Travel Healthcare Jobs: Market Healthy In April As Seasonal Shift Continues
It’s not just the grass that’s growing greener in April—recruiters and industry insiders say the job market is still quite hot following a job-heavy March. Travel nurses and allied healthcare professional are also officially out of their winter contracts and on the hunt for spring and summer positions, meaning competition has picked up significantly and created a healthy, active market for recruiters and agencies. There are plenty of states to choose from this month for job opportunities, but Florida sticks out as the most odd choice, said David Kinslow, a senior client advisor for LiquidAgents Healthcare. Florida is already one of the most popular destinations for travel healthcare professionals, and as such typically has no problems finding travelers to fill needs especially during summer vacation months. The difference this spring is because of Hurricane Michael, Kinslow said. The Category 4 storm devestated several cities in the Florida panhandle and along the coastline, and many of those communities are still recovering. This has caused serious problems when trying to find housing for travelers, but it has also caused a rare increase in job orders with higher bill rates for the state, Kinslow said. “A lot of the facilities in the panhandle are screaming for help and this also why they’re bumping up their bill rates,” Kinslow said. Travel Healthcare Jobs April 2019 Here’s a quick breakdown of the states and travel healthcare job specialties that are most-in-demand now and are expected to stay popular in April, according to data provided by staffing industry sales and recruiting representatives. Arizona RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ICU. Limited options in other specialties. Allied: Surgical techs (OR, sterile processing) Other Notes: “A new hospital opening in Phoenix has taken full-time staff away from other hospitals. Also, government facilities (Indian Health Service) are needing more help.” Arkansas RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, PCU/IMC, ICU Allied: Respiratory therapists Florida RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ICU, ER Other Notes: “Bill rates are higher in the Florida panhandle where hospitals need the most help. Georgia RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ICU. Limited options in other specialties. Allied: Surgical techs (OR, sterile processing) Other Notes: “Georgia consistently lacks RN staff after the state went compact, so opportunities are regularly available.” Illinois RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, PCU/IMC, ICU Allied: Respiratory therapists Other Notes: “Bill rates have increased to slightly above the national average now, but may come back down as positions are filled.” Indiana RN: Cath Lab, labor and delivery, PICU, PEDS, ER, ICU, telemetry Other Notes: “Not as many job needs in Indiana compared to March, but still plenty to choose from and jobs move quickly.” Kentucky RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, PCU/IMC, ICU Allied: Respiratory therapists Maine RN: Medical-surgical, OR, ICU Allied: Surgical techs (Cath Lab, OR) Other Notes: “Maine is still on fire for jobs this month. Bill rates are up by $10 at least. Portland, Maine has multiple needs. A lot of allied as well, specifically Cath Lab techs.” Michigan RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ICU Allied: Surgical techs (OR, sterile processing) Other Notes: “Warmer weather is coming in and people are venturing out more, so census is picking up at Michigan hospitals.” Missouri RN: OR, ICU, telemetry most in-demand, but all specialties are available. Allied: Respiratory therapist Other Notes: “Bill rates have increased in April, and the candidate pool is steady. St. Louis, Missouri is specifucally increasing for ICU and telemetry needs at decently high bill rates. Also, any and all ER needs are closing quick—we have the nurses but not many jobs, so they fill quickly.” Nevada RN: Medical-surgical, ER, ICU, NICU, PICU, labor and delivery Allied: Rad techs, respiratory therapists, certified surgical techs Other Notes: “Renown Health alone has 47 positions available, but the competition will start to increase as people love Reno in the summertime. It’s best to start looking now.” New Hampshire RN: OR, CVOR, ER, telemetry. Allied: Rad techs Other Notes: “OR is very hot right now and will take nurses at a high bill rate.” (Around $2,000 weekly gross on average) North Carolina RN: Medical-surgical, ER, ICU, NICU, PICU, labor and delivery Allied: Rad techs, respiratory therapists, certified surgical techs Other Notes: “The state has 150 open jobs currently as many facilities have said they have seen a patient census increase. Competition is steady, but travelers should expect it to increase as we get closer to summer since the spring and summer seasons are so enjoyable in North Carolina.” Oklahoma RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ER, OR, ICU Allied: Rad Techs Other Notes: “Job needs are hot when posted. Not a lot of new jobs are posted regularly, but for those that are, calls and interviews will happen ASAP.” South Carolina RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ICU, ER Texas RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, PCU/IMC, ICU Allied: Respiratory therapists Virginia RN: ICU, medical-surgical, telemetry, with a steady increase in ER needs as summer approaches Allied: Surgical assistants, surgical first assistants, certified surgical techs Other notes: “There are lots of needs, jobs are closing fast, and bill rates tend to be higher. We are beginning to see a slow increase in ER needs. Also, we are seeing an increase in allied needs.”
