Frequently Asked Questions

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Below are common questions Allied Healthcare Professionals have, along with their answers.

If you have a question that isn’t listed below, please feel free to contact us.

We’ve taken the most commonly asked questions about Allied Healthcare Travel and broken them down by category. See below to find out if your particular questions are answered. If any of them are not, feel free to e-mail us at info@Alliedvip.com. We will be glad to provide the answer!

General Questions

Is this website a healthcare travel agency site?

Not in the classic sense. AlliedVIP.com® is a gateway site that allows you to submit your application to many Allied Healthcare Travel Companies. Essentially, we make it very simple for you to find Allied Healthcare Travel opportunities, and have Allied Travel Companies compete for YOU.

Is your service free for Allied Healthcare Professionals?

Yes it is! This is the best part of our service. There is never any fee of any kind for Allied Healthcare Professionals. It costs you nothing to submit your application; it costs you nothing if you get an Allied Travel job. Bottom line, there are never any fees of any kind to you, ever. Nothing hidden, and no catch.

I’m a Radiology Technician (Surgical Technician, Respiratory Therapist, etc). Is this site for me?

Absolutely! Any Allied Healthcare Professional who wants a healthcare travel job should be using our free service. Professions include:

 

  • Respiratory Therapists Travel
  • Physical Therapists Travel
  • Occupational Therapy Travel
  • Medical Laboratory Technicians Travel
  • Ultrasound Travel
  • Speech Language Pathology Travel or Speech Language Technicians Travel
  • Surgical Technicians Travel
  • Radiology Technicians Travel
  • Pharmacology Travel
Is my personal information safe and kept private?

Yes. Only the Allied Travel Healthcare companies you choose will see your personal information and contact details.

Requirements

What do I need to work as a travel Allied Healthcare Professional?

The requirements are very simple. A minimum of 1 year of recent experience is typically the standard. Like any other healthcare profession, you must be a graduate of an accredited healthcare professional program in the U.S.A. or Canada. You must also be able to prove you have a valid professional license or certification, as well as proof of the right to work in the United States.

Do I have to be single and childless?

No. Many traveling Allied Healthcare Professionals travel with their families. It is completely up to you, your situation, and your preferences.

Will each state I travel to require that I be licensed to practice in that state?

Yes, each state has its own rules and regulations. However, plenty of assistance is available to make obtaining any necessary licenses an easy process for you. Your Recruiter and/or Quality Management Managers at the travel allied healthcare companies will work with you to make sure you have all the necessary information to obtain the required license for the state in which your next assignment will be located. This will be done well in advance of the new assignment’s start date. It might also be a good idea for you to contact individual state boards in the states you wish to work and get up-to-date information and applications sent to you directly.

Will I be required to sign a long-term contract?

No. Alliedvip.com will put you in touch with individual travel allied healthcare companies. The contracts you then undertake with those companies are based on each individual assignment. In other words, your individual obligation only exists on an assignment-by-assignment basis.

What sort of personality do I need to have success as a travel Allied Healthcare Professional?

Well, you probably want to be someone who can adapt and make friends with people – this just comes with the territory of travel. The desire to learn and experience new adventures is also very helpful – whether or not you stay in the travel – healthcare field for an extended period of time. And, of course, the skills you already possess – compassion for patients, responsibility, etc, will come into play.

Schedules, Pay and Benefits

What is considered a full-time schedule?

For Allied Healthcare Professionals who are working 8 hour shifts, forty hours per week is generally considered a full-time schedule. Some traveling Allied Healthcare Professionals work 12-hour shifts, and for those workers, 36 hours per week is considered a full-time schedule.

How long will I be scheduled to work at a particular assigned location?

Most assignments run 13 weeks. It is also possible to extend a 13-week assignment to 26 weeks, and many traveling Allied Healthcare Professionals do this on occasion. A few short-term assignments, lasting less than 13 weeks, are also available.

How much will I be paid?

This depends on your particular field, the facility, and the location of your assignment. However, the general pay rate for Allied Healthcare Professionals usually is at the top end of the scale.

Will I be eligible for any bonuses?

Yes, but it depends on the assignment. Some offer a lump sum bonus for completing the 13-week assignment. Some offer a signing bonus in cash when you accept the assignment. Some allied healthcare travel companies also offer incentive programs for completing multiple assignments, which acts as a tenure or retention bonus. Most of the travel-healthcare companies also offer referral bonuses. If you refer a colleague to them and they accept a travel assignment, you will receive a referral bonus once they complete their first assignment.

What about insurance? Will I be provided with medical and dental coverage?

Yes-most of the traveling Allied Healthcare Professional companies offer full coverage, often at minimal or no cost to you. Always ask for details from the company before you sign an assignment contract. Comparing the insurance offerings of various companies can be a guideline that helps you decide which companies you’d like to work for as a travel Allied Healthcare Professional.

What about my travel expenses?

Each Allied Healthcare travel company pays a reimbursement for your travel (rates can vary.) There is usually a one-way round trip cap on the reimbursement. Generally, these reimbursements are paid directly to you.

Do I get any help with housing?

