The Best Travel Nursing Companies – 2018

The best travel nursing agencies are highly sought after. That’s no surprise given that travel nursing companies provide services that can make or break a travel nurse’s experience. However, a litany of unique circumstances make it really difficult to determine the best travel nursing companies. So, we researched travel nursing company ratings and reviews from across the web. Then, we compiled all the data to bring you this list of the best travel nursing companies of 2018.

Please Note: This article was written in 2018. While it is still very useful, we highly recommend reviewing our newer articles below:

The best travel nursing companies of 2019

The best travel nursing companies of 2020

The Best Travel Nursing Companies of 2021

The Best Travel Nursing Companies 2022

The Best Travel Nursing Companies 2023

The Difficulty Determining The Best Travel Nursing Companies

There are two interrelated factors that make it difficult for travel nurses to determine which travel nursing companies are the best. First, the ratio of travel nurses to travel nursing companies is relatively low. Second, the number of rating and review services is relatively high. Let’s unpack these issues to see what the ramifications are for travel nurses.

The Ratio of Travel Nurses to Travel Nursing Companies

We estimate that there are anywhere from 38,000 to 44,000 travel nurses. We base this estimate on two variables. First, Staffing Industry Analysts estimates that 19% of all travel nurses work for American Mobile. Meanwhile, American Mobile reported they had 8,000 travel nurses on contract during one of their investor conference calls in 2017. These numbers yield an estimate of 42,105 travel nurses (8,000/.19).

You might be thinking that this is actually a lot of travel nurses. However, we estimate that there are roughly 300 healthcare staffing companies. Moreover, the top 39 companies control 66% of the market. That means 240 companies have an average of 60 travel nurses working for them at any given time.  Meanwhile, the 38 largest companies except American Mobile have an average of 520 travel nurses working for them at any given time.

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Why is this important? Only a small percentage of users submit reviews for the products and services they utilize. Therefore, it takes a lot of users to get reviews.

The Number of Travel Nursing Review Services

Meanwhile, the number of rating and review services is constantly growing. There are general rating services and niche rating services. The general services include GlassDoor, Indeed, Facebook, and Google. The niche services include Travel Nursing Central and Highway Hypodermics.

This list is by no means exhaustive. In fact, there are tons more rating and review services and new ones are being introduced all the time.

As a result, travel nursing company ratings and reviews get spread across multiple services. Moreover, the lopsided distribution of travel nurses across travel nursing companies means that most companies have relatively few reviews on any one platform. That means the sample size for most companies is quite small on any single rating platform. Small sample sizes result in unreliable information. It’s easy to get 5 stars on 2 reviews and just as easy to get 1 star on two reviews.

Moreover, small sample sizes result in disparity between rating services. For example, a company can easily have 10 reviews with a 5-star average on one site and 10 reviews with a 2-star average on another. This makes it difficult for travel nurses to rely on any one source.

How We Determined the Best Travel Nursing Agencies of 2018

In order to assist travel nurses with their search for the best travel nursing companies, we began aggregating the rating scores from multiple rating websites in 2017. In 2017, we aggregated the rating scores for every travel nursing company we could find on Highway Hypodermics, Travel Nursing Central, Travel Nursing Blogs, Facebook, Indeed and GlassDoor.

We converted all scores to a 100-point scale. We then averaged all the scores together to determine an Aggregate Score for each company. Then, we ranked the companies from highest to lowest. The top 20 companies with 50 or more reviews were added to our list of the best travel nursing companies of 2017.

Update for Best Travel Nursing Companies of 2018

We made some tweaks for 2018’s list of the best travel nursing companies. First, we unfortunately had to drop Travel Nursing Blogs from the scoring system. Second, we added Google to the scoring system.

Finally, we added two “Difference Variables” to recognize the difference in a company’s score between the current year and the previous year. We included these variables to give added weight to each company’s performance over the last year. After all, this is a list of the best travel nursing companies “of the year”.

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After we crunched all the numbers, we added each company’s Aggregate Score to their “Difference Variables” to get their “Total Score”. This means that it’s possible to score higher than 100 points using our point system. Next, we ranked the companies from highest to lowest. The 20 highest scoring companies with at least 50 total reviews and 15 new reviews in the last year were added to the list.

Ultimately, the scoring system is quite complex. Therefore, we provide a highly detailed breakdown and explanation at the end of this article.

