Travel Nursing: Karen's Story

Travel nursing is having a moment. Demand has surged across New Zealand, and for experienced agency nurses, the opportunity to work in a different town — while earning well and picking up clinical experience across a range of facilities — has never been more appealing.

Karen is one of those nurses. She'd done a short stint of travel nursing a few years ago and, when she started seeing the volume of travel roles coming through, decided to give it another go.

“I first did it a couple of years ago, but there hasn't been a huge demand for it until now, since Covid. When I see all the jobs I think, 'Oh yeah, I wouldn't mind going to Blenheim!' You're well looked after — even being so far from home I haven't had anything negative. They just treat you like they've known you for 10 years.”

Assignments can run from a few weeks to several months. Accommodation is provided. Karen says the adjustment wasn't hard, even with family back home.

“I video call my grandkids while I'm away and I'll say, 'How do you get on with me talking over the internet?' They say, 'It's just like you're sitting here.' And when I go into a new motel they'll say, 'Go on, show us your surroundings!' I tell them, 'I'm very well looked after. I haven't had any problems, I'm quite safe and I'm happy!'”

For Karen, the transition from local agency work to travel nursing wasn't a shock — it was just the same job in a different postcode.

“Because I've been an agency nurse for Medcall locally, I'm used to just walking in. I do my meds, my dressings, answer the phones, deal with doctors, and go home again. It's just a different town.”

Her advice? Don't overthink it.

“Working away from home is what you make of it. You can either make it a negative experience or a happy, memorable one. If I panic, the whole shift is gone. So just take a breather and reassess.”