Oh yes, absolutely! Most Allied travel companies will set you up in a condominium or apartment for the duration of each assignment. These are always completely furnished, and the companies handle the arrangements and costs for all of your utilities. Usually, you will share a two-bedroom, two-bathroom layout with another traveling Allied Healthcare Professional, unless you ask for your own private apartment. Sometimes the healthcare facility to which you are assigned owns its own apartment building or house to provide temporary accommodations for traveling healthcare staff. Regardless, the housing is always very comfortable, clean, and modern.

What if I choose not to use the housing that’s provided and prefer to make my own arrangements?

If you arrange and pay for your own housing, you will usually receive a subsidy or stipend on a monthly basis from the Allied Healthcare Travel Company you’re working with.

Will I be eligible for a 401(k) retirement program?

Generally speaking, yes. It depends on the individual Allied Healthcare Travel Company. Many of these companies have very strong retirement programs, sometimes with company-matched contributions. Immediate program eligibility is also offered by many of these companies.

Career Advancement

How will my career development be affected by being a travel Allied Healthcare Professional?

Very positively, most likely! Most Allied Healthcare Professional managers and human resource professionals in the healthcare industry are very familiar with the travel healthcare industry. So, once you decide you want a permanent posting, there will be no need to explain what travel healthcare is all about.

Instead, many of the qualities most employers look for will already be demonstrated on your resume.
For example, your sense of adaptability, flexibility, and your ability to quickly get up to speed with new duties and settings will be self-evident. Your dedication to your career, as demonstrated by accepting many different assignments, will also be plain to see. Finally, one of the biggest obstacles to getting the best jobs—lack of experience—will not apply to you, compared to other candidates who have spent an equal amount of time in permanent postings. The variety of assignments you’ll have fulfilled will give you varied experiences to draw upon to ensure your future success!

Will I be offered continuing education?

The best Allied Healthcare Travel companies offer courses at no charge to their travel Allied Healthcare Professionals on assignments. For those who are in-between assignments, they offer continuing education hours on a discounted basis.

Workplace Assignments and Working Conditions

Where will I be assigned?

The pool of assignments is made up of healthcare facilities of all kinds, across the 50 states. Generally, the Sunbelt states and those states that have the largest population changes (such as Florida, Arizona, California, Texas, and North and South Carolina) have the most assignments. Other states that have big seasonal resort/vacation populations are also fairly common assignment destinations, such as ski states like Colorado, Utah, Vermont, etc.

How much flexibility is there in the assignments? I’d like to work in a warm climate or some other area that interests me.

Tell the Allied Travel Company your preferences, and the places you want to travel to. The company usually will work with you to steer you toward assignments in locations that interest you.

What types of healthcare facilities will I be working at?

Travel Allied Healthcare Professionals are employed at every sort of medical facility, from the small healthcare facilities that serve rural areas to esteemed teaching facilities and high-profile, big-city hospitals. If you’ve worked at one type of facility in the past, and you want to stay in similar environments, you can. Alternately, you may want to branch out and explore other types of work settings. You can do either – it’s your choice.

Each hospital I work at is certain to have its own rules, requirements, and such—how can I find out about these?

If a hospital uses travel Allied Healthcare Professionals (and most do) they generally have an orientation program already in place. The Allied Healthcare Travel Company’s recruiter can usually give you the particulars. In addition, if/when you meet the people at an individual hospital you are considering; this is a good question to bring up during the interview.

After I submit my application, how long does it take before I get my first assignment?

This usually depends on when you want to start. Sometimes, it can be as little as one week. Often, an Allied Travel Company will begin presenting you as a travel Allied Healthcare Professional right away.

Family and Personal

Can I bring a family member or friend with me?

Yes. Many traveling Allied Healthcare Professionals travel with family and/or friends. Many find it a very rewarding and exciting experience.

If my friend is also a traveling Allied Healthcare Professional, can we work together at the same place?

Sure! In fact, a good number of travel Allied Healthcare Professionals work with travel partners, and they select locations and travel assignments together. You may work at the same place, or perhaps room together and work at different facilities. The flexibility of the Allied Travel Companies is usually very accommodating.

I have a pet and would like to take it with me – is this ok?

That’s usually not a problem provided it’s not a destructive/loud pet. However, the housing may require a separate pet deposit, which you would be responsible for.

What about banking and bill paying while I’m traveling?

Modern technology makes “banking on the go” easy. Nearly every traveling Allied Healthcare Professional company offers direct deposit service, so you can easily continue doing business with your current hometown bank (and if your hometown bank offers bill paying via the internet, that’s even better.) Conversely, some traveling Allied Healthcare Professionals choose to work with a “national bank” that has locations in many cities (and thus have branches and “non foreign fee” ATM’s available everywhere)

Will I be able to receive mail when I am traveling?

This part will be entirely up to you. There are several very easy solutions – some Allied Healthcare Professionals have their home post office forward their mail. Other Allied Healthcare Professionals rent a private P.O. Box from one of the many shipping/mailbox outlets (like Mailboxes etc) and then make arrangements to have that establishment forward their mail on a regular schedule. Still others ask a family member or friend to receive their mail and then forward it to their current location once a week or so. However you wish to handle this is up to you.

Take Your Talents Nationwide!

There is nothing more important than doing what you love in the place you want to be. Make the most of your opportunity to make a difference in a community that you love!

If you have any specific questions about our allied healthcare travel jobs or traveling therapy jobs, click here to contact us.