5 Characteristics of a Travel Nurse

For nurses, it’s not just a few buzzwords on a resume that makes them good at their jobs – it’s the core-rooted characteristics that drives them to a career in travel nursing. We’ve known a lot of nurses from different backgrounds and walks of life, but here’s what they all have in common.

Compassionate

This one is a no-brainer for individuals who choose a career as a Registered Nurse. Nurses have the ability to relate to others on a deep level, and their caring spirit is what helps patients overcome challenges they are facing. Nurses see healing every day, but they also see pain and tragedy. This perspective allows them to keep coming to work every day, despite the difficulties, so they can continue caring for the patients who desperately need them. Compassion is a fairly common trait among humans, but centering your occupation around caring for others is a true mark of kind-heartedness.

Strong follow-through

By the time someone becomes a Registered Nurse, they’ve had plenty of chances to quit. Nursing school is no walk in the park – nurses have committed YEARS to this corner of the healthcare field, and you better believe they will devote the same level of follow-through to helping their patients get well.

Loves to travel

You don’t have to be a host on the Travel Channel to be capable of traveling for a living, and we haven’t met many travel nurses who don’t possess the “wanderlust” gene. It kind of goes with the territory.

Natural problem-solver

By witnessing the obstacles their patients overcome, nurses must often put themselves in their patients’ shoes to figure out the problem, and help doctors and other clinicians come up with a solution. Since every patient is different, most patient cases aren’t textbook, but more of a puzzle where the nurse must help put together the pieces to determine the best options for treatment.

Great communicator

Essentially any patient-facing job in healthcare requires excellent communication, however, nurses tend to spend the most time with their patients while they are admitted to the hospital than other clinicians. Not only must they expertly convey how treatment will work, but they must do so in a way that actively involves the patient (and often their family) in the process.

Ready to put your skills to work at a new travel nursing job? Connect with a recruiter and we’ll help you channel all of your strengths to land the right opportunity, in the right setting, in the right location.