There’s a Whole New World on (Almost) Your Doorstep
Are you nervous of the word ‘travel’ in travel nurse? You’ve heard that travel nurses:
- Get higher pay
- Enjoy flexibility
- Meet new people
- Learn new skills
- Enjoy a healthy work/life balance
But you can’t (or don’t want to) leave your home for months at a time. Perhaps you have children or pets at home. Maybe you’re caring for a relative. It could be that you simply don’t want to leave home for long periods of time.
But you can still have the best of both worlds.
Travel nursing doesn’t mean you have to pack up and travel across the country for months at a time, leaving your home life behind.
In this article we’ll look at the pros and cons of local travel nursing, and how the perfect work/life balance is closer to home than you think.
The 50-Mile Myth
You may believe that to enjoy the benefits of travel nursing, you need to travel at least 50 miles away from home.
This is not actually a rule, but among the criteria of some hospitals when looking for travel nurses, to prevent their own staff within their own vicinity from applying for the role.
While you must check your own personal eligibility for your individual circumstances, the key point here is that you can absolutely work as a local travel nurse within your own state.
The Cons of Local Travel Nursing
Let’s get the negatives out of the way, and look at a couple of points you’ll need to be aware of when travel nursing locally:
- You won’t get to see as much – but we’re OK with this, because we want to stay local. (And perhaps travel in our own free time!)
- Less opportunity – if your parameters are reduced, so too will the available assignments. You’ll also have reduced changes in demographics and patient experience.
- Longer commute – ‘local’ can still mean you have to travel to the other side of the state every day, or even set up camp weekly or even during your contract term.
The Pros of Local Travel Nursing
You may already know the perks of travel nursing in general, so let’s examine why local travel nursing could be the answer to your personal job needs.
· You can still see to your hobbies and responsibilities
If you thought you couldn’t earn more and be a travel nurse because you have pets, or a family, or a poorly relative who relies on your support and care, then you’re wrong.
When you work as a travel nurse locally, you benefit from the best of both worlds. You’ll be earning more money, and still (usually) come home after each shift to tend to your home life and loves.
· You can still keep your day job
It is being done already by many local travel nurses! They keep their day jobs and agree to local travel nursing assignments that allow them to earn extra at a higher rate.
If you’re saving up for that special day, or your own home, or you want to see your travel fund overflow, get travel nursing locally, achieve your dreams, and gain experience along the way.
· No homesickness
Some people just don’t like leaving home for long periods of time. This stops them from considering travel nursing. Afterall, feeling so down will affect your wellbeing and your performance at work.
But if you know you’re coming home at the end of your shift or in a couple of days, you’ll feel motivated. Friends and family will be close by, which is a reassuring feeling that will ensure your mental wellbeing is strong and supported.
· Housing stipends
If you don’t require paid-for housing because you’re local, then this may get accrued into your paycheck. A handsome salary just got even more rewarding!
· Flexibility
With all this comes flexibility. A huge benefit to 96% of American workers, according to a Harvard Business Review study.
When nursing consists of rigid shift work, flexibility of travel nursing is brilliant. But when you’re local travel nursing, you have much more say in when and where you work.
Summing Up
As you can see, there are many more pros than cons when it comes to local travel nursing. And you don’t have to disappear for months on end to achieve them.
Start your new life and fulfil those dreams. Contact QS Nurses to learn about the unique benefits we offer in the role of a local travel nurse.