Valley hospitals grapple with skyrocketing cost of travel nurses

In a normal year, hospitals have no problem staffing their halls with travel nurses to fill in gaps or prepare for the busy winter months. But 2021, much like the year before, has not been a normal year for the health care industry.

Valley hospitals are continuing to see turnover within their skilled nursing staffs because of the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and hiring new employees to replace them has been a challenge. But hiring travel nurses has been no easy feat either.

A look at ZipRecruiter job listings for travel nurses in the Phoenix area shows available salaries from $4,000 per week, with some fetching nearly $6,000 per week for shortened contracts, typically several months long.