patients were filling up the emergency room and surgical floor. At one point, Brian Weis, the chief medical officer, knew of 43 patients in rural hospitals waiting for a transfer. Around 75 staff members at Northwest were in quarantine. While travel and military nurses began arriving, core staff continued leaving. Dellani Spradling, a charge nurse in the M.I.C.U. who never anticipated leaving, abruptly resigned in early February. Another Northwest nurse took a traveling job that moved him to the hospital across the street.

Shadix hopes to be a traveler again. She loves the physicians she works with at Northwest — she knows what labs they need and what questions they’re going to ask. But staying doesn’t make sense. “Here you are, killing yourself for five days making pennies,” she said, “versus working four days or three days making three times what you’re making right now.” Once Shadix goes, some of the longest-serving nurses in the M.I.C.U. will be travelers.

Many nurses are hoping to move on from the I.C.U. entirely. Kenea is starting the nurse-anesthetist program in May. Shadix is taking classes toward her nurse practitioner’s license. “Maybe once this is all over and done with, I’ll come back to the I.C.U. and take my normal patients,” she told me. “But if I never have to see another N95 mask in my life, I will not be sad.”

Barraza is hanging on for now, providing as much continuity as he can. In December, he was working six days a week. The C.I.C.U. was so full of Covid patients that it couldn’t take transfers from the emergency room. “We have beds; we just don’t have the ability to staff them,” he told me. “If we do bring them in, we just overwhelm people even more and possibly push them out the door.”

Barraza has begun taking patients himself in addition to overseeing all the nurses in his unit. He tries to take his candy cart down to the nurses in the emergency room now — he knows they are tired, too. Emergency-department doctors are in such huge demand in smaller hospitals that Weis recalled at least one at Northwest who was contacted and told to name his price.

As the new year started, however, even Barraza was beginning to fray at the edges. He has been having trouble falling asleep. He passes out on his couch most nights. “I lay there, and I see the people that I saw all day and the people that I saw before. I try to keep myself centered and not dwell on it too long, because it puts me in a low place.” He thinks, instead, of his staff. He thinks of the nurses who have made it out. He thinks of a patient who recently recovered. He tries to relax, but sometimes his body won’t let him forget.

Lately, as he tries to fall asleep, he has been feeling the phantom pressure of a hand in his — the feeling of a patient about to be intubated, another frightened person on the edge of life and death. “You get all these sensations and feelings,” he told me. “Feeling them grasp you, and feeling their grasp letting go when the medication hits them.”

Lauren Hilgers is a writer based in New York. She is the author of “Patriot Number One: A Chinese Rebel Comes to America.” George Etheredge is a New York City based photographer raised in North Carolina. He was recognized as one of “The 30: New and Emerging Photographers to Watch in 2020.”

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Home > Blog > Assessing the Value: Was Travel Nursing Worth It in 2023, and What’s the Outlook for 2024?

Assessing the Value: Was Travel Nursing Worth It in 2023, and What’s the Outlook for 2024?

September 26, 2023 by Voyage Healthcare

Travel nursing, a profession that flourished with demands for healthcare flexibility and a growing trend of nomadic living, was undeniably a popular career choice in 2023. The pertinent question, as we step into 2024, is whether the pursuit was worth it for those who embraced this dynamic career, and what the future holds for travel nursing.

Travel nursing involves registered nurses taking up temporary assignments in various locations, often filling in gaps where nursing staff is in high demand. This career path offers an opportunity to explore different parts of the country or even the world, all while gaining diverse clinical experience. The profession offers a blend of adventure, learning, and financial rewards, making it a sought-after career choice for many nurses.

The Rising Trend of Travel Nursing

Historical Growth

Travel nursing, as an occupation, emerged as a response to nursing shortages and evolved significantly over the years. Historically, during the early 1980s, the concept of travel nursing originated to address regional shortfalls and cater to seasonal population fluctuations. The industry’s growth trajectory since then has been remarkable, underpinned by an ever-increasing demand for healthcare services and a need for specialized nursing skills across various geographical locations.

Current Demand and Supply Dynamics

Fast forward to 2023, the travel nursing sector is experiencing an unprecedented boom. The ongoing global health challenges, notably the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, have amplified the requirement for skilled nursing professionals across the globe. Hospitals and healthcare facilities are grappling with increased patient loads, and the specialized skills of travel nurses have become invaluable in ensuring that quality care is uncompromised.

Current market dynamics showcase a supply-demand mismatch, where the demand for travel nurses far outweighs the supply. This imbalance has led to competitive remunerations, enhanced benefits, and varied opportunities, making travel nursing a highly attractive career option. The flexibility and autonomy associated with this career are further fuelling its popularity among the nursing community, especially among those seeking diverse experiences and work-life balance.

