5 Skills Needed to be a Good Travel Nurse
Having a nursing degree signals you have gained the necessary experience to be a nurse, but there are also soft skills you should have to be a travel nurse that can handle any type of situation. Here are 5 skills that make up a good travel nurse.
Organizational Skills
Being a travel nurse may seem like an effortless, fun job, but it requires strong organizational skills to stay on top of all the events that occur during each assignment. As a travel nurse, you will be moving a lot. Each new assignment and move will bring in more paperwork, along with all the daily tasks you’ll face as a nurse.
Different states and cities have different regulations and you will also need to track your finances and belongings. Keeping everything organized will keep stress at bay and make working and traveling easier.
Love of Traveling
Some nurses choose to be a travel nurse because of the money, but it can prove challenging if you don’t enjoy constant traveling and changes to your routine. A good travel nurse should enjoy traveling and the chance to visit many new places.
If you can handle moving often, enjoy meeting new people, and feel excitement when immersing yourself in new environments, being a travel nurse may be a good fit for you.
Communication Skills
Each assignment is only about 13 weeks, which means you’ll be spending a short amount of time with teams before moving on to the next location. Having strong communication skills will allow you to get along with new people easily and ask questions when needed.
Strong communication skills will also contribute to learning the rules of new facilities easily. Being able to express your feelings and opinions clearly as well as ask questions when needed will help the transition process move smoothly and allow for good teamwork.
Flexibility and Adaptability
Every facility has different rules and a different dynamic that they work under. Being able to adapt to new circumstances and fit into the flow of a different work environment will prove to be a great skill to have as a travel nurse.
A flexible travel nurse should be able to follow the directions of an employer’s needs and compromise even if you may not agree with the procedures. Since each place is different, you may have to adjust your working style to meet the facility’s needs.
Confidence and Resilience
Part of being a travel nurse is being confident in your abilities. Having confidence in your nursing skills and certainty that you can do a good job will go a long way in being a successful travel nurse. Have fearlessness in asking questions when you don’t understand something, and assertiveness when you begin in each new environment and start working.
A travel nurse should be skillful when taking care of patients, but should also possess soft skills that will make each transition to a new facility easier and will allow you to do the best work possible.