Travel Jobs: Competition Low, Opportunities High In March As Market Moves Into Spring
The travel healthcare job market is affected by a number of economic and environmental factors, but one of the most prevalent forces shifting job demand are the changes in season. As such, the spring season (and March in particular) represents a major transitional period for the market. Travelers are coming off of winter contracts and are looking for new opportunities in northern states that could turn into summer extensions. One could assume this would mean competition for jobs is fierce in March, but Oren Lavi with LiquidAgents Healthcare said the candidate pool is still slim despite the high number of open positions, meaning jobs are staying open for longer and are easier to book. Since the average length of most travel healthcare job contracts lasts 13 weeks, it’s reasonable to think that most travelers would have just finished their winter contracts from December and are now looking for new opportunities at the start of March. However, many travelers avoid working in December because of the holidays and instead wait until January to start a new contract. This means that, while competition is low for now, travelers can expect to see it ramp up towards the end of March and throughout April. “A lot of nurses need to make extension decisions, and once they do, the market will get flooded with available candidates,” Lavi said. Facilities are most committed to finding qualified candidates that are interested in extending through the summer, so travelers who have already found a breezy and adventurous summer vacation destination up north for their next contract are ahead of the curve. Keep an eye on states like Idaho, Maine, New Hampshire, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah and Washington to offer enticing pay packages in March, because they may not stick around as we get closer to summer. Travel Healthcare Jobs March 2019 Here’s a quick breakdown of the states and travel healthcare job specialties that are most-in-demand now and are expected to stay popular in March, according to data provided by staffing industry sales and recruiting representatives. Arkansas RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, step-down/PCU Surgical Tech: OR, Cath Lab Illinois RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, step-down/PCU Surgical Tech: OR, Cath Lab Other Notes: Crisis bill rates were recently implemented at OSF HealthCare facilities in Illinois Indiana RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ER, ICU. Other Notes: Lots of openings in Indiana right now, but facilities are being more picky with candidates, so jobs are not moving as quickly as they did in February. Kentucky RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, step-down/PCU Surgical Tech: OR, Cath Lab Maine RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ER, ICU. Bill rates up by $10 more than usual on average. Other Notes: Maine is on fire—more than 20 medical-surgical and telemetry nurse needs have been posted in the past two weeks. Hospitals are staffing up for summer break. Nevada RN: Telemetry, OR, CVOR, ICU Surgical Tech: OR Non-Certified Surgical Tech: SPT Other Notes: ER needs are on the decline, but OR and ICU needs are picking up speed. Most positions are coming out of Reno. New Hampshire RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ER, ICU. Bill rates have remained high since the start of February. Other Notes: New Hampshire remains a hotspot for ICU needs offering premium bill rates. Oklahoma RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ER, ICU Other Notes: Not many job postings available, but when jobs open they close very fast. Quick on callbacks and interviews for qualified candidates. Pennsylvania RN: ICU, OR, medical-surgical, telemetry. Surgical Tech: OR Non-Certified Surgical Tech: SPT Other Notes: Bill rates in Pennsylvania are quite high compared to other states in the region, and have steadily increased in preparation for spring. Texas RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, step-down/PCU Surgical Tech: OR, Cath Lab
Travel Jobs: ‘Hot’ February 2019 Market Means More Location Variety, Fewer Premium Pay Options
As the last month of the busy winter season marches on, one of the main concerns circling around the travel healthcare community in recent weeks is the high amount of low-paying contracts advertised by recruiters or posted by agencies. While there is a kernel of truth in those concerns, recruiters and agency sales representatives say that the answer is not so simple. The travel nurse market is hot on both sides of the fence—healthcare facilities across the country have plenty of urgent needs, and lots of potential candidates are available and looking for work, said Oren Lavi, a director of client advisory for LiquidAgents Healthcare. “The market is hotter than it has been in the last 24 months. The time to jump in is now,” said Oren Lavi, a director of client advisory for LiquidAgents Healthcare. “More jobs means more variety. Hospitals are not going to list premium pay packages unless they see the nurse pool drying up. For now, the candidate pool is consistent so they have no reason to raise rates.” Some exceptions to this trend