Nurses do make pretty good money, but there are times when you need a little extra for something special. Maybe you have an upcoming wedding, vacation, or are thinking of buying a house. There is always extra work for nurses since they are in such great demand. There are many opportunities for nurses to pick up a shift or two. Here are some ways to pick up some quick extra cash!
1. Nursing Registry/Per Diem/On Call
Nursing registries staff “per diem” nurses that only take shifts when they are available. It is kind of like a temp agency for nurses. You may be sent to a pediatrics unit one day, and find yourself working the NICU the next. It just depends on what the contracted hospitals need for the day. They are extremely flexible since it is “on-call” work. You can tell them you are only available on the days you want to work. Many of the registries pay top-dollar for your services. It also helps build up your experience in other areas.
Nursing registries also staff for community flu clinics in major retail stores during flu season that can give you some extra shifts from October through March.
2. Community Clinics
Community clinics always need help year round. They may need extra nurses during flu shot season or even year round doing childhood immunizations. You may also be able to pick up a gig or two giving talks about health conditions and health management. You may also be sent to schools to do this.
Some community clinics do require a Public Health Nurse certification.
3. Medical Article Blogging
You can spend time making money at home or anywhere really with medical and health blogs. There are a number of sites that you can make offers to do the work for people building health related websites. You can also write for numerous healthcare product manufacturers. There is also the possibility of having your own nursing blog.
This is something you can do whenever you have time, even on the days you do work outside the home.
4. Float Pool
You don’t have to drive any farther to get extra work, at work. You can sign up for the “float pool” at your very own hospital. When extra shifts become available in other departments, you can take them. This also gives you a chance to gain new and exciting experience in other areas of nursing. Spend a day in the ER and get tons of IV start practice. Float to post-op and recover patients from surgery, or work with new moms learning to care for their babies in mother and baby care.
You might even ask your Charge Nurse if there are extra shifts available right in your own department. Depending on how your employer feels about overtime hours, you can take a shift or two extra if you’re up to it.
5. Home Health Nursing
Visiting patients in their homes can be a very rewarding area of nursing. Home health agencies employ full-time, part-time, and even per diem nurses. You can sign up for a few shifts a week. This is easy extra cash in your pocket. You just go to patient’s home for quick visits to do wound care, patient teaching, or care for IV sites.
One of the ideal things about home health nursing is you get to be “out and about” managing your own time and schedule. Many agencies let you start your day from home. Call your patients while having your morning coffee, and be home before your kids get out of school. It is normally Monday through Friday, but they utilize “on-call” nurses to cover weekends, evenings, and holidays.
6. Correctional Nursing
It’s not for the faint of heart, but working some shifts as a correctional nurse in a jail or prison can put extra money in the bank. These shifts are usually through a nursing registry and you can work as little or often as you like. You will need to receive security clearance, but the extra pay is very generous. Since they are state facilities, the shifts are usually shorter than hospital 12’s at 8 hours a day, plus they may pay overtime over 8 hours. Overtime is typically unheard of in regular hospitals these days.
Even one shift a week may be enough to pad your account for that vacation.
7. Teaching
Many schools for medical assistants, nursing assistants, and first aid courses have classes on weekends and at night. You could sign up to teach a class in your off hours. This is truly a rewarding experience bringing others into the medical field and a way to make some extra pay.
You’d be surprised how valuable your nursing skills are!
8. Nursing Homes
Most nursing homes also offer per diem shifts. Working with the elderly can be a positive experience and give you some extra cash. You will gain experience in geriatrics, dementia care, wound care, and medication passes. It is also an opportunity to develop long lasting relationships with patients and their families while offering supportive care in the later years.
Make sure to lookup your local nursing homes to see what openings they have.
9. Wound Consulting
Wound care can be a challenging area of nursing. Many nurses don’t know where to turn when a wound is not healing on a patient. With a wound care nurse certification, you can do wound care consulting for doctors, hospitals, and wound clinics. You stay up-to-date on the latest wound healing techniques and treatments so you can make recommendations on the best treatments to try. You can also teach classes on wound care and staging of wounds. You can choose the days and times you are available for consults, while still working your regular job.
Getting a wound care nurse certification is an excellent to boost your earnings!
10. Phlebotomy Work
Insurance company physicals often need a physical exam and blood draw as part of the application process. These are conveniently done in the patients home most of the time. You get a list and drive to their homes mainly in the evening hours. This is a great way to drum up some extra money and improve on your blood drawing skills!
If you are looking to earn some extra money…make sure to leverage your nursing skills! Nurses are in high demand so there are plenty of opportunities waiting for you – you just need to know where to look. Check out our other articles to help fuel your nursing career.
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