Looking for the benefits of allied or nurse travel without having to leave home? Local contract nursing and healthcare jobs are a great way to get career flexibility and develop new skills while still keeping it local. Here’s everything you need to know about local contract jobs, including how to find opportunities near you.
> Interested in local contract work? Search hundreds of job opportunities here
What Are Local Contract Jobs in Healthcare?
Local contract jobs are temporary assignments in hospitals, medical centers, clinics, or for other healthcare employers in your area. To qualify, you must usually live within 50 miles from the location where you’ll be working.
As with travel nursing, local contract jobs are designed to help employers fill staffing gaps and ensure patient care at times when they’re understaffed, busier than usual, or expanding their services, among other reasons. They’re usually structured the same way as travel jobs, typically offering 13-week assignments with the possibility of extensions or even permanent opportunities for high-performing nurses and clinicians who want to stay onboard.
Keeping it Local: 7 Benefits of Local Contract Nursing and Healthcare Jobs
If you’re interested in getting the benefits of allied or nurse travel but not the nomadic lifestyle, local contract nursing jobs might be just what you’re looking for. Here are seven reasons why so many healthcare professionals are embracing the local contract lifestyle, both temporarily and as a long-term career choice.
#1: Work/Life Flexibility
Need some more flexibility in your day-to-day schedule? Whether you need time to go to school, care for a loved one, do volunteer work, or for any other reason, local contract jobs give you the flexibility to take time off between assignments as needed without stalling your career.
For instance, you could take a few weeks off after each 13-week assignment. Or you could work a few assignments in a row and then take off a few months, with the relatively higher pay you get as a contractor balancing out that personal time. Some assignments might also offer the chance to choose your shifts in advance, giving you even more control over your schedule.
#2: Career Flexibility
As a contractor, you technically work for yourself. That means you get to choose not only when and work you work, but what type of job you do. For instance, you can work in the emergency room for one job, and as a case manager for the next, provided you have the experience.
- Pro Tip: Maximize your career flexibility by mixing per diem jobs in with your local contract assignments. Learn more here.
#3: A Great Way to Build Skills & Experience
And if you don't have the experience to smoothly switch from one type of nursing job to the next, local contract jobs give you the chance to quickly build it.
Whether it's working in different units or with higher-acuity patients, contract work gives you the chance to build valuable experience, 13 weeks at a time. It's also a great way to focus on soft skills like teamwork, communications, and leadership, to earn the hours of clinical time required by some certifications, and to learn new tech — a huge advantage in the age of digital EHR and telehealth.
#4: The Chance to Earn More
Like travel jobs, local contract jobs pay higher rates than salaried jobs. And, although they don't offer travel and housing stipends, some local contract healthcare jobs do offer the chance to earn overtime pay — check with your employer or recruiter to understand your options.
- Pro Tip: Further boost your earnings by working part-time per diem jobs along with your local contract assignment. Get tips for finding per diem jobs here.
#5: No Need to Travel!
For many contractors, this is probably the most enticing aspect of local contract jobs — the chance to work temp assignments close to home. In addition to the comfort, convenience, and cost savings of staying local with your loved ones and community instead of hitting the road, you'll also avoid spending hours at the airport, in traffic, packing, getting a new license, and finding a new place to live.
#6: A Smarter Way to Make a Career Transition
Between jobs? Local contracts are a great way to try out new types of settings or specialties without making a permanent commitment. They can provide a paycheck while you're looking for, or holding out for, your dream job — and you’ll still be local if you have to hit up a last-minute interview.
And if you're thinking about retiring, switching specialties, or shifting out of nursing or clinical work altogether, local contract jobs can keep the paychecks coming in while you make the change.
- Pro Tip: Time to switch things up? Here are 8 tips for switching your specialty.
#7: The Chance to Help Those Who Need It Most
Last but definitely not least, local contract nursing jobs provide you with an opportunity to help the people in your community who most need it, whether that's a hospital struggling with staffing or a medical center in need of specialized skills. So, if you've been looking for a more fulfilling career path, working local assignments can give you a way to make a real impact close to home.
Find America's Best Local Contract Nursing and Healthcare Jobs with HealthTrust
If you like the idea of earning more and having a more flexible schedule but don’t want to travel, local contract jobs might be just what you're looking for. And we're here to help you take that next step with hundreds of local opportunities, available right now at the HealthTrust jobsite — click here to see them all.