include northeastern states like Pennslyvania and New Hampshire, and Midwest states like Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan. Similar to our January predictions, cold weather is keeping seasonal travelers away, which mean travelers are more likely to find premium pay packages—$1,800 and up per week before taxes—in these areas. Additionally, most of the northern and Midwest states where bill rates have remained consistently high over the winter also saw a spike in traveler job applications in January, according to StaffDNA job board data. Travel Healthcare Job Market for February 2019 Here’s a quick breakdown of the states and travel healthcare job specialties that are most-in-demand now and are expected to stay popular in February, according to data provided by industry sales and recruiting representatives. Arkansas RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, step-down/PCU Illinois RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ER, labor and delivery Indiana RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry. Much higher needs compared to January, close to 100 open positions as of February 8. Job submittals around Indianapolis close within 24 hours. Kentucky RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, step-down/PCU Missouri RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, ER (On the lower end, but needs are increasing). All core specialties in demand in St. Louis. Allied: X-ray/radiology techs New Hampshire RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry. Bill rates much higher than average. Surgical Tech: OR Oklahoma RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry. Job needs are filling very quickly. Pennsylvania RN: ICU, OR, medical-surgical, telemetry Texas RN: Medical-surgical, telemetry, step-down/PCU January 2019 Top Markets Editor’s note: This list is created by analyzing the number of travelers applying for jobs in these individual states and Washington D.C. This data is not necessarily a historical indicator of job volume. Application data comes from the StaffDNA jobs database. Florida Texas California South Carolina Georgia Pennsylvania Tennessee Arizona Michigan North Carolina Indiana Arkansas Kentucky Missouri New Mexico Oklahoma Virginia West Virginia Iowa Nevada Oregon Wisconsin Idaho Maine Colorado Alaska Hawaii Illinois Ohio Washington Alabama Louisiana Massachusetts Connecticut Kansas Mississippi Maryland Minnesota New Hampshire New Jersey Utah Vermont Wyoming Washington D.C. Deleware Montana North Dakota Nebraska New York Rhode Island South Dakota
Missouri Travel Nurse Needs Remain High In Wake Of Slow Flu Season
Missouri travel nurse needs have remained at a significantly high number throughout November and the first week of December, according to current market data. More than 140 travel nurse needs are active in the state, most of which are newer positions located in or around the St. Louis region, said Jennifer Pomietlo, a director of client advisory for LiquidAgents Healthcare. That includes cities like St. Charles, Chesterfield and Columbia. The most-needed specialties include medical-surgical, telemetry, ICU, step-down and OR nurses, with limited openings for other non-core or surgical specialties, Pomietlo said. Allied healthcare travel positions are also fairly limited, but certified surgical tech and rad tech opportunities are available. Contact Allie Evans with LiquidAgents Healthcare for more information about Missouri travel nurse jobs >> Flu is the main driver for hiring in the state, Pomietlo said. Normally, Missouri hospitals will aggressively hire in early fall because the state is one of a handful that typically see high levels of flu activity starting in November, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention records. This year’s flu season is off to a slower start for the state, with “minimal” influenza-like illness activity and sporadic spread, according to CDC data. A total of one death and 1,384 laboratory-positive influenza cases have been reported as of Nov. 24 to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS). More than 300 cases were reported from the eastern region of the state, where St. Louis is located. Missouri hospitals are hiring in December in anticipation of a delayed surge in flu patient census in January and February, Pomietlo said. “They get hit hard by the flu in St. Louis, and it also hangs around longer in Missouri than in other places,” Pomietlo said. In the record-breaking 2017-18 flu season, Missouri reported 133,957 laboratory-confirmed cases of flu and more than 2,000 pneumonia and influenza-associated deaths, according to a DHSS press release. Other things travelers should know about Missouri Missouri is one of the 31 states that are part of the enhanced Nursing Licensure Compact, meaning nurses who have a compact license can work in the state without paying additional licensing fees. Travelers who don’t have a compact license can get a single state license at a low cost. The state board charges $55 for a license by endorsement or $45 by examination. Missouri is also a walk-through state, so nurses can get a temporary license within a day. You can find more Missouri licensing information on the state nursing board website.
