Per Diem Nursing VS Travel Nursing

Per diem and travel nursing are both jobs that can benefit nurses who want an extraordinary job opportunity. Nurses are in demand in our pandemic situation so nursing agencies are continuing to bridge the gap on scarcity of nurses in areas where they are needed. Nursing agencies have been helping a lot of medical facilities hire nurses in a faster process and also aids nurses to get on board faster. To have a clearer view on per diem nursing VS travel nursing and  what each has to offer, here are some points you have to know so you can see their similarities and differences. 

What is Per Diem Nursing?

From the term “per diem” which means per day since nurses can be assigned in a day, half day shift or just a few days. Basically per diem nursing are jobs given to nurses in a short period of time. This depends on the need of the medical facilities they will be assigned to. Nursing  agencies are the ones responsible for contacting medical facilities for this kind of job or as an individual it is also possible for a nurse to enter as a per diem nurse in medical facilities. 

Advantages of a Per Diem Nursing Job

No Permanent Schedule 

The schedule for this job is flexible since you only get to work if someone needs your service. You can even decline if you are not agreeable to the work time schedule. On the other hand you can also be offered a job a few hours before the said shift but it will still be your choice of whether you will accept it or not. Some people are asking  “can you work per diem as a travel nurse?” The answer will be yes, per diem travel nursing is also offered by agencies. 

Better Pay 

Do per diem nurses make more? Yes ,Per diem nurses are paid with a high hourly rate compared with permanent regular nurses working in the hospital. An annual earning of a regular paid nurse can be doubled in the cases of per diem nurses! That’s why most nurses prefer per diem nursing jobs than regular ones. The only advantage of a regular job is that they can establish their work experience in a certain healthcare if ever they need a year or two of work experience with the same company. 

More Free Time 

Imagine working only if you feel like, by working as a per diem nurse you can take a break whenever you want to. You can accept as much work as you want and you can decline too. You can plan on your one schedule and how much work you can take. This is the best part of being a per diem nurse, if you think you don’t need to work since your savings is enough then you can have personal or family time. As long as you comply with the  travel nursing per diem rule then you can get the approval for the breaks you wanted. 

What is Travel Nursing?

Travel nursing is similar to per diem nursing where a nurse can work for a short period of time, however for travel nursing the minimum time in each assignment is 13 weeks and can go beyond that depending on the agreement with the third parties which is the travel nurse agency and medical facility.  Travel nursing jobs are offered by travel nurse agencies to nurses who want to travel and work at the same time. 

Advantages of Travel Nursing Jobs

Handsome Pay

Travel nurses can get paid higher than regular nurses the same as per diem nurse. However, pay will depend on the location they are assigned to. For travel nurses they can be assigned locally or internationally. If they have a chance to be assigned to a place where pay is higher then they are lucky. Apart from the basic pay they can also get bonuses, for instance if they can work with satisfactory performance then they can get a performance bonus. These bonuses will depend on the agreement made between them and the third party. 

Balance Work and Pleasure 

A travel nurse can take a break after she completed her assignment, she can ask for a break and have time to explore his place of destination.This is one of the number one reason why nurses wants to become a travel nurse, who wouldn’t want to be visiting several places in a year without spending your own money in traveling? 

If you compare Per diem Nursing VS Travel Nursing they have more similarities and benefits. Just the minimum working time has some differences, but overall travel and per diem nursing can give nurses almost the same advantages. That’s why travel nurse jobs and per diem nurse jobs – supplemental income for a better life.