An Agency Nurse Just Might Provide the Opportunity You Are Looking For

An agency nurse does not work at a specific healthbe as short as a day, if that is what you want. The
care facility but will go where the work is. A nursenurse may be on call to fill in at the last minute, or
who has contracted with an agency will work on ascheduled for the short term with advance notice. If
short-term basis, a per day or per shift basis. It mightthe patient population suddenly changes to the lower
be to fill in for vacations, a general nursing shortage, forside, the agency nurse is usually the first one sent
someone on maternity leave, during a high incident ofhome. Unless the contract calls for a nurse to be paid
illness among the nursing staff or any other reasonfor the entire shift in a case like that, you may find your
outside personnel will need to be brought in topay check on the light side for that day.
supplement the permanent staff. It is an idealThe nurse's employer is the agency that has a
arrangement for a nurse who may want to work on acontract with a healthcare facility. Whatever benefits
day off or who may want to work part time. It is alsothat might accompany the contract are courtesy of
possible for an agency nurse to work full time. It maythe agency. Those benefits may include higher wages,
be a working alternative for a nurse winding down toaccess to medical and dental insurance, a 401(k) or
retirement or a retired nurse who wants to keepretirement program, Cafeteria 125 plan and
current with the nursing profession. New moms orreimbursement for contact time classes. Typically paid
nurses wanting to get back into the workforce mayvacation and sick time are not included, and you may
find this venture amenable to their schedule or as aonly receive holiday pay if it is part of the contract.
way to ease back into the working world.Higher than standard wages are usually enough to
Nurses who contract such work need to be extremelycompensate for the unpaid vacation and sick time.
flexible as working conditions and locations changeWorking as an agency nurse enables you to work in a
constantly. Nurses need to adapt quickly to a newvariety of places with a variety of people. This is an
location as this type of employment does not comeexcellent opportunity if you would rather not work at
with much of a learning curve. Being an agency nursethe same place and with the same people all the time.
has its upside and down side. It depends on yourThis is also a way to avoid "office politics" and just
ultimate goal to determine what is up and what isconcentrate on the job at hand. Working at different
down for you.facilities will help widen your nursing skills and perhaps
Typically, an agency nursing contract is short term,sharpen some that might have stayed a little on the
perhaps a week or two or maybe a month. It can alsodull side.