While travel nurses are often welcomed relief to units that are stretched to their limits, choosing the proper candidates—and ensuring a smooth transition—takes a lot of planning. From matching the clinicians' skills with the hospitals' criteria, to designing customized orientation and evaluation procedures, contracting with supplemental staff is a multi-faceted process, requiring a team effort on the parts of acute care managers, travel company representatives, and mobile providers alike.

In the following pages, Healthcare Traveler's Staffing Solutions (HTSS) presents an industry roundtable discussion that addresses a variety of concerns and questions that factor into travel staffing decisions. Read on to discover critical considerations for creating a successful staffing mix—and ideas for making environments more traveler friendly.

HTSS: What is the best way nurse recruiters can determine if travelers are the proper fit for their facilities? Thomas J. McKenna (TM): First, it is important to find out why the nurses want to travel. If it is because they think of this career alternative as an opportunity for a working vacation, they would not be a good fit for a hospital that needs clinicians on staff 48 to 60 hours a week. Setting expectations early in the process prevents confusion for everyone.

Cathi Brunner (CB): I think the culture and size of the institution make a big difference. For example, while our units have a very diverse group of individuals working on them, we are a smaller organization. If nurses want to practice in a teaching facility, they are not going to be happy within a community hospital, and vice versa. To be successful, travelers have to understand what will be expected of them, as well as the environment they will face. The more a staffing company recruiter imparts to mobile providers about the institution, its patients, and the surrounding community, the happier they will be.

Donna Ramey, MSN, RN, CNAA (DR): As a nurse manager, I would want to contract with nurses who have practice experience in facilities of similar size and acuity level. The size of a hospital and unit dictates how much responsibility clinicians have. I would need to know if the travelers have worked solely as staff nurses or if they have had charge responsibilities. Of course, work histories must demonstrate sufficient experience.

TM: The best way to determine if a nurse is a proper fit for a facility is to look at his or her work history. If the professional has only practiced in small, rural hospitals, then sending him or her to a 1,500-bed trauma center is probably not a good match. To help travel company representatives make better selections, and sell the position to qualified travelers, unit managers should communicate ratios, staff mix, and any and all unit-specific information when a request for personnel is made.

Elizabeth Menschner, MAS, BSN, RN, CNA, BC (EM): The travel companies we deal with give us packets on each traveler, which include a work history, education background, certificates, proof of a valid Pennsylvania nursing license, a current basic life support (BLS) certificate, and criminal background checks. Profiles also include a self-assessment of nursing skills, as well as unit evaluations from other facilities. The information then goes to the decision maker—nurse manager or clinical manager—who bases interview decisions on that paperwork.

HTSS: How important is the interview? What significant information can acute care managers gather over the phone?DR: Talking with the nurses is one of the best ways to make a good match.

TM: During an interview, the facility representative has an opportunity to discuss the unit, equipment, staff mix, and acuity levels. Also, the traveler has a chance to ask questions.

EM: Managers should ask very structured questions that include patient care scenarios to validate candidates' self-assessments. Then, they can determine if the nurses have the skills necessary to care for patients on a particular unit. Of course, nurses ask good questions, too. They want to know about nurse-to-patient ratios, the type of support staff available, expectations from this staff, whether they are in charge of the support team, the types of equipment, and scheduling.