Posted in Hiring Nurses, Hospitals, Nurse Employers, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing Shortage, Travel Nursing
An organization is helping foreign nurses get certification quickly so they can begin to practice in Canada.
The organization, called the CARE Centre for Internationally Educated Nurses, has been around for about a decade.
Even nurses who have had a complete education and plenty of experience have had to start four-year training programs all over again once they relocate to Canada. CARE is doing something about that. (more…)
Posted in Hiring Nurses, Nurse Employers, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing Shortage, Per Diem Nursing, Travel Nursing
This article in Health Leaders Media has an interesting perspective from hospitals regarding controlling nurse labor costs.
It lays out a three-pronged approach to reduce personnel costs for nurses; a new approach to nurse overtime, use of supplemental labor such as from nursing agencies or from an in-house nursing pool, and focusing on retention efforts rather than going through the time and expense of finding and hiring a replacement.
The “Effective use of Supplemental Labor” section discusses the need for nursing agencies, as well as how alternative supplemental labor sources can help with costs:
Many healthcare leaders routinely budget for traveling or per diem nurses, but much of that may be unnecessary, says Hunt. Although there are reasons to use supplemental nurse labor, daily census demands shouldn’t be one of them, she says. Supplemental labor is expensive, she adds, so these nurses should be used to address seasonal volume increases, medical leaves, or to fill in during large training initiatives such as ICD-10.
“I do believe there is a place for supplemental nurses; it’s how you use them. (more…)
Posted in Hiring Nurses, Hospitals, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Nursing School, Nursing Shortage, Travel Nursing
A study has found that nurses tend to find work that is close to the nursing school that they graduated from. This means that areas without nursing schools — such as rural areas — tend to have a harder time finding nurses.
And if there aren’t enough nurses to go around, that has serious implications for the health of the people who live in those areas.
The study found that more than half of all nurses work within 40 miles of the nursing school they graduated from. Additionally, almost 80% of the nurses surveyed stay within the state in which they graduated from high school.
“Given the strong tendency for nurses to practice close to where they attended nursing school and to attend nursing school near where they graduated high school, it’s not surprising that parts of the country with few or no schools of nursing are struggling to find nurses,” (more…)
Posted in Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Travel Nursing
For some people, the thought of traveling to different places, meeting new people and still getting the chance to use their well-developed nursing skills is exciting and attractive. A great sense of adventure combined with a determined attitude make a career as a travel nurse rewarding and fun while still presenting a nurse with the ability to help and heal.
There are many benefits to traveling; one of the most obvious is the increase in pay. Virtually every nurse who travels sees the higher pay rate as the greatest incentive. Even though many people are not terribly excited about leaving home and going to an unfamiliar place for weeks at a time, the money can be a great motivator. (more…)
Posted in Nurse Employers, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Travel Nursing
To launch an ultimately successful job search, you will need to make use of every available resource, including the use of a nurse agency. Listed below are the top seven ways recruiters can provide an added boost to your job search.
Chance to Apply for Non-Advertised Jobs
Job openings are often listed with a nurse agency rather than being posted to the facility web site or advertised on a job board. As a result, if you limit your search to job boards or apply only to facilities directly, you may be missing out on a large number of possible opportunities.
Recruiters Market Candidates
A nurse agency that receives résumés from qualified candidates will match those job seekers to specific facilities. They will take into account the candidates’ professional background or culture and will try to market them by highlighting their relevant qualifications and accomplishments, stressing how these will serve their particular client’s needs.
Embed Keywords (in your resume)
If you have been consistently submitting your résumé but receiving no reply it may well be that it has been screened out by keyword-specific software. (more…)
Posted in Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Travel Nursing
Before the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC), practicing physically or electronically in more than one state meant having to apply for an RN or LPN/VN nursing license in every state in which you practiced. This was a costly and time consuming process. Thanks to the Nurse Licensure Compact, having to apply for and maintain multiple nursing licenses is no longer required for many. This change is making it easier for nurses whose home state is part of the Nurse Licensure Compact to practice in participating states, allowing them the opportunity to broaden their nursing horizons by working in critical nursing shortage areas, as a travel nurse, or electronically in multiple states.
