Scheduled Maintenance: Job search functionality will be unavailable from Friday, March 21, 8:00 p.m. CT to Sunday, March 23, 12:00 p.m. CT. We apologize for any inconvenience.
Are you an allied health professional looking for a career change? Allied healthcare workers in imaging, laboratory, respiratory, and therapy specialties can find opportunities to travel the country and gain new skills through allied travel careers.
If you’re interested in becoming an allied traveler, check out our guide below to learn more about travel healthcare jobs, benefits, and whether this career change is right for you.
Allied travel refers to the short-term or long-term temporary staffing of allied health professionals at hospitals facilitated by a healthcare staffing agency, like TRS Healthcare, offering allied travel jobs.
Allied travelers share the same experience, licensing, and education as core staff in imaging, respiratory, therapy, and laboratory specialties. The only difference is that travelers’ employment consists of temporary assignments typically lasting anywhere from a few weeks to a few months.
Travel allied careers have been around for quite some time, with healthcare facilities consistently needing to fill open positions due to leaves of absence (LOA), population fluctuations, new unit openings, core staff training, and a shortage of allied healthcare workers after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Because of these needs, hospitals have turned to temporary staffing to continue providing specialty services and quality patient care. For allied healthcare professionals, this creates unique job opportunities, allowing specialists to travel across the country, work in different environments, and find better pay and benefits.
Allied health professionals—particularly those in high-demand allied specialties like computed tomography (CT scan), respiratory therapy, cardiac cath lab, MRI, and others—are essential in filling key positions at these facilities, which opens the door to more fulfilling healthcare careers.
Curious about the benefits of being an allied health traveler? There’s a wealth of advantages this healthcare career move can bring for respiratory, therapy, imaging, and laboratory specialists.
Interested in exploring new places and learning about new cultures? An allied travel career could be perfect for you. With opportunities in communities of all sizes, you can see what it’s like to live in small towns and big cities alike. During your time off work, you can also explore historical sites, outdoor recreation spots, and other local attractions in your travel destination.
Burnout is extremely prevalent among healthcare workers. Allied travel gives you the chance to change scenery and schedules, which can help you feel more invigorated in your healthcare work. Travel is also known to alleviate stress, which can further help in combating burnout. In addition, meeting new people can help you feel more engaged, while also giving you opportunities to learn new skills or improve upon existing ones.
Traveling to new healthcare facilities and seeing the different techniques and technology they utilize is a great way to expand your own skills as a respiratory, laboratory, imaging, or therapy specialist. Working alongside other healthcare professionals within your allied health specialty can also open you up to a wealth of learning opportunities, from those related to patient care to learning different radiologic equipment.
Working as an allied health traveler can help strengthen your resume. Compared to working in a permanent staff position, allied travelers work at many different types and sizes of facilities, from critical access hospitals to large trauma centers and research facilities. Also, given that travel assignments can be as short as 8 weeks up to as long as 26 weeks, it’s easy to gain more experience through allied travel.
Allied professionals are in high demand across the country, and this trend doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon. This means there are always healthcare facilities in need of healthcare professionals like you, making it easier for you to find travel assignments that fit your job preferences and career goals.
The salary for allied travelers is typically higher than the salary for core staff because of the increased demand for allied specialties across the nation. Though, keep in mind, this pay can vary depending on facility need, location, your specialty, and other factors. As a plus, allied travelers can receive benefits like health insurance, retirement plans, housing assistance, and other compensation in the form of sign-on or referral bonuses through their travel healthcare company.
Allied travel careers come with a lot of personal freedom, but that doesn’t mean you have to do everything alone. Allied health recruiters and support teams are available to support your success in your travel healthcare career. Healthcare travel agencies can advocate on your behalf to help you find the right jobs that match your skills, needs, and goals.
Making a career change can be a big decision. As you consider whether becoming an allied travel professional is right for you, keep these questions in mind.
There are many reasons why someone might come to allied travel as a career, whether it’s to make a difference in small communities or being able to see new places while you work. Others may get into it for continued education and skill development, or the chance to earn better pay and benefits. When thinking about your own reasons for traveling, consider how this career change could align with your professional and personal goals.
To travel as an allied health professional, you typically need a minimum of 1-2 years of experience in your specialty, as well as Basic Life Support (BLS) certification, proper credentials, and a license in the state(s) you plan to work in. This means those who have recently graduated from a college or university and don’t yet have much job experience will not qualify right away.
Working in travel healthcare is an exciting and attractive career move, but does it work for you? For instance, living in temporary housing may not be ideal if you prefer or need a more permanent home. Kids and pets are another consideration, as those who have them may require more stability and consistency. Of course, with the right planning and support, an allied travel career can work for all kinds of lifestyles.
With over 25 years as a healthcare staffing agency, TRS Healthcare can provide the guidance you want when refreshing your allied health career and the advocacy you need to succeed in your professional and personal goals.
With a wealth of allied jobs in desirable locations across the U.S. and dedicated recruiters available to match you with opportunities that grow your skills, we can help you find the travel career that helps you achieve your something bigger!
Interested in an allied travel career with TRS Healthcare? Search our current jobs or apply with us now!
