Nurses have always worked through tough conditions and long hours to get the job done for the betterment of their patients. Since March of 2020, however, the hours have gotten longer and the conditions more austere. Nursing jobs as frontline workers have been one of the most important roles on the planet.
Nursing is an in-demand career path. Healthcare facilities from outpatient clinics to hospitals have had severe staff shortages. The most needed positions have constantly been registered nurses.
Both staff nurses and travel nurses have worked overtime to keep hospitals afloat. Both are an important cog in healthcare services.
Travel Nurse Jobs during the Pandemic
Before the pandemic, the need for travel nurses was already rising between the American opioid crisis, an aging population nationwide, and a shortage of registered nurses in full-time positions in all 50 states.
Now, the need has only increased for qualified nurses throughout the United States. Tens of thousands of travel nurses have filled a life-threatening gap in healthcare staffing over the past years.
A December study showed there were more than 31,500 positions available for travel nurses with nearly half of those listed as “crisis positions” — responding to urgent situations with a rapid start date, increased pay rate, modified onboarding requirements, and increased weekly hours.
During the pandemic alone, open travel nurse positions skyrocketed 217% from the previous year. From November to December, the increase was 44% in just 30 days.
Emergency Healthcare Staffing Challenges Ahead
The COVID pandemic has raged on since March of 2020 according to the World Health Organization and has no end in sight. The highly contagious delta variant has caused COVID cases in Florida to reach an all-time high, and many hospitals are out of beds.
As COVID patients overwhelm hospitals and ICUs for the third time in 18 months, the staff of doctors, nurses, and allied health personnel are incredibly overwhelmed and overworked. While the pandemic continues, many Americans need medical attention for other ailments and conditions like cancer, heart disease, and a plethora of surgeries.
The travel nurse demand has been partially filled with nurses who were working in staff positions compounding the nationwide nursing shortage at hospitals, outpatient clinics, LTC, rehab centers, and palliative care.
“We’re struggling to make sure we have enough staff available to keep our hospitals open,” Dr. Sarah Nafziger, vice president of University of Alabama Birmingham Hospital Clinical Services, told the Wall Street Journal. At her hospital, she said 55 of the 62 workers that were out sick in just one week had tested positive for COVID-19.
Contact Us Today
If you are seeking a reprieve from working long shifts and weeks in COVID wards, FSR has rewarding jobs, with consistent 40-hour work weeks, in a wide range of medical facilities from military outpatient clinics to group homes to 13-week assignments supporting correctional institutions. Our positions can provide you the opportunity to recharge while still doing what you love.
Let us pair you with the best career opportunities for registered nurses and licensed practical/vocational nurses across the United States.