Travel nursing has surged almost 70% since 2020, coinciding with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. A need that filled gaps in staffing for the short term has become a more permanent, long-term solution to meeting staffing needs at many organizations. There are many conflicting feelings about the use of travel nurses versus permanent hospital nursing staff, and how this translates into the effect on permanent nursing positions.  

There are many ethical and moral dilemmas on both sides of this debate.  Many feel that travel agencies are exploiting the circumstances brought on by the pandemic. Some feel they are continuing to drive up pay scales and lining their pockets, knowing organizations are already barely getting by financially and with critical nurse staffing constraints impacting quality of care and crucial operations.

Many nurses have left their organizations to travel and often return as travelers to their same facility, receiving much higher pay scales.  Yet others feel the flexibility of being willing to travel, floating to different units, and taking on difficult assignments offers a rationale for the pay gap.

Another perspective is that if organizations would invest in their current staff, fix safe staffing ratios, and offer competitive incentives to stay, they would not be in this predicament. Nurses leaving permanent staff positions to travel decreases the already short supply of nurses and increases the demand, further compounding an already problematic nursing shortage that has spanned more than a decade.

Another layer to this complex situation is long-term care facilities, which are also utilizing staffing agencies to fill critical needs of a patient population area that is often deemed difficult to work in and has had a certain stigma attached.

A pay disparity was already in place for nurses in long-term care, and this was compounded by the extreme burnout and job fatigue brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic with nurses providing for additional needs of their patients with lockdowns in place.

These facilities are governed by Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement and regulations. Fixing issues in these environments to provide a means to retain staff is extremely tough since their bottom line cost-to-benefit ratios are dependent on government agencies and policies.

Nurses are uniting throughout the United States to have their voices heard as there is discussion in Washington about capping pay salaries for travel nurses in hopes to gain some sort of control over the situation. Hospital administrators are asking the government to step in as they are concerned about what they have labeled price gouging, a term meant to translate to products or goods, not patient care.

Agencies are saying their pay scales reflect the high demand. Pay rates for travel nurses have surged 67% from January 2020 to January 2022. The rate of pay for travel nurses at facilities they work with rose by 164% from the fourth quarter of 2019 to the fourth quarter of 2021. These statistics reveal what a lucrative career move travel nursing can be, and how appealing it may be to many nurses who may be looking for alternative options to their current situation and a means to double or triple their salary. 

The key point of an incredibly complicated situation is all the ways this impacts not only nurses but also the care we provide our patients.  Most nurses feel a sense of relief and are grateful to have increased staff nurses available and assistance that is provided by travel nurses. This in turn means better care for our Covid-19 patients.

Travel nurses are continuing to keep healthcare organizations operational and provide much-needed and now relied upon relief to staff who are extremely burned out. Regardless of the position held on this polarizing topic, we must all come together to be sure staffing needs are met and that the care we provide our patients is the best care possible.