We get this question a lot—why would a hospital use travel nurse staffing instead of hiring allied and nursing staff directly? At first glance, it can seem like more hassle and expense to hire travelers. There’s compliance to manage, onboarding modules to complete, orientation sessions, facility tours, and what appears to be a higher hourly cost for the nurse’s time.
But behind the scenes, there are plenty of reasons why using a travel nurse agency just makes sense. Here’s why hospitals turn to them.
Less Work for HR Teams
Hiring is time-consuming. Posting jobs, reviewing resumes, scheduling interviews, confirming licenses, checking references, and onboarding all eat up hours a facility’s HR team may not have.
A travel nurse agency takes most of that off the table. A travel nurse staffing agency maintains a pool of vetted, experienced healthcare professionals who can step into a role with little notice. And because those travelers are employees of the agency, the facility doesn’t have to handle drug testing, tax paperwork, benefits enrollment, or other HR-heavy tasks tied to permanent staff. And because the facility relies on the agency to handle these tasks, it can have a smaller HR team, which means even fewer full-time employees employed by the hospital.
A Faster Hiring Process
A recent survey taken by more than 450 facilities found that it takes about three months for facilities to hire a nurse. Specific specialties like PCU, med-surg, and OR are the most difficult positions to fill, and a position can be vacant for months. Then add in a facility’s onboarding. Onboarding for new staff is often much more involved than a traveler’s orientation, especially for brand-new nurses. This can add another few weeks or even months before the nurse can be fully ready to take patients alone on the floor.
The same survey found that 22% of newly hired RNs left within the first year, which starts the process over again. For busy HR pros and patient floors that rely on nursing staff, this can be an unwelcome reality.
Staying Compliant with IRS Rules
Some travelers wonder why hospitals don’t just hire them directly as 1099 contractors. After all, wouldn’t that save all the agency overhead? Not so fast. IRS regulations say no.
The IRS has strict criteria for who qualifies as an independent contractor, and misclassifying someone can create big legal and tax problems for the facility and traveler. The last thing a traveler wants is to get audited and find out that they owe more in taxes on that 1099 income. Agencies solve this by acting as the employer of record, ensuring IRS compliance and saving administrators the headache.
Covering Short-Term Gaps
Not every staffing shortage calls for a permanent hire. A harsh flu season, a tourist surge, an unexpected leave of absence, or a hiring gap between full-time staff can all strain resources. That’s where travel nurse staffing shines—bringing in adaptable, experienced professionals ready to hit the ground running. Travel nurses and allied healthcare professionals are built for these situations. They’re adaptable, fast learners, and can jump into new environments without missing a beat. And when the facility no longer needs the traveler, they’re on their way to a new destination, ready to step in elsewhere.
Cost-Effective in the Long Run
While travel nurses typically have higher hourly rates, the true cost of a full-time hire goes far beyond the paycheck. Benefits, employer taxes, retirement contributions, paid leave, training, recruitment expenses, and turnover costs all add up. By filling short-term needs quickly and avoiding long-term commitments, agencies can actually save facilities money over time.
Now that you understand the many reasons a facility might turn to travel nurse staffing instead of hiring full-time staff, let Triage get to work finding you a job.
Looking for allied or travel nurse jobs? Triage Staffing listens to what you want and then shoots you straight so you can make the decision that’s right for you.
