Next year might be the ideal moment to enter a career in travel nursing. The stars have aligned to make this profession particularly appealing for all sorts of reasons, and if you have the right skills and personality for this type of role, 2022 could be your time to shine.

Let’s look at exactly what is pushing more people towards travel nursing, and why you should consider it if you want a rewarding job in healthcare.

Demand is rising

Travel nurses are more in-demand right now than at any point in the past, with the pandemic continuing to throw up new challenges for healthcare providers which flexible nursing team members are well suited to solve.

What is more, the highest paying travel nursing jobs benefit from the actual process of travelling for work becoming less of an obstacle. The easing of coronavirus-related restrictions should continue to improve the experience for travel nurses, so long as new variants are kept in check.

Furthermore, the pandemic is not the only thing which is causing a spike in demand for travel nurses; other, ongoing factors such as the ageing population are predicted to continue contributing to this. Likewise, the shortage of skilled permanent team members makes travel nurses even more sought-after.

Variety is guaranteed

At a time when lots of other professions are moving away from traditional office spaces and adopting a work-from-home approach, travel nursing is one of the few careers which will enable you to travel, see the world, meet new people and enjoy face-to-face contact with other humans.

If this kind of variety and the prospect of every day being an adventure is appealing to you, good! There are a whole host of travel nurse positions in every corner of the country waiting to be filled.

Pay and perks are tough to beat

We have already mentioned that there are some highly-paid travel nurse roles out there, and it is worth restating that the perfect storm of circumstances that have led to accelerated demand is also perpetuating a widening of the gap between what standard nursing staff are paid and what their travelling counterparts receive.

Then there are the perks that are worth shouting about. Expenses such as food, housing, and transport are likely to be covered either partly or entirely, and as inflation creeps upwards, this will create even more savings for travel nurses.

Experience and skills will accumulate

Travel nursing is not just a worthy profession to get into from a purely ethical standpoint, but also one which endows you with the skills and experience you need to further your own career goals, whichever path you follow in the future.

As well as the nursing-specific abilities that you will be able to master in this role, you will also acquire skills that are applicable in all sorts of other jobs, from the interpersonal to the managerial and beyond. So even if you don’t see nursing as your life-long ambition, this is not something that will limit your options.

Conclusion

2022 will no doubt bring more uncertainty to bear on all aspects of society, both at a national and a global level. Amazingly, this will benefit travel nurses, contributing to and perpetuating the demand for skilled, experienced individuals and helping pay to stay competitive going forward.

The fact that this is not a short-term blip, but rather reflective of a long-term trend means unlike other jobs which involve a lot of travel, nursing will deliver stability and consistency for the next 12 months and beyond.