Tag: travel OT

Transitioning Between Travel Therapy Jobs and Local Therapy Jobs

~ Travel Therapy Mentor ~ Leave a comment

As PTs, OTs & SLPs, we have a lot of options for our careers. Travel therapy can be a great option for many therapists, at various points in their lives. However, there are times where travel therapy may not be the best fit. For some therapists, the options may seem limited. Either settle down permanently for the long-term at a regular job, or travel, no in-between. However, there can actually be a lot of in-between.

We do know many therapists who have started their careers with travel therapy, then settled into a permanent position long-term when they get done traveling. Or, vice versa, they worked a perm job for a while, then switched to travel therapy. But we also know therapists who go back and forth, between travel jobs and local jobs, utilizing PRN jobs or taking “permanent jobs” knowing they’ll only be there for a year or two while it suits their needs.

Personally, over the years, we have transitioned back and forth between working travel therapy jobs around the country, to taking PRN jobs locally at home. After nearly a decade as PTs, we have never worked a permanent, full-time job, and we don’t ever plan on it since we are now semi-retired and only work part time as clinicians.

In this guest post, we’ll share Morgan’s story, an Occupational Therapist who has transitioned between travel therapy and PRN, along with her reasoning and advice for others.

Guest Post by Morgan Lauchnor, OTR/L

Travel therapy can be an addicting way to live once you start, and many healthcare professionals end up doing it for multiple years, sometimes with no end date in sight. But for others, there are certain instances where it might be beneficial to break away from travel therapy to take on local therapy jobs. And if you’re like me and aren’t quite ready to take on a full-time gig, a PRN (“as needed”) job may be the way to go.

There are many similarities between travel therapy jobs and PRN therapy jobs, like the freedom to choose your own hours and not having to deal with workplace politics, but there are also some big differences to consider. In this article, I’m going to talk about my experience with transitioning from travel to PRN and back again, reasons why one might consider this option, and offer helpful tips for making these changes.

My Story

When I started travel therapy back in 2019 as a new grad occupational therapist, I was hooked from the start. Getting to explore the country; living like a local in places I might never have visited otherwise; being able to pay down my student loans and make good money; and meeting amazing people along the way— I had no intention of stopping for a longgg time.

However, part of the reason I wanted to travel was to gain experience working in multiple settings. I had done an inpatient fieldwork internship on a spinal cord unit at a VA hospital, and I was excited to get back to working in a hospital. But since a skilled nursing (SNF) travel therapy contract was what got my foot in the door, I initially stuck with that setting because it was what became familiar. When the time came though that I was ready to branch out into inpatient/acute/LTAC, no one would give me an interview. While there are some facilities that are willing to train new grads/therapists with no prior experience, it just so happened that all of the ones I was applying for wanted me to have at least 1-2 years of experience in the setting first. It got to the point where I waited almost 3 months in between contracts trying to land a hospital contract with no luck, that I was forced to go with another SNF contract which completely burned me out.

So because the travel therapy market wasn’t catering to my path, I paved a new one. While I never planned to stop traveling after only 2.5 years, an opportunity came along to take a PRN position in Asheville, NC that allowed me to get my foot in the door with a variety of settings, from acute care, to inpatient, to LTAC, home health, and PACE. I knew that this way, when I decided to go back to travel, I would no longer have the limitation of ‘needs prior experience’ holding me back. I spent another almost 2.5 years with that PRN job, gaining so much clinical experience and growth.

Once I was ready to make the transition back to travel therapy and started talking to recruiters again, I was able to find an acute care travel contract at a level 1 trauma hospital that checked every box I was looking for. For me, this break from travel therapy was one hundred percent worth it to me to help me reach my goals.

Reasons for Transitioning Between Travel & PRN

Gaining Clinical Experience

As I said in my case, one reason for taking a local job somewhere is to gain clinical experience in settings with specific requirements. There are cases where facilities are willing to train new grads/therapists with no prior experience, and while I always recommend still applying to these contracts on the off chance that they say yes (worst case they say no), if you’re not having luck, PRN may be the way to go.

Being Close to Family and Friends

One challenge with travel therapy can be constantly moving and being away from family and friends. At different points in life, it may suit therapists to return home for a while to be closer to family and friends. Or, similarly, if they happen to meet a partner while on contract in a new place, they may consider settling down in that area for a while (or forever) to pursue the relationship.

Maintaining Tax Home 

For some therapists, returning to their tax home location and taking contract work that is fully taxed, or a PRN job, is a way to help maintain their tax home requirements in between travel contracts.

Making Money Between Contracts

Sometimes it takes more time than anticipated to find the right travel therapy contract. Rather than rushing into something out of desperation and time constraints, it may be beneficial to pick up a local job in the meantime to take the pressure off while you find what you’re looking for.

