Any Travel Nurse that has traveled to an assignment across the country, moved into their apartment, and then shown up at work the first day to find out that they were going to have to take the PBDS test for the first time is likely to have had a bit of anxiety over it.  While full time staff Nurses are given the PBDS to determine what kind of orientation is appropriate for them, not so for the Travel Nurse.  In most cases it's a "fail, and go home on your own dime" situation.  Literally.

The test itself isn't a pen and paper sit down test, where you answer multiple choice questions about.  It is presented via computer with video vignettes or descriptions of situations that require you to then narate an appropriate response to.  It's stuff you know, but it's presented in a way that can be misleading if you don't know what to expect. 

Many Travel Nurses refuse to take assignments that require this test, but I don't advocate that approach.  It's a test that measures your clinical knowledge and decision making, and you can pass it if you have the right mindset.

I'll give you some of my personal advice on taking the PBDS, and I'll also point you in the direction of more information on the subject.  My personal experience with the test was the Critical Care form of the exam, at the time they didn't have an ER specific one at the facility where I tested :

#1  The test is time limited, so tying speed helps. 

#2  The test is graded by looking for keywords in your answers.  For instance, if you get a scenerio that is about a patient having chest pain, the test wants to see words like EKG, IV, Oxygen, Nitroglycerin, Morphine, lab tests (be specific - say cpk, troponin, myoglobin, cbc, cmp, bnp - not just "lab work").

#3  Don't just say "I'd call the Doctor".  They want to know that you know what to do FIRST, before you call the doctor.  Standards of care allow you as a nurse to get an ekg, start an IV, put oxygen on, etc.  Do those things, type them all out.  Include in your narrative that you would inform the doctor immediately as a PART of your care, but remember that your patient doesn't just lay there until you get an order.

#4  If they ask you what you would do if a doctor or patient is rude to you, remember that the facility wants you to take one for the team.  Your answer needs to include the fact that you never argue or discuss sensitive issues in front of patients or other staff, that you are never confrontational with another staff person, and that you would at an APPROPRIATE time later try to heal any professional relationships that you can.  Just remember - carry out orders, take care of patients, and THEN privately try to discuss any interpersonal issues with other staff persons.

#5  Don't get hung up on one question.  Time is limited, so if you get stuck on something, move on.  Remember, the more correct key words you get in during the test, the better.  Type as quickly as possible and describe your actions:  "I would place the patient on oxygen, cardiac-nicp-spo2 monitors, call for a stat EKG while I establish a large bore IV for venous access and I would collect blood for cpk, troponin, myoglobin, cbc, chemistry, bnp.  I would give NTG for chest pain q5 min times 3 if the patient has no contraindications to it, and would obtain an order for morphine if the pain was rapidly controlled.  I would make certain the EKG was done and read by the physician within 5 minutes.  If the EKG indicated an STEMI then I would anticipate immediate transfer to the cath lab or administration of thrombolytics if no cath lab was available."  Just talk it out the way you would do it. 

#6  A lot of nurses who work in areas where they don't have a lot of autonomy, have trouble with this part of the test.  They are afraid to "do" anything without it being clear that they have an order for their actions.  Just remember that if you walked into a room and found whatever problem that they present to you, you wouldn't run back out the door and call the doctor, and wait for him to call back for a reply.  You would call him, but remember to type out what you'd do first! 

This is a great article about the PBDS test :  The Performance Based Development System assessment tool affects travel nurses

The Cross Country Staffing PBDS Resource :  This is an excellent resource that Cross Country Staffing has available on their site.

        

Travel Nursing as a Career option for Nurses came about in the 1980's in response to seasonal needs in places where the populations increased during certain times of the year such as Florida and California where snowbirds swelled the populations with heavy users of hospital resources.  Soon however, the Nursing shortage created opportunities for Travel Nurses all over the country, and an industry was born. 

Travel Nursing, and Travel Nurses, have changed a lot over the years, and keeping up with the industry and staying competitive takes a little work.  You need to network with other Travel Nurses, research companies and hospitals, and stay informed about trends in benefits and pay.  Travel Nurses are an independent lot, they have to be.  Starting a new job 3 or 4 times a year in a new town, or state and hitting the ground running with a minimum of orientation takes a little confidence, and a sense of adventure.  But it is both financially and professionally rewarding in every sense of the words.  ... << MORE >>

Deciding to take your Nursing Career on the road as a Travel Nurse isn't always an easy decision to make. By nature Nurses are responsible, hard working people who find the idea of short term
employment a little frightening. In reality, Travel Nursing affords you more work security than you might imagine. If you consider that there are tens of thousands of Travel Nursing positions vacant
and waiting to be filled at any given time, and contrast that to the number of nursing positions available for full time nurses close to your home, it suddenly doesn't seem like such an unreasonable
step to make towards financial security.



Add to the sheer number of Travel Nursing positions available, the fact that you increase your income significantly as a Travel Nurse, and you have a winning combination that can take you and your
career to new heights. Being a Travel Nurse opens up your career to new opportunities, and your life to exciting new places and people. Still, it's a big step, one that makes many nurses nervous. It
isn't easy to walk away from the full time job that you've ... << MORE >>

Travel Nurse Across America using Twitter to update nurses on available assignment opportunities!

Travel Nurse Across America announced that they will be providing Twitter
Feeds of available Travel Nursing assignments.  They also make mention of the fact that they have seen a "incredible" increase in demand for positions from hospitals.   This is
great           news for Travel Nurses who've been waiting for the decrease in Travel positions to resolve.  According to TNAA, they have
created 20 Twitter accounts ...