Predictions for 2023 and Beyond

Analyzing the current trends, 2023 is poised to be a year of substantial opportunities and growth for travel nursing. The ongoing healthcare developments, demographic shifts, and increasing healthcare needs predict a sustained demand for travel nurses. Advancements in telemedicine and digital health platforms will likely further integrate travel nursing into the broader healthcare ecosystem, offering more diverse and remote opportunities.Looking ahead to 2024, industry analysts predict sustained demand for travel nurses. The ongoing evolution of healthcare needs, coupled with the desire for flexible staffing solutions, will continue to drive opportunities for travel nurses.

However, the transient nature of travel nursing also brought forth challenges, particularly concerning job security and work-life balance. Some travel nurses expressed concerns about the unpredictability of assignments and the potential impact on their long-term career trajectories. Balancing the demands of frequent travel with personal life and relationships was another area that required navigation and adaptation.

Why Consider Travel Nursing?

In a dynamic world, the allure of travel nursing comes from its unique blend of professional development, adventure, and financial incentives. But what makes it particularly appealing in 2023 and beyond?

Financial Rewards

One of the standout benefits of travel nursing is the financial reward. Travel nurses often earn competitive salaries, and the chance to work overtime can further boost income. Let’s explore some high-paying contracts with Voyage Healthcare:

• Pay: $2,495/wk (36 hrs)
• Duration: 13 weeks
• Shift: 3×12’s Flex
• Pay: Starting $2,336/wk (36 hrs)
• Shift: 3×12 Nights
• Pay: Starting $1,799 (36 hrs)
• Pay: Starting $4,880 (36 hrs)
• Shift: 3×12 Days

These contracts showcase the lucrative opportunities available, making the financial aspect of travel nursing quite enticing.

Flexibility and Adventure

Beyond the paycheck, travel nursing provides a sense of adventure and flexibility. The ability to choose assignments in various locations allows nurses to explore new cities, experience diverse cultures, and meet different people. This variety not only keeps the job exciting but also fosters personal growth.

Building a Diverse Skill Set

Travel nursing enables nurses to work in different healthcare settings, from large urban hospitals to rural community clinics. This exposure helps in building a diverse skill set, making travel nurses adaptable and highly sought after in the industry.

Real-Life Examples

Across the globe, many travel nurses have found fulfillment and success in their careers. They’ve explored breathtaking landscapes, immersed themselves in diverse communities, and have made a significant impact on the lives of their patients, all while advancing their nursing skills.

Challenges and How to Overcome Them

Like any profession, travel nursing comes with its set of challenges, such as adjusting to new environments and dealing with the uncertainty of temporary assignments. However, with the right mindset and preparation, these challenges can turn into growth opportunities.

Addressing Common Concerns

Job security.

Job security is a critical concern for individuals contemplating a career in travel nursing, given the contractual nature of assignments. However, the skyrocketing demand for healthcare services, especially post the global health crises, has made travel nursing one of the more secure professions in the healthcare sector. The ongoing shortages of skilled nursing staff across various geographical locations have led to a constant and increasing demand for travel nurses. While individual assignments may be temporary, the abundance of opportunities available means that travel nurses often have the next assignment lined up well before the current one concludes, contributing to consistent employment and income.

Work-Life Balance

Work-life balance is another common concern, given the variable and sometimes unpredictable working hours associated with nursing. Travel nursing, however, offers a unique advantage in this regard. The flexibility to choose assignments, control over the duration and location of the job, and the ability to take extended breaks between assignments contribute to a better work-life balance. Moreover, travel nurses can explore new locations, experience diverse cultures, and enjoy recreational activities that a traditional, stationary job might not permit, thereby enhancing life satisfaction and overall well-being.

Benefits and Compensation

In terms of benefits and compensation, travel nurses are often at an advantage compared to their stationary counterparts. Due to the high demand for their specialized skills, travel nurses typically command competitive salaries, often higher than permanent staff. In addition to this, many agencies offer comprehensive benefits packages, including health insurance, retirement plans, housing allowances, and travel reimbursements. These perks not only address the financial aspect but also cater to the holistic needs of travel nurses. Moreover, the opportunity to earn bonuses and overtime can further enhance their earning potential.

In conclusion, travel nursing in 2023 offers a plethora of benefits, from financial rewards with companies like Voyage Healthcare to the thrill of adventure and the chance to build a diverse skill set. And yes, while travel nursing presented its share of challenges in 2023, for many, the rewards and experiences garnered made it worth the journey. The outlook for 2024 remains positive, with continued opportunities and an evolving support landscape for travel nurses. The profession’s dynamism, combined with ongoing efforts to address common concerns, suggests that travel nursing will continue to be a valuable and rewarding career path in the coming year. If you’re ready to kick start or take on your next travel assignment in Tulsa or anywhere else in the US, Voyage Healthcare is here to help! Call them today at 800-798-6035 for more details about travel contracts.

