WorkingWithOneRecruiter_OneHealthcareRecruiter Myth: working with multiple recruiters as a travel nurse or allied health traveler benefits you and your career.

The truth is, working with multiple recruiters can potentially hurt your allied or travel nurse career. Whether multiple recruiters submit you for the same job or same position at a facility or recruiters at the same company pass you around like a hot potato, working with multiple recruiters could make your job search more complicated. Here’s why it’s better to only work with one recruiter.

Working with Multiple Recruiters Doesn’t Benefit You. Here’s Why.

Should I work with multiple recruiters?

While some allied and travel nursing agencies and recruiters may advocate for working with multiple recruiters to increase job opportunities, it may not always yield the results you want. It may seem like you're gaining access to more jobs and better placements with more chances, but juggling multiple recruiters can muddy the waters and prevent you from getting where you're supposed to be.

“I think working with one recruiter at your agency is the most ideal setup,” said Shafer Fox, R.T.(R)(CT), radiology recruiter, and former Fusion Medical Staffing traveler. “Having too many cooks in the kitchen can cause a lot more issues than one might expect.”

Working with more than one recruiter can lead to confusion and conflicting information. You may find yourself in situations where you’ve been inadvertently double-booked or receive contradictory advice from recruiters, causing unnecessary stress and complications.

"I worked with multiple recruiters when I traveled," said Amanda Scott, BS, HT(ASCP), lab account manager at Fusion Medical Staffing, and former traveler at a different agency. "I very much wish that was not how it was done back then. When I talk to other travelers about my experience with that, they often say, 'That sounds awful.'"

Additionally, spreading yourself too thin across multiple recruiters can impact the quality of support and personalized attention that you receive. By working exclusively with one recruiter, travel nurses and allied health travelers can streamline the job search process, build stronger relationships, and ensure clear communication and consistency.

3 pros to working with one recruiter

Increased consistency

As a travel nurse or allied health traveler, you’re familiar with the unknowns that come with moving to a new city and transitioning to a new job assignment, for example. But what if we told you that you can eliminate a few unknowns and instill a profound sense of consistency and reliability throughout your travel journey?

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Working with one recruiter allows you to forge a long-term partnership with a dedicated travel nurse or allied health recruiter who acts as your consistent point of contact and understands your unique preferences, career goals, and personal circumstances.

“As a former healthcare traveler, I can say that working with one recruiter makes things much smoother for the traveler,” said Fox. “Learning the ways of different recruiters can be hard, time consuming, and creates room for error. The more consistent you can be with one recruiter, the better success you’ll see come your way.”

This continuity fosters a deep sense of trust and rapport, allowing you to navigate your allied health or travel nurse assignments with confidence and peace of mind. With each interaction, you can rely on your recruiter to provide consistent support, guidance, and advocacy, ensuring a seamless and rewarding experience for both you and your recruiter every step of the way. From assignment selection to contract negotiation and beyond, the unwavering support of a trusted recruiter becomes an invaluable asset, empowering you to thrive in your allied health or travel nursing career.

Easier to build trust

In addition to having one consistent point of contact, working with one recruiter also cultivates a strong foundation of trust and reliability. With a dedicated recruiter by your side, you can establish a deeper and more meaningful relationship built on mutual understanding and respect. Plus, this trust allows you to share your career aspirations, preferences, and concerns openly, knowing that your recruiter will prioritize your best interests.

“I currently have a traveler working with me and we’ve become good friends over the last two years that he’s traveled with us,” said Garret Hamilton, Fusion Medical Staffing cardiopulmonary team lead and account manager. “Over that time, we’ve formed a great bond and a great relationship. I know a lot about him, his dog, his friends, and he’s even taken a travel job here in Nebraska, so we’ve had the opportunity to have a few lunches together, see each other, spend time together face-to-face, and grow our friendship. That’s really special.”

As trust deepens, so does the level of personalized support and guidance provided by your recruiter. The benefits of this trusted partnership extend far beyond individual assignments, laying the groundwork for long-term career growth, personal development, and overall job satisfaction in the dynamic world of travel nursing or allied health travel.

“Not only does working with one recruiter create an easier transition from one assignment to the next, but it also creates an increased level of trust between the recruiter and traveler,” said Fox. “Working with multiple recruiters can cause things to be missed. In some cases, opportunities that our heart may have been set on can be missed due to lack of communication with multiple recruiters. Having a single recruiter to focus on takes that possibility out of the equation.”

Higher job satisfaction

You’re already doing what you love. Now it’s time for you to get back to loving what you do. And working with one recruiter could pave the way for you.

Oftentimes, travel nurses and allied health travelers experience higher job satisfaction when they work with one dedicated recruiter rather than juggling relationships with multiple recruiters. Since the relationship between your job satisfaction and organizational trust are directly related, it’s important to work a recruiter who you not only get along with, but also one who’s there for you in the ways you need them to be.

When you have a solid relationship with your allied or travel nurse recruiter, it feels more comfortable to express what you need in a job, and from them. For example, if you love your travel assignment and want to extend it, having that conversation with your recruiter feels more natural because you know if you love it, they love it for you.

"When you have one recruiter, you get to build a relationship with them and vice versa," said Scott. "Having to reintroduce yourself and explain your skills and what you do every time you have a new assignment because you're assigned to a new recruiter is frustrating and adds to the stress of being a traveler, in my experience."

