Demand Rises for Travel Healthcare

In 2020 & 2021 travel nurses filled a critical need as COVID cases surged and overwhelmed hospitals, now most hospitals are facing the same scenario with the newest Omicron surge reporting nearly 800,000 cases per day over the past week. (CNBC)

Many hospitals were short staffed even before the pandemic began and it could take hospital facilities years to fully recover their staffed nurses. Traveling allied health professionals and nurses have emerged as a lifesaver for facilities plagued by chronic staff shortages. Without travelers, overworked nurses would endure longer shifts and weeks without a break. Fellow nurses are thankful for the added manpower at a time when our healthcare system is severely stressed. Traveling nurses enable facilities to keep beds open and even occasionally admit new patients in these trying times.

Healthcare facilities nationwide are grappling with ways to attract and retain nurses at all levels. Demand for travel nurses to fill the gaps is high. Nurses are burnt out and quitting, others have tested positive for COID-19 and can't work. Staffing demands require these temporary, short-term nurses be utilized, allowing travel nursing to change the industry and provide better quality care of patients and nurses alike.