• Registered nurses with at least one year of clinical experience are eligible for travel nursing.
• Typically, assignments last 13 weeks but can vary depending on the contract.
• Yes, travel nurses have the flexibility to choose their preferred assignment locations.
• Most travel nursing agencies offer housing stipends or assistance in finding accommodation.
• Yes, reputable agencies like Voyage Healthcare provide comprehensive benefits to travel nurses.

Read Another Blog Post: Explore the Best Books for Travel Nurses: Unlocking Knowledge and Inspiration

Don’t forget to follow Voyage Healthcare on social media to stay up-to-date on the latest news and information about travel nursing and healthcare. You can find Voyage Healthcare on:

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/voyagehealthcare/

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/Voyagetravel

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/voyage-healthcare/

TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@voyagehealthcare

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Home Clinician Life Blog Travel Nursing Is Travel Nursing Worth It? 8 Reasons to Chart Your Adventure

Travel Nursing

Is Travel Nursing Worth It? 8 Reasons to Chart Your Adventure

January 11, 2024 — 5 min read

Last Updated on February 27, 2024

Chart your adventure and level up in the new year! As we enter 2024, everyone’s starting to ask the same question: Is travel nursing worth it? Spoiler alert: It is!

Imagine a career in healthcare where you could explore parts of the country you never thought you’d see — where you could make your days off feel like a vacation, put more money into savings, open career opportunities, and choose your schedule. It’s all possible with traveling nurse jobs!  

Discover the biggest opportunities to level up your nursing career, and reasons to chart your adventure as a travel nurse.

How Do Traveling Nurse Jobs Work?

First things first: How do travel nurse jobs work? Travel nurses take on short-term assignments in various healthcare facilities across the country. These assignments typically last around 8 to 13 weeks, offering flexibility and the chance to explore different locations.

Once the contract is over, nurses can take a break in between, travel to their next assignment, and start working in a fresh, new environment.

Pro Tip: Many travel nurses work with agencies to help them level up with assignments at top facilities across the country, explore dream destinations, and more!

Level Up: 8 Reasons Why Travel Nursing is Worth It in 2024

Now, is travel nursing worth it, still ? Even as the market begins to stabilize, there are still several opportunities and reasons to seek out traveling nurse jobs in 2024:

You can’t answer the question, “Is travel nursing worth it?” without talking about pay. Travel nurses get paid more than the traditional nursing crew. On average, travel nurses pull in around $2,122 a week. This averages out to $8,211/month or $115,969/year, according to Indeed.com as of December 2023. However, some CareerStaff travel nurses make up to $3,000* weekly! Of course, salaries vary depending on the location of your assignment, travel stipends, and more.

One of the greatest benefits of traveling nurse jobs is the bonuses . Many assignments and agencies offer incentives, tax-free stipends, quick start, and holiday bonuses! This can significantly increase your take-home pay and quality of life as a nurse.

Decreased Burnout & Increased Flexibility

Feeling burnt-out? Traveling nurse jobs open up opportunities to level up your work-life balance , lifestyle freedom, and scheduling flexibility. You can take longer breaks between assignments — maybe even a few weeks off. You decide! Travel nurses can pick when they want to work when working out the contract, too.

Of course, the flexibility of traveling nurse jobs goes beyond time-off and scheduling. It’s also about where you work. You can choose assignments based on weather, personal interests, travel destination goals, or even locations near friends and family across the country. It’s your career on your terms.

New Career Opportunities & Resume-Building Experiences

For many travel nurses, it’s not just about the money. Traveling nurse jobs open doors to new career paths. As you work in different places with different people, you gain different skills , experiences, and knowledge.

The diverse experiences you gain with travel nursing are worth gold to your resume. Employers love seeing that you can thrive in various environments and adapt alongside their teams, making you a standout candidate.

New Connections in Your Career

Travel nurses have the unique opportunity to make friends and build a network across the country. Connect with new people and discover opportunities — it’s a whole world beyond your standard nursing routine.

Building a network in the healthcare industry can create future opportunities, too. Your fellow travel nurses might become lifelong friends or even valuable professional contacts.

Opportunity to Travel

Ready for the fun part? With travel nursing, your days off can turn into mini-vacations at locations worth exploring!

Explore vibrant areas like New York and Pennsylvania with endless things to do, see, and eat. Or, enjoy more small-town charm, history, and the great outdoors of the U.S. in towns within New Hampshire and Rhode Island . The options are endless! Not many jobs let you travel while you work, in and outside of healthcare.

Traveling nurse jobs allow you to experience the rich culture of the U.S. Every state and even city is filled with unique cultures and subcultures. From bustling cities to serene landscapes, your assignments become more than just work — they become unforgettable adventures.