<< MORE >>

     I've been working for almost 17 weeks now with a great group of Travel Nurses.  Our entire shift has been made up of Travelers, and we've become a tight knit group,
having an awful lot of fun working together.  But, as assignments wind down, the first of us had their last shift last night and I was so sad to see him go.  You get to meet so many
interesting people traveling, and Bill was one of those Nurses you just love to work with.  Always finding something to stay busy, always volunteering for that next patient, ... << MORE >>

If you are like most Travel Nurses, you couldn’t have helped but notice that assignments dried up quite a bit last year. In a profession that basically lives or dies based on the nursing shortage, you would have thought that there were more than enough local Nurses to go around last year.<< MORE >>

How would you like a career that allows you to spend January soaking up the sun at the beach in Miami, hitting the slopes at Vail in March and set sail in July for a month-long cruise of the Alaskan coast? Are you looking for variety in your life as well as your job? Are you happiest when you're immersed in new adventures? Are you a nurse, or thinking of becoming one? Then you just may find that travel nursing is the ideal career choice for you. << MORE >>

Most Nurses will spend their entire careers moving from one full time position to another, slowly moving up the ladder from a new graduate, to a staff nurse, to a charge nurse, to a manager. Some will further educations to become administrators or to teach, while still others will move away from the bedside into physicians offices or to insurance companies. A sad few will fall by the wayside, victims of burnout. But a few, will step outside their comfort zones and find new excitement and fulfillment in their careers by becoming Travel Nurses. This lucky few will discover a way to fulfill their desires to travel and to see the country, even the world, while practicing their profession in a new place several times a year. Travel Nursing takes you places, literally.

If you’re reading this, then you’ve probably at least considered a career as a travel nurse. Good for you! Just getting that far is difficult for many. They don’t like the idea of stepping outside of the full time position safety net, having to start all over somewhere new. But if the idea of making new friends, practicing Nursing in new locations and expanding your knowledge base by using your skills in a diverse mixture of settings, then Travel Nursing is for you.

Talk to other Travelers, find out what they like, what they don’t like. You can benefit from their experience not only in preparing yourself for your fist assignment, but in negotiating your first contract as well. Ask one how they choose a company, a recruiter, their payment package. You’ll get a lot of different answers, but all of them will provide you with valuable information. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve taken an assignment somewhere and found myself working side by side with a brand new traveler making 30% less than I was, just because she really didn’t understand her own salary package or what her skills were worth on the market place.

Take some time to get yourself prepared, do a little research, find a seasoned traveler to mentor you! Ultimately, Travel Nursing is personally and financially fulfilling in a way that the full time job you can spend a lifetime at in one place just can’t compete with. I’ve made hundreds of wonderful friends traveling, some I will be close to forever even though we live many hundreds of miles apart. I’ve improved my skills, and I’ve shared my knowledge with others. I’ve worked in large metropolitan hospitals and tiny rural access hospitals. I’m a better nurse for having hit the road, and a much more satisfied one as well.

So if you’re considering Travel Nursing, I applaud and encourage you to keep going.!

        

I just wanted to share some interesting links around the net I've visited lately.  Most are for Nurses in general, some more specifically about Travel nursing.  

8 Must Have Friends at the Hospital   A list of people you need to know at EVERy hospital you work at.

Travel Nursing Agency Cirrus Medical Staffing Sees Unique Opportunities For Traveling Nurses In Government Nurse Jobs


Demand In Travel Nurse Jobs Anticipated Due to Swine Flu

ER Nursing humor     Just for a quick Laugh, at ourselves mostly.

        

After traveling full time for the past 5 years, I wanted to spend some time working close to home. I missed my family, my partner, my dogs (both of whom barely remembered me), and most of all, my own bed. What I didn't want to do was cut my pay in half to do it! But taking a travel assignment close to home, requires you to rethink how you set up your pay package. You have to be careful, especially if you are used to taking a tax advantaged pay package.

If you're working so close to home that it would not require an overnight stay, then you have to reduce the amount of tax free income that you bring in. You can't accept all that tax free housing money if you're not going to actually use it. Don't listen to a recruiter who tells you that it's okay to take the tax free money anyway, because it isn't. You have to be careful when dealing with recruiters, who often will encourage you to take a tax advantaged split that is way to high. They aren't doing this to help increase the amount of money that YOU make. They do it to DECREASE the amount of payroll taxes that THEY pay. If you're in doubt about how much you should ask for in tax free monies, my advice is to contact a reputable tax advisor who is familiar with travel nursing. They're out there, just do a google search for "travel nurse tax advisor" and several should pop up.

Remember, I am a travel nurse, and not a tax professional. You should talk to YOUR tax professional before changing anything. Don't take my word for it.

Working close to home is getting easier. Many hospitals are choosing to offer seasonal contracts to nurses looking for much higher pay rates without benefits. If you're one of the lucky nurses out there who don't need insurance, then this can really be a good way to land a position close to home for a while. Just call the hospitals in the area you want to work, and ask them if they seasonal contracts available.

The only downside that I've found to traveling close to home, is that I can't work as many hours when I'm living at home. Unlike being away from home where there are few distractions, being home means being available to the people that you came home to see in the first place. It's harder to just work and sleep every day when you have people around that you miss and want to spend time with. Still, it's worth it to reconnect with family and friends. It's also a good opportunity to network with other Nurses and hospitals near your home to keep doors open for you when you do decide to stop traveling.