Travel Jobs: Where Travelers Applied In Oct., Nov. Market Predictions
November can be a bit of an odd duck month for the travel healthcare job market. As the last month before the busiest season of the year in terms of patient census, many healthcare facilities are still trying to fill jobs needs with temporary staff. Many states still have job opportunities in the triple digits as of Nov. 13. At the same time, many travelers who were job hunting in September and October are either committed to jobs with November start dates or have pre-booked for late-December or early-January to have free time during the holidays. Travel healthcare jobs November 2018 Based on current job market data and information from staffing agency recruiters and sales representatives, we expect a slight increase in the volume of available job opportunities, but the amount of application activity should remain relatively flat. In other words, the amount travelers applying to jobs is already quite high—with dozens of submittals for competitive positions—and should stay high throughout most of the month. A good portion of the job market volume increase will come from northern and cold weather states, like Oregon, Michigan, Colorado and Wisconsin. Hospitals in these states will need to fill vacancies left by “snowbird” travelers heading south, said Jamison Reitinger, a client advisor for LiquidAgents Healthcare. “Bill rates are remaining consistently high in northern territories, except OR-RN rates, which are increasing across the board due to large OR nurse shortages in Wisconsin, Michigan and Colorado,” Reitinger said. There has also been a notable increase in travel nurse jobs available in the Southeast U.S., mostly in Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia. A large part of the increase is due to the recent surge in EMR conversion positions available in Kentucky and West Virginia through Appalachian Regional Healthcare. The healthcare system started advertising temporary staffing needs for their hospital in late October and will need travelers through the rest of the year and into 2019, so we expect these states to see more incoming applications from travelers in November. Depending on the severity of this year’s flu season, job market activity could also increase in Southern states like Missouri, Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas, as those states typically see high levels of flu activity earlier than others. No major changes in the Top 10 most applied-to states The most popular states for travelers—California, Florida and Texas—retained their top spots in October, and should continue to see high application numbers for the rest of the year. South Carolina was the only new state to enter the top 10, moving up from No. 12. Georgia fell out, dropping seven ranks to No. 12. Utah makes the largest jump, Connecticut drops the farthest Utah saw the biggest surge in traveler applications by far, moving up 18 positions to No. 33 on the list. Connecticut dropped 12 spots to No. 46 October’s Top Markets California Florida Texas Michigan Tennessee North Carolina Missouri Pennsylvania Arizona South Carolina Virginia Georgia Indiana Kentucky Oklahoma Arkansas Maine Iowa Idaho Wisconsin West Virginia New Mexico Nevada Oregon Colorado Hawaii Ohio Washington Massachusetts New Jersey Illinois Louisiana Utah Alaska Minnesota Alabama Montana Kansas Maryland Mississippi New Hampshire North Dakota Nebraska Rhode Island Wyoming Connecticut Washington, D.C. Delaware New York South Dakota Vermont Editor’s note: This list is created by analyzing the number of travelers applying for jobs in these individual states and Washington D.C. Is not necessarily an indicator of traveler interest in these states and is not necessarily an indicator of job volume. Application data comes from the StaffDNA jobs database.