Variety of Lifestyle

Every assignment brings something new for travel nurses: A new specialty, a new workplace, and a new home to explore. Say goodbye to routine boredom. It’s a lifestyle that keeps both work and life interesting. The variety and flexibility that come with traveling nurse jobs can help reduce burnout and keep your day-to-day interesting.

Personal Growth

For travel nurses, what you learn on the job goes beyond work. Adaptability, independence, cultural skills — it’s not just professional growth. You can become a more confident person, too. The challenges you overcome and the skills you develop make you more resilient, adaptable, and self-assured.

Travel nurses can also gain cultural competence as they build relationships with patients and colleagues across the U.S.

Travel Nurse Agencies Take Care of Everything for You

Let’s talk logistics. Moving can be stressful, right? Not as much for travel nurses. Agencies like CareerStaff handle it all — finding the positions, stipends, and negotiations, making travel nursing all the more worth it. They take the stress out of some of the most daunting parts of relocating.

How to Find Traveling Nurse Jobs

So, is travel nursing worth it? Yes! With more money, flexibility, career options, travel perks, and personal growth, it’s still one of the most exciting nursing opportunities in 2024. If you’re thinking of level up in your nursing career now, travel nursing jobs might just be the adventure you’re looking for.

Ready to chart your adventure with travel nursing? Search available travel nurse jobs , or Quick Apply below to get connected with a CareerStaff recruiter today!

Chart Your Adventure Now: Travel Nurse Jobs

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Is Travel Nursing Worth It?

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Travel nursing can be an extremely lucrative and rewarding career, but many nurses are asking, is travel nursing worth it ?

My short answer is yes, travel nursing is worth it . However, due to the recent pay caps and internal travel nursing on the rise the full answer is a bit longer, and more complicated. Today I’m going to be exploring whether or not being a travel nurse is worth it, and what the pros and cons are.

My travel nurse journey started just about 2 years ago. And since, I have had no regrets. There have been a lot of new things I have seen, learned, and gotten to experience. However, there are some things that make me think whether or not it’s still worth it today?

Pros of Travel Nursing

Cons of travel nursing, is travel nursing worth it (long answer), why travel nurse.

Travel nursing is becoming increasingly popular among younger nurses, as well as more senior nurses. It is a way for RN’s to make more money, have a more flexible schedule, and theoretically have a better career. While these can be true in some cases, it simply isn’t always the case.

Many people start travel nursing to make more money . Travel nurses can, on average, make around $2,500-5,000 per week, with some of the highest paid specialties reaching over $8,000 per week. This is a significant increase over the standard average nursing salary of $75,000 per year ( source ).

Additionally, travel nurses are typically on 13-week contracts. This means that they have a lot of flexibility between contracts or even when negotiating time off. A lot of nurses will have restrictions on how much vacation time they can take, so this is a big win in a staff nurse’s eyes.

• Typically A LOT more money
• Better schedule
• A lot of flexibility
• If you don’t like an assignment, you don’t have to go back
• Meet new people
• See new processes
• Potential travel far from your home
• No/minimal benefits
• Usually no retirement
• Usually no Paid Time Off (PTO)
• Put on hard assignments that none of the staff want
• Potentially given shifts none of the staff want
• Uncertainty of the next assignment
• Always working with new/different people

The pros and cons of travel nursing are plentiful. You can easily argue both sides. But, in my experience I think that it is worth it to at least try.

One of the big misconceptions about travel nursing is that you have to “travel”. A lot of assignments are local. This means that you don’t have to travel very far. Although they are close, you probably won’t get to take advantage of some tax savings. But, you’ll still get paid more!

In the end, is travel nursing worth it ? Yes it is worth it for the improved lifestyle and monetary aspects. I recently got to meet up with some fellow classmates from nursing school, and every single one of them was travel nursing. Travel nursing has become a staple in the nurse community and vital for hospitals to operate.

It is crazy to think that none of my friends work regular staff jobs, but at the same time, that’s the way the market is going. Why work a staff job when you can get paid 5x-6x more for the same top?

The biggest reason people say is they have kids or a family. Well, you can easily work a local contract for more money and still see your family just as much or even more than you do now! From a retirement or benefits perspective, it sucks not having the lush hospital benefits we’ve become accustomed to. However, you make way more money , so just pay for them out of pocket.

At the end of the day, I don’t think travel nursing is for everyone. There are definitely good reasons why some people might not want to leave their positions. However, if you are even remotely thinking about attempting to travel nurse, then I would highly recommend trying it out.

Worse comes to worse, you can go right back to your old job or apply for one of the several thousands of other vacant nurse jobs. The best part about being a nurse is that we are in very high demand. So, you have a lot of negotiating power – use it!

If you are thinking about travel nursing and don’t know how to start, I wrote a big guide on How to Start Travel Nursing !

Striving to help nurses and nursing students succeed.

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Is Travel Nursing Worth it in 2024?

