independent nurse contractor- how to get started

Hi. I have been travelling for a year and am interested in being an independent contractor. There are lots of sites that sell the "how to" packages, but I work hard for my money and don't want to throw it away on a bunch of junk. Anyone out there know of a legit program or resources available? Anyone like me who thought about doing it then did, and if so, how is working out? Any advice and guidance would be appreciated.

I walked into a small community hospital and self contracted myself by being honest about my skills, what shifts I was willing to work, floating ability etc and I asked for what was important to me. I asked for per diem wages with guarenteed shifts for 2-3 months and asked for a reasonable wage. It went so well I stayed an extra month. I was hired as a regular employee with all the benefits per diem workers get like holiday pay, overtime after 8 hours, etc. I covered my own housing and already had a license in that state. Best wishes for your success!

There is an article at NurseTraveler.org by NedRN that is pretty comprehensive on independent contracting. There are a number of Travel Nurse Companies that you can subcontract through that pay you as a independent subcontractor. Two good ones I know of are:
Independent Nurse Consultants, Inc.

HospitalSupport.com

CJ Travel NurseToolbox :)

cassieriri wrote:Hi. I have been travelling for a year and am interested in being an independent contractor. There are lots of sites that sell the "how to" packages, but I work hard for my money and don't want to throw it away on a bunch of junk. Anyone out there know of a legit program or resources available? Anyone like me who thought about doing it then did, and if so, how is working out? Any advice and guidance would be appreciated.

Stay away from sites trying to sell you "how-to" packages. Most of this information can be freely obtained thru networking with other nurses on the job, in forums and researching on the internet.

With the economy the way it is right now how easy is it to get into hospitals as an independent contractor? And have bill rates changed?