Travel Jobs: Top 10 States for June, July Market Predictions
In our June traveler job market predictions, we talked about the “summer stall”—less new job postings, more competition for every job and more interest in atypical summer job states. Based on StaffDNA job board data, two of our predictions were on target. Job application volume increase by nearly 20 percent from May to June, marking the most active month since January. What we didn’t expect was for supply to match pace with demand. Hospital systems in many states, including popular summer destinations like California and Virginia, bounced back after the late-May and early-June slump. Part of this can be linked to vacation plans for permanent hospital staff, according to travel agency sales staff sources. As the regular staff takes off for the summer or cuts back on hours, that provides opportunities for travelers to fill the gaps. We expect for this market momentum to stay strong in July, as travelers who took time off in June will be planning ahead for the start of the school season in August or to find a fall contract in September. The back-to-school rush marks a yearly milestone for many travelers with children or grandchildren. They will typically take a break during the summer for childcare, and return to hospitals once the kids are back in school. “The experienced travelers know it can take four to six weeks to find and start a job, so they start the search for an agency and position mid-summer,” said Kate Quinn of LiquidAgents Healthcare. Let’s take a look at what we learned from our top markets for June. Rankings barely shift as travelers settle in for the summer While April and May saw a lot of “movement” in terms of where healthcare travelers applied across the country, ranking shifts were much more conservative in June, despite the high application volume. Most states moved up or down the list by 5 ranks or less, and five states—North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Wisconsin and Washington—didn’t move at all. We expect the list to remain mostly stable for July, August and potentially in early fall, as traveler won’t start making big moves until we get closer to the holiday season. Michigan, Missouri, Virginia enter the Top 10 For the first time this year, Missouri joined the likes of Texas, California and Florida in the top 10, moving up two spots from May to No. 9. Virginia moved back up as anticipated, jumping up five ranks to No. 10 on the list. The state is both a top travel destination for summer 2018 and one of the top five highest paying travel nurse states in the U.S. Montana, Wyoming climb the charts; Connecticut drops to dead last Montana and Wyoming both moved up seven ranks to take the No. 41 and 42 slots, respectively, while Connecticut dropped 16 spots to the bottom of our list. Connecticut has consistently ranked in the bottom half of the list for job board applications. It’s also one of the most expensive states to work in as a traveler because of the high regional cost of living and low average pay packages. Interest in Maine uncertain as Medicaid expansion remains in flux Enrollment for the voter-approved Medicaid expansion was supposed to roll out on July 2, which would have provided a $500 million shot in the arm for healthcare funding in the state and coverage for more than 70,000 eligible recipients. Pending litigation surrounding the expansion has left the issue in limbo. A Maine judge forced Gov. Paul LePage to submit an expansion plan to the federal government by June 11, but LePage’s administration submitted an appeal for the ruling. While the appeal is pending, LePage also vetoed the expansion bill this week. Because of the political turmoil, it’s uncertain whether the expansion will have an impact on the Maine traveler job market as expected. June’s Top Markets Florida California Texas North Carolina Georgia South Carolina Michigan Pennsylvania Missouri Virginia Illinois Indiana Kentucky Tennessee Arkansas Arizona Nevada Idaho Oklahoma Iowa Wisconsin West Virginia New Mexico Maine Oregon Colorado Washington Hawaii Ohio Alabama Louisiana Maryland Mississippi New Jersey Alaska Utah Kansas Montana Wyoming Minnesota Massachusetts North Dakota New York District of Columbia Delaware Nebraska New Hampshire Rhode Island South Dakota Vermont Connecticut
Top 10 Highest Paying Travel Healthcare Jobs: July 2
Happy Independence Day week, everyone! As our nation’s birthday approaches, we can think of no better way to celebrate than by finding the hottest travel healthcare jobs in the good old U.S. of A. The highest packages this week come out of California, which should be no surprise if you’ve visited our Travel Nursing Pay Package state ranking list, but it does track with our story about how labor and delivery and OR jobs have heated up in the past two weeks. Going forward, we also plan to arrange our list by highest listed pay to lowest for your convenience. Want to see us highlight some other states, specialties or professions in our list next week? Let us know in the comments! Travel Healthcare Jobs: July 2-6 Editor’s Note: The details listed below are subject to change based on contract availability. 