• B Caleb Williams, RN, CEN, TCRN
• Last Updated: January 23, 2024

Travel nursing is a growing area of opportunity for nurses, accelerated by the nursing shortage . Travel nursing has always been an exciting opportunity, offering nurses the ability to see new parts of the country and gain experience working in new environments. Since the COVID-19 pandemic , however, demand for travel nurses has been volatile but still higher than ever.

Whether you’re a new nurse contemplating your future career path or an experienced nurse looking to optimize your potential, this article will provide valuable insights into the world of travel nursing. Understanding the myriad of opportunities that travel nursing offers will help you make the best decision about whether it is for you.

What is Travel Nursing?

Travel nursing is a unique career path for nurses, where nurses take on temporary positions in various locations, typically hospitals or healthcare facilities. These assignments typically last for 13 weeks but can last from just a few weeks to several months. Facilities use travel nurses to fill temporary gaps in their staffing, often paying more for these nurses due to the urgency of their needs.

Travel nursing offers nurses the opportunity to explore new regions, experience different healthcare settings, and develop a diverse skill set. Nurses who travel are often employed by staffing agencies that specialize in placing them in these short-term roles, providing a flexible and dynamic career option.

The appeal of travel nursing lies in its unique blend of professional development, personal adventure, and financial reward. Nurses have the chance to work in a variety of clinical environments, from rural community hospitals to large urban medical centers, gaining exposure to different patient populations and healthcare practices. This not only broadens their clinical experience but also enhances their adaptability and problem-solving skills, valuable assets in the nursing profession.

The Demand for Travel Nurses

While demand for travel nurses isn’t as high as it was at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has seen a significant uptick in recent years and continues to grow in 2024. The nursing field, in general, is growing rapidly at 6% per year . Travel nursing is growing even faster within this overall field. Several factors contribute to this trend, including:

• A growing need for nurses specialized in specific fields
• Hospital or nurse strikes
• A growing population of elderly patients requiring care
• The general nursing shortage that continues to worsen

Hospitals and healthcare facilities turn to travel nurses to fill these gaps, ensuring they can continue delivering quality patient care. While in an ideal world hospitals would eventually never need travel nurses, the growing nursing shortage and variable needs hospitals have almost guarantees that the demand for travel nurses will only expand in 2024 and beyond. 

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Demand

The COVID-19 pandemic had a large impact on travel nursing, with the demand for travel nurses spiking tremendously during the pandemic. In some hospitals, travel nurses made as much as $250 per hour due to the extreme demand for nursing skills coupled with the severe strain on the nursing workforce.

If you’re considering travel nursing, it is important to know that the extraordinary demand for travel nurses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has subsided. While it was possible to make over $10,000 during the height of demand, you are very unlikely to see travel assignments at even half of this in 2024.  While the inflated wages some nurses saw during the pandemic are no more, it did cause lasting strain and accelerate burnout among nurses. This has led the demand for travel nurses to plateau at a higher level than prior to the pandemic, with travel nurses making more and finding themselves more highly desired than prior to COVID-19.

Navigating the 2024 Travel Nursing Market

For those considering a career in travel nursing, you don’t have to figure out the market for travel nursing on your own. Travel nurses will typically work with a reputable staffing agency that works with hospitals to understand both their needs and the needs of the individual nurses they work with. They will help make nurses aware of potential opportunities and work with them to find the best fit for their plans.

While staffing agencies play an important role in navigating the travel nursing market, understanding the market yourself is also important. The demand for travel nurses varies by location, specialty , and time of year, so staying informed about these trends is key. Networking with other travel nurses and joining professional groups can provide insights into the best opportunities and the most reputable staffing agencies.

It’s important to consider the practical aspects of travel nursing, such as obtaining the necessary licenses for different states and understanding the benefits packages offered by agencies. Travel nursing compensation often differs from most staff nursing positions to offer tax savings. For example, travel nurses may receive a large housing allowance that is taxed at a lower rate than their wages.

The Pros and Cons of Travel Nursing in 2024

Travel nursing in 2024, like any career decision, comes with its set of advantages and challenges. On the positive side, travel nursing offers flexibility and the opportunity for personal and professional growth that cannot be found in most staff nurse positions. Advantages of travel nursing include:

• Higher potential earnings compared to most comparable permanent positions.
• Flexibility in choosing assignments.
• Exposure to diverse clinical settings.
• Opportunity to avoid long-term obligations in suboptimal positions.
• Ability to visit new places without paying for travel.

While there is comparably little downside, the potential cons are worth evaluating before making a decision. Travel nursing can involve a lot of uncertainties and require a high level of adaptability. These potential downsides include:

• The stress of frequent relocations.
• Variable workload and expectations.
• Potential for feelings of disconnection from a stable social circle.