Finding a Great Facility

Sometimes as a travel therapist, you may end up at a facility that you absolutely love, and they make an offer for you to stay there full time. In some cases, this can lead to finding your new permanent home and permanent job for the long term. But, quite often, therapists may be enticed to stay at a location for a year or so, without wanting to make it their forever home. Many therapists will take a “permanent” job temporarily, with plans to leave and go elsewhere after a certain amount of time.

Helpful Tips for Transitioning Between Travel and Local Jobs

Remember the big differences from travel: weekly vs. biweekly pay, no stipends, guaranteed monthly hours minimum, and making your own schedule but having to rely on the facility’s needs.

Getting back into the mindset of a regular, non-travel job can be tough after travel, and it is important to prepare. Know that you will most likely not be paid as frequently, and may be taking a pay cut without the tax free stipends. You will also need to look into the positions you are considering and how much they will need you at their facility. Some PRN jobs are able to offer a lot of hours, where some may not have the staffing need for a lot of hours. This will help you determine if a PRN position will be able to provide you with enough hours for your situation and financial needs, or if you may need to take on multiple PRN positions or go full-time.

Consider your health insurance options.

While a lot of healthcare travelers use their company’s health insurance while they’re traveling, it sometimes gets tricky between contracts, or if you decide to take local contracts or a PRN job. If you take a full time local job, you’ll likely be offered benefits, but most PRN jobs do not offer benefits. Going with a private health insurance plan, or another type of plan that you maintain independent of your employer, allows you to have health insurance throughout the year without having to worry about this. I switched to private insurance when I went PRN. In some cases, signing on for more of a permanent/full time job that offers benefits may be a better option for you depending on your healthcare insurance needs. This post goes over different health insurance options to consider.

Know that you can always transition back to travel therapy at any time! 

Travel therapy job options and permanent job options will always be available. Taking a break from one or the other won’t limit your job options when you decide to transition again. I guarantee if you put word out to get back into travel therapy, you’ll have multiple travel therapy recruiters immediately itching to get you set up with another travel contract.

Take Aways

Ultimately, there are a number of reasons why it may be beneficial to stop traveling and pursue a local contract if it aligns with your goals and/or life circumstances at that time. Fortunately, as healthcare providers, we have a lot of different job options available to us at any given time, both for travel jobs and local jobs. We can design our lives to be flexible and pursue the opportunities that fit us best depending on the current stage of life. We don’t have to feel stuck in one type of job or another if it’s not working for us.

I hope these tips are helpful in making that transition between travel therapy and local therapy jobs more seamless. And if/when the time comes that you decide to go back to travel, it’s always an available option. After all, once a traveler, always a traveler.

Thank you, Morgan, for sharing your experiences and insights with us. Learn more about Morgan below.

You can also watch the video we made discussing this topic further here.

About the Author: Morgan Lauchnor, OTR/L

I started travel occupational therapy back in 2019, beginning as a new grad and moving from Pennsylvania to the west coast, so I could live out my dream of seeing the country and all that it has to offer, while working my dream job. I’ve taken five different travel therapy assignments in SNFs, from OR, to CA, to TX, and NC. A little over 2 years ago, I planted some temporary roots in Asheville, NC to get some inpatient/acute/LTAC/home health experience, working PRN for a hospital network, before returning to travel therapy this year. I travel with my mini-Aussie pup Zoey who has been the best adventure buddy, and we are now currently in Indianapolis, IN where I am working an acute care travel therapy contract at a level 1 trauma hospital. We love exploring new cities, getting outside any chance we can, and meeting the best people along the way! If you’d like to connect, the best way to contact me is through social media: Instagram: @zoandmo_onthego or through email at mlauchnor@gmail.com.

If you’re looking for additional resources for your travel therapy career, check out Travel Therapy Mentor’s Traveler Resource Hub. If you’re ready to get started with travel therapy and want to connect with vetted travel therapy recruiters, fill out our Recruiter Recommendations Form. Feel free to message us with any questions!

3 Ways to Make Over $100,000 Per Year as a New Grad Physical Therapist

~ Travel Therapy Mentor ~ Leave a comment

Making $100,000 per year has long been a marker of success and something that is strived for in society. This is no different for physical therapists.

With tuition costs continually increasing, especially for graduate level programs, student loan debt becomes more of an issue for new grad physical therapists with each passing year. We communicate with thousands of PT students and new grad PTs every year, and student loans are a major point of anxiety for almost all of them. These days, it’s rare to talk to a new grad PT who has less than $100,000 in student loan debt, with the average seeming to be in the $150,000-$200,000 range currently. With that amount of debt, it’s no wonder that the desire to make at least $100,000 per year is higher than ever in this cohort. A high salary realistically offers the only chance of being able to pay off that amount of student debt.

When I graduated from physical therapy school in 2015, I had just over $92,000 in student loans (and my wife and fellow PT, Whitney, had over $140,000). Initially, we had no idea how to approach the situation. The student loan forgiveness options were still very new to me, and I didn’t know if they would be a good fit. I just knew that I needed to earn a lot of money to be able to achieve a positive net worth as quickly as possible.