In order to hold a multi-state nursing license, your primary residence must be in one of the compact states. Your primary state of residency is the state in which you pay federal taxes, are registered to vote, and/or hold a driver’s license. (more…)
Posted in Nurse Employers, Nursing, Nursing Jobs, Nursing News, Travel Nursing
Congress is negotiating trillions of dollars in budget cuts as a condition for authorizing a raise in the debt ceiling. The deadline for the raise is August 2nd and, according to the Treasury Department, if the raise is not approved, the U.S. will not be able to pay off its debt obligations.
How does this affect the health care field? A debt ceiling agreement needs to be reached by the deadline in order to avoid a suspension of funding for the millions of patients who rely on Medicare, Medicaid and other federal health care programs. A government cash flow shortfall would become a critical and potentially fatal cash flow shortfall for physician practices and care centers, causing layoffs and limiting how many Medicare and Medicaid patients can be seen. Under these circumstances, some practices may have to close their doors for good.
Earlier this month, the American Nurses Association (ANA) sent a letter to lawmakers in the House and Senate, asking them to oppose the budget proposals that would lead to drastic cuts in these federal programs. (more…)
Posted in Travel Nursing
Editor: Today’s post is from a guest RN writing about her experiences in travel nursing.
I have recently been considering a travel nursing job. I love to travel and there are parts of the country that I have yet to see. I have known a few travel nurses, and they all say the same thing, “I love it!” Never one to get stuck in a rut, I decided to do a little research. I searched the internet and found a wonderful site where I could put in one application and it would be sent to 21 travel nursing agencies. I love efficiency so I decided to do that. Then I wanted to know more of the pros and cons about this type of nursing. Since within minutes of applying, I received several emails and a phone call, I talked to the first recruiter and asked about the benefits and detriments to travel nursing.
The pros were numerous. Travel nurses earn, on average, more than 20% than their hospital-based full-time counterparts. There are bonuses of several thousands of dollars for completing the entire assignment (usually 13 weeks). Travel nurses, because of the bonuses, are able to take off 1-2 weeks, or even an entire month, between assignments (I’m still looking for the downside to that!) Traveling the country, full benefits, no mandatory in-service or staff meetings and no hospital politics. Utopia? (more…)
Posted in Travel Nursing
Editor’s Note: Today’s post is by a guest RN, if you’d like to write for our blog contact us.
I don’t work in my community. I drive 25 miles to the northern end of another county to work as a cardiac nurse. I didn’t think about the location affecting my interaction with patients and other health care staff when I took the position. I didn’t know it could.
When I first began the job, I struggled a bit with spelling of the doctor’s names and learning their specialties. After a year I still have to ask ‘what type of doctor are they?’ Patients refer to their doctors and ask if I’ve ever heard of them, or if I think they are a good doctor. Sometimes they ask me for recommendations of doctors. I smile and say I’m from a different county and am unsure of the best doctors in the area. I have come to know a few of them well enough to know whether or not I trust their judgment, but in any professional setting I would not recommend one over another. (more…)
Posted in Travel Nursing
Many nurses seek employment with nurse staffing agencies as they have can more flexibility in how much they work and where they work. Many healthcare staffing agencies are the providers of choice for long-term care facilities when they are in a pinch during call-offs or as staff members leave their employment. The nurse functions as an employee of the staffing agency. The agency may offer full benefits, paid time off and a powerful advocacy for the nurse choosing to work with them. A major draw for working with an agency is that a nurse may be able to leave an assignment before the completion of an assignment if they find working conditions to be less than desirable. If a nurse is working in an area with an acute shortage of nurses, the wide availability of open nursing positions gives the nurse more options in choosing the places they work. If one position is no longer a viable place to work, there are plenty of other options. (more…)
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