If you’re uncertain if travel nursing is for you, one of the great things about this career move is that you can try it out without any long-term commitment. You can take on a short, three-month assignment to see what it is like, then simply do something else if you don’t like it. Most nurses who start to travel, however, get hooked quickly to the travel lifestyle and benefits traveling offers.

Starting a Career As a Travel Nurse

Embarking on a career as a travel nurse does have some basic requirements that you should consider. It’s important to ensure you have the necessary qualifications and experience, as most agencies require at least a year of clinical experience. Additional clinical specialization can also make obtaining certain positions easier. 

The key steps to beginning your travel nursing career include:

• Getting licensed – To be a travel nurse, the first obvious step is becoming a nurse . It is important to remember that you will need to be licensed in every state you’d like to travel in. A compact state license 
• Gain experience – Travel nursing requires the ability to “hit the ground running.” You’ll typically have a short orientation and be expected to learn each facility’s workflow quickly. Because of this, having at least a year of experience is almost always required.
• Build a strong resume – Part of travel nursing involves having your experience and background evaluated for each new position. Because of this, it’s important to put some time and effort into building your resume and keeping it up to date.
• Connect with a staffing agency – Travel nursing positions are typically only accessible through staffing agencies. These agencies make money each time they place a nurse and are very incentivized to build good relationships with nurses. They should help guide you through the process and make it easy to get started.

What Does 2024 Hold for You?

2024 is a great time to get into travel nursing. There has never been a better way for nurses to see the country while also increasing their earning potential. This unique career path also offers flexibility, diversity in work environments, and the opportunity for substantial professional growth. 

If you’re someone who thrives in dynamic settings and is looking for a non-traditional nursing role that gives you the freedom to see new places, travel nursing could be exactly what you’re looking for! The only way to truly know is to try it out for yourself.

Caleb is a nurse leader and an experienced medical writer. His academic background includes nursing at a State University of New York school and biology and neuroscience at the University of Pennsylvania. With multiple advanced certifications in emergency, pediatric, and trauma nursing, Caleb’s clinical experience includes supervisory roles within ICU and ER settings and executive roles in healthcare startups. Caleb is a prolific medical writer, having written thousands of medical articles and papers covering a wide variety of healthcare topics. His writing experience includes creating content for dozens of entities, ranging from startups to Fortune 1000 companies. Caleb grew up in New Zealand and emigrated to the United States in 2008. He has settled in Boise, ID, with his wife and two daughters.

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13 Pros and Cons of Being a Travel Nurse

So, if you have found yourself here, then you must be considering a career as a travel nurse. For starters, having a job as a travel nurse will enable you to see the country and all that it has to offer. This may sound like a dream to some people, but as with any job, you will find pros and cons, and travel nursing is no different. Mapping out the pros and cons of being a travel nurse can be a tedious endeavor, but rest assured I am here to help you out with that feat. If you keep reading below, you will find the top 13 pros and cons of being a travel nurse. This article will surely help you decide if this is the right career choice for you.

TOP CONS OF BEING A TRAVEL NURSE

1. you will always find yourself in an unfamiliar environment., 2. you will always be the new guy., 3. varying pay rates, 4. what do you do when your contract has ended, 5. not the best work assignments, 6. license issues, 7. floating, 8. your contract can be canceled., 9. you may not have your dream schedule., 10. you may become homesick., 11. where are you going to live, 12. your taxes could be a nightmare., 13. you may not have paid time off., top pros of being a travel nurse, 1. great pay., 2. you will have a tax-free living stipend., 3. you get the chance to travel., 4. you will make new friends., 5. you can avoid all the politics at work., 6. you will gain experience., 7. flexibility, 8. you can try before you dive all in., 9. travel nursing can be a networking event., 10. you can choose your adventure., 11. you will learn life skills., 12. job security, 13. reimbursement, the bottomline.

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How long is this going to last?

Specialties Travel

Published Nov 25, 2021

• by Rionoir, ADN, RN Specializes in Mental Health. 674 Posts

Sorry if I didn't scroll through far enough to find another thread, but what is everyone's thought on how long these ridiculous contract rates are going to last? I couldn't resist taking a local travel gig after seeing the rates and being told "as much overtime as you want". LOL 

• + Add a Comment

1 Article; 5,774 Posts

My guess is a minimum year longer. Long term staff shortages seem inevitable and while not a slam dunk, should raise staff pay as well. Of course, the rules of supply and demand do not apply directly to staff pay as it does for travelers.

paintedlady

The hospitals are not going to let nurses be out of their control for long, read this:.

February, the American Hospital Association called on the Federal Trade commission to examine temporary staffing agencies' pay practices and prices for travel nurses, noting that some had tripled their rates for travel nurses. 