1. RN- OR, Travel Location: Palm Springs, California Weekly Pay: $2,898 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 2. RN- OR, Travel Location: Chico, California Weekly Pay: $2,680 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 3. RN- OR, Travel Location: Bangor, Maine Weekly Pay: $2,586 Duration: 15 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 4. RN- Labor and Delivery (L&D) Location: Atlanta, Georgia Weekly Pay: $2,050 Duration: 13 Weeks Night Shift View this Travel Job >> 5. RN- Medical-Surgical, Travel Location: Chinle, Arizona Weekly Pay: $1,996 Duration: 13 Weeks Day/Night Rotate View this Travel Job >> 6. RN- OR, Travel Location: Scranton, Pennsylvania Weekly Pay: $1,886 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 7. RN- Medical-Surgical, Travel Location: Reno, Nevada Weekly Pay: $1,860 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 8. Certified SurgTech- CVOR, Travel Location: Hilton Head Island, South Carolina Weekly Pay: $1,822 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 9. Certified SurgTech- CVOR, Travel Location: Brookfield, Wisconsin Weekly Pay: $1,784 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 10. RN- OR, Travel Location: Scranton, Pennsylvania Weekly Pay: $1,741 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >>
Top 10 Highest Paying Travel Healthcare Jobs: June 25
Another hot week of summer means another week of hot travel healthcare jobs, and we’ve got the scoop on great positions around the nation from StaffDNA job board data. If you’ve kept up with our posts each week, you’ll notice a subtle change—we’ve switched our headline from just “nursing” jobs to “healthcare,” because we’ve also found a couple of great travel surgical tech positions this week. We talk a lot about the travel nursing market on HCT Today, but we also want to highlight other opportunities from week to week for our non-nurse readers as well. Now that we’ve covered the fun part, let’s check out this week’s top jobs. Travel Nursing Jobs: June 25-30 Editor’s Note: The details listed below are subject to change based on contract availability. 1. RN-Telemetry, Travel Location: Scranton, Pennsylvania Weekly Pay: $1,741 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 2. RN- Telemetry (TELE), Travel Location: Scranton, Pennsylvania Weekly Pay: $1,881 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 3. RN- Medical-Surgical, Travel Location: Chinlee, Arizona Weekly Pay: $1,996 Duration: 13 Weeks Day/Night Rotating View this Travel Job >> 4. RN- Medical-Surgical, Travel Location: Reno, Nevada Weekly Pay: $1,860 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 5. RN- OR, Travel Location: Palm Springs, California Weekly Pay: $2,898 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 6. RN- OR, Travel Location: Chico, California Weekly Pay: $2,680 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 7. RN- Labor and Delivery (L&D), Travel Location: Atlanta, Georgia Weekly Pay: $2,050 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 8. RN- Telemetry (TELE), Travel Location: Memphis, Tennessee Weekly Pay: $1,746 Duration: 13 Weeks Night Shift View this Travel Job >> 9. Certified SurgTech-First Assist Location: Lafayette, Indiana Weekly Pay: $2,108 Duration: 8 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> 10. Certified SurgTech-Sterile Processing, Travel Location: Columbia, Tennessee Weekly Pay: $1,562 Duration: 13 Weeks Day Shift View this Travel Job >> Didn’t find the job you’re looking for? You can view more travel healthcare job opportunities here.
Travel Nurse Market: Labor and Delivery, OR Nurse Jobs On The Rise
Labor and delivery and OR nurses, it’s time brush up on your interview skills and talk with your recruiter, because the job market is on the rise, according to an industry insider. “Those are the two specialties that I am seeing a spike in not just a few locations, but everywhere right now,” a LiquidAgents Healthcare source told HCT Today. “Especially with L&D, I would normally see half as many openings right now compared to the amount that’s currently available.” While medical-surgical RN positions remain the most frequently requested among the specialties, labor and delivery and OR RN jobs have consistently ranked among the top 10 most requested specialties since April, according to StaffDNA data. Why are there more OR nurse jobs right now? View current OR RN positions here>> Short Answer: Who knows? We’re trying to figure that out now because it’s not normal. But it may have something to do with high-deductible health insurance plans. Long Answer: For OR nurses, job demand is often tied to demand for elective surgeries at a facility. Since the dates for elective surgeries can be requested by patients months in advance, hospitals will also plan to bring on temporary OR staff to help out if necessary. In recent years, however, most facilities plan for lots of elective surgeries at the end of the year, not in the middle, because of the rise in patients using high-deductible health insurance plans. Patients with high-deductible plans typically wait to schedule elective surgeries until late in the year, when they have met their deductible, or as a way to squeeze in a last-minute procedure before their insurance company