Here are three options that I considered as a new grad physical therapist that I knew would allow me to earn at least $100,000 per year.

Starting a Cash Pay Outpatient Clinic

As a new graduate from PT school, I was confident in my clinical skills. I spent a lot of time reading research and taking advanced courses, along with my normal classroom education and clinical internships, which put me in a position to feel comfortable treating and communicating with patients. I wanted to put those skills to use in the outpatient setting, but after looking at what outpatient clinics were paying in my area, I just couldn’t go the traditional route. The thought of trying to pay off $92,000 of student loans on a $65,000/year salary was terrifying to me, especially knowing that many of the therapists in those positions were working 45 hours per week or more. This led me to start researching creating my own cash pay physical therapy clinic.

With a cash pay clinic, it would be possible to see less patients and make more money. Who wouldn’t want that, right? At the time though, I had no experience with starting or running a business, and the idea was intimidating. I also hadn’t seen any other new grads who had tried something like this, much less any that had done it successfully, with gave me pause.

Ultimately, I decided not to go this route, but over the past nine years since I graduated, there are a lot more resources available online that make the process less daunting to start your own cash pay PT clinic. There are also many new grad PTs starting and successfully running cash pay clinics making $100,000 per year or more that you can find on social media for encouragement. For any new grad who feels confident with their clinical skills and wants to work in the outpatient setting, starting your own cash pay practice is a clear, although not simple, path to earning $100,000 per year or more.

Working PRN Home Health

I had no experience with home health when I graduated from PT school, and in hindsight this was a mistake. In school I thought that I was sure I wanted to always be an outpatient physical therapist, so I never really considered trying to get one of my clinicals in the home health setting. When I graduated though, I quickly realized that working in home health would pay much better than outpatient, and that I should have given myself a chance to learn more about this setting while in school.

Depending on your state, there are some full time, permanent home health positions paying over $100,000 per year that are willing to assist and train new graduates. The need for physical therapists in the home health setting is very high, so there are often lots of options with great pay.

For home health, I think the biggest opportunity to earn the most money is in putting together multiple PRN positions to create your own full time job. Home health PRN positions will usually pay a flat rate per visit that varies based on the type of visit (start of care, evaluation, treatment, reassessment, or discharge), and the PRN rates are usually higher than what’s offered to the full time staff. The rates for these visits depend on the area and the need, but it’s not uncommon to be able to do five treatments per day and make $400-$500/day. Substitute in a couple evaluations or a start of care, and you can earn even more. Picking up 2-3 PRN home health jobs in your area and working full time hours can be an easy way to earn over $100,000/year as a new grad physical therapist.

Taking Travel Therapy Contracts

Last but not least is the decision that I ultimately made coming out of PT school, which is to take travel physical therapy contracts. A big reason that I chose Travel PT was to make as much money as possible as a new grad to put myself in a good financial position, but there were other things that drew me to it as well. I’d never lived more than an hour away from my hometown, and I had done little exploring more than a state or two away. Being able to try out different areas of the country to see if there was somewhere else that would be a better place for me to settle down long term was very enticing. Also getting to try out different settings to break up the monotony sounded better than being locked into the same clinic for multiple years.

In my first year as a travel therapist, I made almost $100,000 in TAKE HOME pay (after taxes)! That would be the equivalent of earning over $130,000/year (gross pay) in a salaried permanent position. If you’re unfamiliar with how travel therapy pay works, this article explains it in depth. This was way more than I had expected to make my first year out of school. The higher income allowed me to save $100,000 in my first year and a half after graduation, enough to pay off my student loans completely had I chosen to go that route (however I decided to take advantage of income driven repayment options and focus on my investments instead)! Currently, Travel PT pay rates are even higher than when I graduated in 2015, so it’s possible to make significantly more than I did my first year, especially with some leniency on location and/or setting.

Travel therapy is, without a doubt, the way to make the most money as a new grad physical therapist with the least amount of hassle. With that being said, it isn’t right for every new grad. You need to be confident in your evaluation and treatment skills, be a relatively quick learner, and be comfortable moving from place to place in order to succeed.

Which Will You Choose?

There are multiple ways to earn more than $100,000 per year as a new grad physical therapist but these are three of the best ways that don’t require working lots of extra hours. The right choice for you will ultimately depend on your own personal situation and circumstances. As a new grad, it’s important to make a decision that is a good fit and will allow you to grow both professionally and personally. No matter what decision you make, be sure to go in well informed and knowing what to expect to improve your odds of success.

If you choose to pursue travel therapy, we have a free Travel Therapy 101 series that will get you headed on the right track! We can also help get you connected with great Travel Therapy Recruiters who will work well with you as a new grad.

Written by Jared Casazza, PT, DPT – Jared has been a traveling physical therapist since 2015. He has become an expert in the field of travel healthcare through his experience, research, and networking over nearly a decade.