"Such outrageous rate hikes appear to be naked attempts to exploit the pandemic by charging supracompetitive prices to desperate hospitals," AHA General Counsel Melinda R. Hatton wrote to Rebecca Slaughter, acting FTC chair. "While the nurse staffing agency industry too often blames hospitals for driving up the rates, the fact is that hospitals are in dire need of nursing staff to care for their patients and have little choice but to pay the rates demanded and refrain from complaining publicly for fear of being cut off from the supply of travel nurses by staffing agencies that set the prices." 

The California Hospital Association on Sept. 15 put forth a similar request, asking California Attorney General Rob Bonta to investigate travel nurse companies for anticompetitive pricing. The association noted that "skyrocketing prices" affect hospitals in poorer communities and communities of color the most because they are less likely to be able to afford the high rates.

pixie6089, BSN

There is no telling, so enjoy it while you can.

bluescrubs, ADN, ASN, RN

Hopefully the rates last for at least another year or 2. While I do not like what Covid has done to healthcare it has made a lot of nurses realize their worth. Some left to travel to get paid what they felt they deserved working in a pandemic and some left the profession all together. For all the work that is demanded why are nurses pay so low? Even experienced nurses pay is crap. I made the same amount at a PRN job with a nurse that had 10+ years as an RN. But I agree to enjoy it while it last. I do know that when the rates are falling to 1-2k I won't do beside anymore. 

2 hours ago, bluescrubs said: For all the work that is demanded why are nurses pay so low?

Primarily a lack of unions. As with a lot of the work force. For nurses there are clear compensation differences between unionized areas and the rest of the country.

Kruical just posted crisis needs again for TX this AM. Favorites is posting crisis needs for CA today. While I'm not happy about COVID, with each new variant, crisis rates will be around to stay.

I'm personally taking a local travel assignment for $115/hr $172.50 OT. I'm a TX resident so no Kruical (this time around) and if I didn't have the local gig lined up, I'd been on a plane to CA.

My goal for this time around is to invest in crypo and hopefully retire from bedside by the year's end. 

Total solar eclipse forecast shows who has best chance for clear skies on April 8th

A clear sky is key to watching the april 8th total solar eclipse. the fox forecast center has put together a forecast showing areas more or less likely to be impacted by cloud cover during the eclipse..

Widespread cloud cover in southern Plains could threaten Monday's total solar eclipse

It'll be a nail-biter for millions of Americans as they look up on Monday afternoon. The FOX Forecast Center is tracking where clouds could spoil the view for America's total solar eclipse.

Forecasts for the total solar eclipse still show it'll be a nail-biter for good viewing conditions in parts of the southern and central U.S. , while much of the Mississippi Valley, the Ohio Valley the Northeast and New England have more optimistic forecasts for less cloud coverage.

Based on the latest information, we're closely monitoring the Southern Plains states where computer modeling continues to show the threat of widespread cloud cover. 

On April 8th, a total solar eclipse will be visible across parts of Mexico , Canada and the U.S., from Texas to Maine . A total solar eclipse happens when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth , completely blocking the face of the Sun for several minutes. It will be the last time a total solar eclipse passes over a large part of the U.S. until 2044 .

To experience the full eclipse, you'll need a pair of solar glasses and to be located along the more than 100-mile-wide path during totality. A clear sky is also key to watching a total solar eclipse . 

TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE LIVE TRACKER: CLOUD FORECASTS FOR CITIES, STATES IN PATH OF TOTALITY

The FOX Forecast Center has put together the cloud cover forecast shown on the map below, showing areas with an overcast sky, many clouds or few clouds during the eclipse. As the eclipse nears, computer forecast models will improve and be able to give forecasters a better idea of what the sky will look like on the big day.

PLANNING AN ECLIPSE ROAD TRIP? AAA SHARES TRAVEL ADVICE, SAFETY TIPS AHEAD OF APRIL 8TH

With April 8th just days away, the FOX Forecast Center says the trend for clearer skies is holding at the northeastern end of the path of totality, but some clouds may still be floating around areas near and downwind of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

Buffalo , New York , and Cleveland , Ohio, is currently forecast to have some clouds on the day of the event, but less cloud cover is expected to the north and east. The forecast is looking favorable for Caribou , Maine and Burlington , Vermont, among the last cities to see the eclipse in the U.S. before the path of totality heads into Atlantic Canada.

For the Midwest , te forecast is looking better, with just a few clouds around Paducah , Kentucky , and near St. Louis but will increase closer to the Great Lakes region.

Severe thunderstorms possible in South on eclipse day

Many of the prime viewing spots in Texas, including Dallas , Austin and San Antonio , are currently forecast to have overcast skies or many clouds may have trouble from clouds on April 8th.

NOAA's Storm Prediction Center has highlighted parts of North and East Texas, southeastern Oklahoma , northern Louisiana and southern Arkansas for a potential severe weather threat on the day of the eclipse .

This risk zone includes the Dallas - Fort Worth Metroplex and other towns in the southern Plains and lower Mississippi Valley along the path of totality.