raises the price next year. Don’t expect this trend to end anytime soon—more Americans are enrolled in employer-based high-deductible insurance plans than ever before, and deductible prices continue to rise. The average deductible for people with employer-based coverage rose from $303 to $1,505 between 2006 and 2017, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation report. While this answers the question of how OR job needs can increase, it doesn’t tell us why they are rapidly increasing now. It may be tied to the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the healthcare insurance marketplace and the future of the Affordable Care Act, but that’s purely speculation. We’re keeping an eye on how this job trend develops. Why are there more Labor and Delivery jobs right now? View current Labor and Delivery (L&D) positions here>> Short Answer: September is a busy month for births, so hospitals are probably bulking up on labor and delivery nurses now to meet demand. Also, Millenials might have finally started having more babies. Long Answer: Historically speaking, September is prime time for births in the U.S. September 9 is the most common birthday in the U.S., according to yearly data between 1994 and 2014 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics. Not only that, but 9 of the 10 most popular days to give birth fall during September. It’s possible that hospitals are posting their L&D RN needs on job boards early to find travelers who can help during a busy September. The new demand may also signal a positive trend in the number of births in general. The national birth rate has steadily declined in recent years. reaching a historic 30-year low in 2017, according to an NPR report. But some analysts have predicted a rebound in birth rates in the coming years, led by an increasing number of Millenial parents over time.
5 Best Value States for Thrifty Travel Nurses
For some travel nurses, the appeal of jumping into the healthcare gypsy lifestyle is more about finding adventures in new parts of the country—for others making money is still a major motivator. But keeping the money you make as a traveler can be just as hard as making it. With a good chunk of your income going towards travel and living expenses, not to mention the unpredictability of temporary staffing, finding the best places to work where you can make your dollars stretch is tough. We’ve narrowed down the five states where you can work and earn the most bang for your buck, based on data from our Travel Nursing Pay Package Rankings and Cost of Living By State list. Our five best states were selected using the following criteria: Each state had to rank among the top 20 highest pay packages offered. Each state had to be at least 5 points or more below the 100.00 baseline of the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parity index. This gave us the best balance of how much you can make vs. how much you can expect to spend, as you can save significantly more money in states below 100.00 even if they don’t offer sky-high pay packages like California or New York, where the high cost of living negates the benefit of significant earnings. Let’s start from the bottom and work our way to No. 1. 5. Louisiana Louisiana just barely edged out Montana to make our Best Value list. The state currently ranks No. 20 for highest pay packages, but what gave it the edge is its cost-of-living rating, which is almost 10 points below the national average (90.4) Now that Louisiana is part of the enhanced Nursing Licensure Compact as of May 31, we expect to see more competition for jobs as many more travelers will have easy access to the state by December. 4. Wisconsin Wisconsin comes in at No. 4 on our Best Value list, thanks to its No. 17 ranking for highest travel nurse pay packages and low cost of living rating at 92.8, more than 7 points below the national average. Since the state is one of the less-traveled vacation spots in the U.S. and a prime target for frigid but profitable winter travel jobs, the low cost of living means there’s plenty of opportunities to earn money in The Badger State. 3. Michigan Speaking of profitable northern states, right across from Wisconsin is our No. 3 Best Value state, Michigan. Michigan ranked slightly higher in our pay package list at No. 14 and subsequently had a slightly higher regional cost of living at 93.3 on the index. Both Michigan and Wisconsin made our Highest Paying Jobs post this week. 2. Indiana Indiana consistently ranks among the top 10 most applied-to states for travelers in the first place, so the fact that it boasts the No. 12 slot in pay packages and a dirt-cheap cost of living rating at 90.3 percent. Some of the cities that regularly have job listings on the StaffDNA boards include Fort Wayne, Bloomington and Indianapolis. 1. Iowa With only one decimal point lower than Indiana on the cost of living index and several ranks above Indiana in terms of pay packages, Iowa takes the cake as our top Best Value travel nursing state. Out of all the other states on this list, Iowa is the true exception in that it currently ranks in the top 10 highest paying states, yet comparatively in the middle in travel nurse applications each month.