Travel Infection Prevention RN Jobs

As per the data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average infection control nurse salary was $75,330 as of May 2020. However, infection prevention and control nurse salaries can vary based on factors such as geographic location, years of experience, level of education, and the specific healthcare setting.

Infection control nurses play a critical role in healthcare settings, focusing on the prevention and control of infectious disease outbreaks. Their duties encompass a wide range of activities, including developing and implementing infection control policies and procedures, educating and training healthcare staff on these and promoting adherence. They also conduct surveillance and are part of analyzing infection data, identifying any infection trends and applying necessary measures to mitigate the spread. Being a key part of the team of other healthcare professionals, infection control nurses work closely with the clinical staff, providing guidance on infection control standards and practices.

Moreover, they play a significant role in patient education, advising them on infection prevention measures. In cases of any infectious disease outbreak, they act swiftly with infection preventionists to manage and contain the situation, ensuring minimal impact on patients and staff. They continuously stay updated with any new developments in infection control practices and incorporate these into their healthcare setting.

Infection control nurses play an important role and are in demand across various healthcare settings. Predominantly, they work in hospitals alongside infection control professionals where preventing the spread of infectious diseases is vital for patient safety. However, their expertise is not confined to hospitals alone. Long-term care facilities, rehabilitation centers, outpatient care centers, and public health agencies also require their services. Also, infection control nurses work in research with public health professionals, contributing to studies on disease transmission and prevention and disease control methods.

Education & License Requirements

A registered nurse needs to complete their associate degree or bachelor's degree at an accredited school and take the National Council Licensure Exam NCLEX -RN Exam, which is a requirement to practice as a registered nurse in the United States. Once the NCLEX certification exam is passed, you meet the requirements by your state license board, and you obtain your RN license, then all that is left is to do is gain the necessary relevant experience in disease control and prevention.

RNs must gain experience in the nursing field, preferably in areas such as patient care, disease control, or infection control nursing. Some infection prevention nurses may also choose to specialize further by obtaining a post secondary degree such as an advanced nursing degree.

Certifications

Certification in Infection Control (CIC) offered by the Certification Board of Infection Control and Epidemiology (CBIC) is a recommended step for infection prevention nurses. This certification requires a minimum of two years of infection control practices and passing an examination. Regularly staying updated with the latest research and changes in guidelines related to personal protective equipment, as well as infection prevention and control techniques is essential for success in this role.

While compensation offers can vary greatly depending on the contract or agency offering, pay packages for a travel infection control nurse typically have four major components: hourly taxable wages, meals and incidentals, housing, and travel.

Hourly Pay

Full-time nurses working at a healthcare facility receive a salary, but most travel registered nurses offer hourly wages at a competitive weekly rate. Every pay package for a travel nurse must include a taxable hourly wage, and the amount can vary depending on the shift, location, and specialty required of the assignment.

Housing

Housing payments can be included in a payment from a staffing agency. This is typically offered to a travel nurse in two ways. Either the company is providing housing, or the travel nurse is taking the housing stipend. It is more beneficial for the traveler to take the housing stipend for two primary reasons. First, they will have a choice in where they stay. Everyone’s definitions of comfortable and acceptable are different. The second reason the housing stipend is more beneficial for them is that it can be given as a nontaxable amount.

Meals and Incidentals

Also known as per diems, meal and incidental stipends provide a daily budget for daily living expenses for travel nursing professionals. These standards vary depending on the cost of living in cities and states across the country.

Travel Expenses

Travel is the last portion of the pay package. Many recruiters may not even offer travel and instead put that money into the per diems or housing for their travel nurse so they are receiving the benefits over the entire contract length, not just at the very beginning or end of the contract.

While a travel stipend can be used to cover the cost of a flight for the traveler, it is more often than not used to subsidize the traveler's expenses to and from an travel nursing assignment. Travel expenses can be offered as a reimbursement rate per mile, though many agencies will opt to offer a flat rate to and from an assignment.

Many travel infection control nurses find work through recruitment agencies and marketplaces, which means you have better access to job boards to choose your schedule, location, and salary. When you begin browsing for infection control nursing travel jobs, be sure to consider the housing options, the benefits, the guaranteed hours' policy, and the recruiting company’s overall reputation.

The good news is that Fusion Marketplace has everything you need when it comes to finding the perfect travel jobs for nurses in the infections diseases field. Here, you have the freedom to compare benefits, packages, and staffing agencies—all in one place. So find your next nurse job and build your travel nursing career today.