Severe weather threat remains for Dallas area for Monday's total solar eclipse

NOAA's Storm Prediction Center has maintained a severe weather risk on Monday in parts of northeastern Texas, including Dallas, where millions hope to see the total solar eclipse that afternoon.

According to the FOX Forecast Center, the good news is that the severe weather may not arrive until late afternoon after the eclipse is over. Totality in Dallas begins at 1:40 p.m. CT. However, eclipse viewers will likely be dealing with heavy traffic for hours after the eclipse, which could coincide with thunderstorms .  

DALLAS AREA IN EARLY SEVERE WEATHER THREAT WARNING FOR MONDAY'S TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE

It's also important to note that even if it's cloudy, you will likely still see at least some of the eclipse. 

The details will become clearer as the event draws closer, so stay tuned, the FOX Forecast Center says.

WHAT HAPPENS TO CLOUDS DURING A SOLAR ECLIPSE? NEW RESEARCH MAY SURPRISE YOU

Check back with FOX Weather for updates to the forecast as April 8th approaches, and add your viewing location to the "Events" tab in the FOX Weather app.

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What is an aftershock? This is what may follow the earthquake felt in NJ and NYC.

A 4.8 magnitude earthquake rattled New Jersey and New York City residents on Friday morning, with reports of shaking furniture and floors. No major disruptions or damage have been reported in the area.

Experts told USA TODAY that earthquakes are common in this region, but usually happen at a lower magnitude. It's unlikely a larger quake will follow, but officials are warning of possible aftershocks.

Wondering what that means? We’re answering your questions about the behavior of earthquakes, including tips on how to stay safe. 

What is an aftershock?

Aftershocks are small earthquakes that occur in the days, months or years in the general area following an earthquake. Aftershocks are minor readjustments made near the faults , or areas where stress occurs during the earthquake.

Aftershocks can occur in the thousands and can still be damaging or deadly. In earthquakes, the “mainshock” is the largest activity felt during an earthquake. 

Seismologists primarily use Bath’s law, Gutenberg-Richter law and Omori’s law to describe the behavior of aftershocks.

• Bath’s law says that aftershocks will typically be about 1.2 magnitude units smaller than the mainshock .
• Omori’s law says the number of aftershocks will decrease as time passes, according to a seismology lab from the University of California, Berkeley.  

Aftershocks are not to be confused with swarms , which are sequences of small earthquakes associated with geothermal activity with no identifiable mainshock.

Live updates: 4.8 magnitude earthquake in NYC, New Jersey

What's the chance of an aftershock?

Any time there's an earthquake , one concern is that it was merely a foreshock to a bigger quake that's coming.

Globally, the probability one earthquake will be followed by a large earthquake within 3 days is somewhere just over 6%, according to USGS . That means whenever there's an earthquake, there's about a 94% chance that it wasn't a foreshock and there won't be any more quakes linked to it.

The numbers are a little different for California, which is very seismically active. There, about half of the biggest earthquakes were preceded by foreshocks, according to USGS. But that means half were not.

Unfortunately, it's impossible to know if any one quake is a foreshock.

What is a foreshock?

Foreshocks come before large earthquakes, in the same location. Sometimes a foreshock may be identified incorrectly as the mainshock until a larger one occurs after it. 

Neither foreshocks nor aftershocks can be bigger than the mainshock. 

Why does the Earth shake when there’s an earthquake?

Earthquakes are caused by a slip on a fault, which is a fracture zone between two blocks of rock. The tectonic plates move, but their edges remain in place until this slip, when the stress overcomes the friction that normally holds them there. This causes the rest of the block to move and causes waves of energy that travel through the earth’s crust. These seismic waves shake the earth as they move through it. 

What to do during an earthquake:

Staying vigilant during an earthquake is important, especially when it comes to aftershocks that may cause damage after the mainshock. Here are tips from the California Geological Survey to keep in mind:

During an earthquake:

• Indoors: Stay indoors and away from exterior walls, glass, heavy furniture, fireplaces and appliances. Avoid elevators, windows and doorways. 
• Outdoors: Stay in the open if you’re outside, away from buildings, powerlines or other falling hazards.
• Driving: Move the car out of traffic and stop, avoiding trees, light posts, signs and powerlines or anything that could fall, like bridges or underpasses.
• Mountains: Watch out for potential landslides and get to high ground.
• Crowded place: Avoid panicking and rushing, stay low and cover your head and neck with youtr arms

After an earthquake:

• Listen to the radio for instructions, especially about aftershocks
• Check for fire hazards and fire
• Avoid driving to keep streets clear for emergency vehicles
• Check for damage in your home and for structures that are about to fall
• Share your location with family and friends

How strong is a 4.8 earthquake?: Quake magnitudes explained

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Contributing: Elizabeth Weise