With a trusted ally guiding you through your allied health or travel nursing journey, you’ll feel more supported, valued, and understood, contributing to higher job satisfaction. This enhanced level of personalized attention empowers you to navigate your assignments with confidence, ultimately leading to greater fulfillment.

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Why we have a single recruiter approach

ICYMI, we do things a little differently here at Fusion Medical Staffing. Instead of rotating you through a never-ending stream of recruiters, we pair you with one committed recruiter. And the reason is simple — it’s better for you.

“You’re going to have the same recruiter for your entire life at Fusion Medical Staffing,” said Hamilton. “That means that as long as you travel with us, you’re not getting passed around. The reason that’s really big is because the more your recruiter gets to know you, the more they’ll know the type of hospitals you want to work at, where you want to travel, and what things you like. The more personalized your relationship is, the better your experience will be.”

We recognize that you already have a lot on your plate. That’s why we removed at least one headache by streamlining your communication with one single point of contact within your Fusion Medical Staffing team.

“The single point of contact and the traveler-first model is something that sets us apart [from competitors],” said Aaron Polak, RN, and Fusion Medical Staffing travel nursing recruiter. “All of our processes, our procedures, everything — all of it is designed around our travelers. We’re trying to make things go as smoothly for them as possible.”

While we meet our travelers with a single recruiter approach, that doesn’t mean that your recruiter is the only person within Fusion Medical Staffing working hard to ensure your happiness and fulfillment. The reality is there’s a whole team of people from compliance experts to clinical advisors to housing coordinators working hard for you behind-the-scenes.

“There’s a whole team behind your recruiter working collaboratively toward your success,” said Holly Hesse, travel nursing recruiter at Fusion Medical Staffing. “We put our heads together to find the right job for you and when that offer comes through, we’re all celebrating! We truly and genuinely want our travelers to be successful.”

Frequently asked questions

Will working with multiple recruiters enhance my chances of finding an allied health or travel nurse job?

Many may believe that working with multiple recruiters as a travel nurse or allied health traveler will give you twice or three times as many chances of finding a job than you would with a single recruiter. Spoiler alert: that’s not always the case.

With multiple recruiters, it may seem like casting a wider net would yield more opportunities, the reality is that working with multiple recruiters is more likely to result in duplication of efforts, confusion, and conflicting information.

Ultimately, the quality of the partnership with a recruiter matters more than the quantity, and focusing on building a meaningful relationship with one recruiter can lead to more fruitful job search outcomes and experiences in the long run.

What if I want a different recruiter?

So, you’re traveling with Fusion Medical Staffing, but you don’t totally vibe with the recruiter you’ve been paired with. Can you get a different recruiter?

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“You know how some people believe you have different soul mates for different points in your life?” asked Fusion Medical Staffing’s Director of Allied Health Thea Circo. “We believe in the same thing, but with recruiters. Everyone has multiple recruiter matches because at different points in your travel career, you have different needs. Here at Fusion Medical Staffing, we look at our travelers holistically, not just in three-month chunks, and understand that change is inevitable, so if your path doesn’t line up with your recruiter’s anymore, that’s okay! If we know that the support doesn’t match your needs, it would be silly for us to force you down that road. We’re happy to match you with someone else at any time who may be a better fit.”

What makes Fusion Medical Staffing recruiters special?

You know the importance of working with one recruiter and why we chose that approach. So, what makes Fusion Medical Staffing recruiters special? We’re so happy you asked.

“Fusion Medical Staffing recruiters are a special breed of recruiters,” said Fox. “You won’t find more caring individuals to have on your side at any other agency. We strive day in and day out to provide an extraordinary experience for each traveler. Your recruiter will be there for you on a personal level to make sure you’re doing well and enjoying your assignment, your questions are answered, you’re advocated for, and that you’re in the loop along the way.”

When you work with our recruiters, you’ll be blown away by their advanced industry knowledge, strong communication skills, prudent listening skills, unwavering trustworthiness, and relentless reliability. On top of all that, our recruiters are also deeply invested in you as a human and use the close relationship they’ve built with you to help you achieve your goals and get to where you want to go.

“We’re able to really hone in on that personalized traveler support,” said Hesse. “We truly get to know our travelers and the factors that influence their decisions. I think this helps us advocate for them and also make sure that their travel experience is smooth and positive.”

At the end of the day, you’ll know you’re working with a Fusion Medical Staffing recruiter because you can feel how much they care, even from a long distance.

“Fusion Medical Staffing recruiters are set apart from others because we care,” said Ashley Hoffman, home health recruiter at Fusion Medical Staffing. “You’re going to have a recruiter that not only wants what’s best for you, but is going to be an advocate for you, cheering you on in your corner, and looking for opportunities where you can meet your goals and dreams. We want you to have a good time on your assignment and be set up for success on your next go-around. You have someone here working with you hand-in-hand to meet your goals, to listen to you, and be that advocate. We really care. We’re invested in your success and your future and we’re right there cheering you on every step of the way!”

Now that you know that working with one recruiter as a travel nurse or allied traveler increases consistency, enhances trust, and improves job satisfaction, you may be wondering how you can start reaping the benefits. And the good news is, it’s easy!

To connect with a Fusion Medical Staffing recruiter, submit a job application online, and we’ll reach out to get to know you better. Once we’re able to build your traveler profile with all your job and lifestyle wants/needs, we’ll pair you with a recruiter who’s experienced in and familiar with what you’re looking for. Then, it’s only up from there.