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Most people associate travel healthcare jobs with, well… travel. While travel nursing can be the catalyst to a jet-setting lifestyle — dotting the map with each new assignment — many enjoy the flexibility and benefits of travel nursing close to home.
Peter Gallinelli and David Bradley are two travelers with RNnetwork who seek out assignments in and around their home states of Indiana and Michigan, respectively. They enjoy all the benefits of working as a travel healthcare professional — higher pay, flexible scheduling, and greater control over their careers — while staying close to home and the people and places that matter most to them.
A new home base
David Bradley, a trauma and orthopedic certified surgical tech, began traveling when his full-time hospital went through budget cuts. He was originally attracted to working as a travel professional as a means of earning more toward his financial goals.
Initially, Bradley accepted assignments all over the country. But after many assignments in Michigan and the surrounding area, he grew to love the area and made great friends. In the last few years, the majority of assignments he seeks and accepts are right in Michigan.
“I’ve done so many assignments in Michigan and made so many friends. I just love it here. I’m calling Michigan home,” says Bradley. “It’s beautiful in the summertime, it’s beautiful in the winter. I haven’t even begun to explore everything I want to in Michigan. I’ve got years of bucket list things I want to do here.”
Bradley is selective about assignments, and he’s careful to take breaks between assignments in order to avoid burnout. He and his RNnetwork recruiter Chris have established an open, communicative relationship that has led to success in finding the right travel assignments.
“I like the fact that after I’ve completed an assignment, I have that freedom to take time off. The traveling lifestyle has afforded me the ability to take time to look for the perfect assignment,” says Bradley. “Chris and I have a great relationship and we work well together. He knows what I want, and where I want to go, so he focuses on that. I’ve had great success with Chris.”
Two nurses, one household
ICU nurse Peter Gallinelli began travel nursing to help bolster his family’s income and help facilitate a schedule that could accommodate both his and his wife’s professional pursuits. He and his wife — also a nurse — sought a complementary schedule that allowed them to be home with their three kids. Gallinelli looks for assignments where he can work three consecutive weekdays, and then spend the balance of his week at home with his family while his wife works.
Gallinelli works closely with his recruiter (also Chris) to find opportunities in a reasonable travel radius that qualify as travel assignments, while still staying close enough to home to meet his household’s schedule and needs.
“Chris has been really instrumental in helping me find jobs where I can organize my entire workweek into consecutive days — it’s very necessary for our lifestyle,” says Gallinelli.
Gallinelli’s initial foray into travel nursing didn’t go as well as he’d hoped. When his first assignment went poorly, he elected not to continue with travel nursing. But after working with his recruiter and speaking with other travel nurses, he made up his mind not to judge all travel based on that one experience. He decided to give it another try and his next assignment went so well, he ended up renewing multiple times to complete a full year.
“I was really fortunate to work with great staff. I had a wonderful experience with wonderful people who treated me like part of the team from day one,” Gallinelli says. “Now Chris has been able to help me find a second position that will allow me to continue this schedule. The new facility has been a lot like the last one — everybody wants to help me and make sure I’m comfortable getting my feet wet.”
For nurses interested in the benefits of travel nursing, but for whom traveling long distances is not ideal, Gallinelli offers this advice:
“Ask. Just ask. Don’t think anything is impossible or that it’s crazy to request or that you can’t get it. Tell your representative what your needs and hopes are, what you require and what your deal breakers are. If you can find a good scenario, that’s what makes the job worth it.”
Interested in travel nursing close to home? We can help you find travel jobs that fit your lifestyle. Give us a call at 800.866.0407 or view today’s travel healthcare jobs to get started.