Interesting Insights on Travel Nursing Company Ratings and Reviews

As mentioned above, this is the second year that we collected this data for ratings and reviews. Last year, we collected data between June 7^th and June 13^th. This year, we collected data between May 16^th and May 23^rd. Here are some observations we found interesting:

1. Last year’s article on the best travel nursing companies has been viewed more than 130,000 times!
2. This year, we aggregated 48,377 scores for 285 travel nursing companies. Last year, it was 28,515 scores for 243 different companies. That’s an increase of 19,862 scores and 42 companies. It’s important to note that some of the companies are defunct. It’s also important to note that 10,900 of the new scores were from Randstad on Indeed. We didn’t have these counted last year for some reason. For those who are unaware, Randstad is one of the largest staffing companies in the world. They also own Monster.com.
3. Last year, the combined average score of all companies across all platforms was 78.62. This year, the combined average score was 78.48. That’s a slight decrease of .14. It’s important to note that we didn’t include Google in this calculation since we didn’t include scores from them in last year’s calculation. Also, as you’ll see below, the scores for each individual rating service actually increased this year. Indeed and Glassdoor were responsible for the overall decrease. These services have lower scores in general than the other services and registered a larger number of reviews.

Travel Nursing Central

Travel Nursing Central had 1,369 new reviews added in the last year. The average score of all the reviews for all the companies on Travel Nursing Central increased from 80.90 to 82.40. That’s an improvement of 1.5 points.

Highway Hypodermics

Highway Hypodermics had 374 new reviews added in the last year. The average score of all the reviews for all the companies on Highway Hypodermics increased from 17.11 to 17.22. That’s an improvement of .11.

Facebook

Facebook had 1,261 new reviews added in the last year. The average score of all the reviews for all the companies on Facebook increased from 4.46 to 4.51. That’s an improvement of .05.

Indeed

Indeed had 14,023 new reviews added in the last year. As mentioned above, 10,900 of those are from Randstad and weren’t counted last year. If we control for that, then there were 3,123 new reviews on Indeed in the last year. The average score of all the reviews for all the companies on Indeed increased from 3.75 to 3.78. That’s an improvement of .03.

Glassdoor

Glassdoor had 1,902 new reviews added in the last year. The average score of all the reviews for all the companies on Glassdoor increased from 3.34 to 3.56. That’s an improvement of .22.

Google

Google had 2,017 reviews. We did not count scores from Google last year so we don’t know what the difference is between this year and last. The average score on Google was 4.39.

Google is interesting in that they are focused on the “local” aspect of reviews. For example, if I search Google for ‘Soliant Health’ from my home in Sacramento, CA, then I don’t see any reviews in Google’s search results. However, if I search ‘Soliant Health Tucker, GA’ from my home in Sacramento, then Google shows the reviews in their search results. Soliant Health is located in Tucker, GA.

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Also, if I searched for ‘Soliant Health’ while I was located somewhere near Tucker, GA, then Google would display the review results. Basically, Google knows where you’re searching from. If you’re local, then they’ll display reviews. If you’re not local, then they most likely won’t display reviews. Therefore, if you want to submit a review for a travel nursing agency on Google, then you’ll most likely need to search Google for the name of the company PLUS the company’s city and state.

Who are the Best Travel Nursing Companies of 2018?

Once again, we chose to list 20 companies on our list of the best travel nursing companies of 2018. We do this for three reasons. First, with 20 companies, our list represents approximately 5% of the more than 300 healthcare staffing companies in the nation.

Second, we want to make sure we recognize companies who are performing outstandingly. The 20^th ranked company on our list had an Aggregate Score of 90.37 and a Total Score of 91.04. That signifies exemplary employee satisfaction.

Finally, we are huge proponents of travel healthcare professionals working with multiple companies. It’s the best way to ensure you have maximum exposure to the job market, get the best pay rates, and find the best service. Our entire website is designed to help you do just that! This list demonstrates that there is no shortage of great companies to work with.

Connect with the Best Travel Nursing Companies on BluePipes

The great news is that you can connect with 19 of the top 20 travel nursing companies right here on BluePipes. The list below highlights those companies with green text. These companies have an active Company Page and recruiters on BluePipes. It’s free to join BluePipes and we never release your personal contact information to third parties.

With BluePipes, you can create a travel healthcare resume that recruiters and hiring managers will love. We provide over 100 comprehensive nursing and allied skills checklists that you can complete, save and utilize at your convenience. You can even create a full job application with standard background questions and signing statements. You can upload copies of licenses, certifications and clinical records. You can send your documents to anyone at your convenience in order to simplify the onboarding process.

When you’re ready to find your next job, simply update your Job Availability Settings on BluePipes. We’ll notify the recruiters on our platform and they’ll contact you though our messaging system with opportunities. This way, you don’t have to release your personal contact information to tons of companies just to conduct a job search.

Of course, we also have job postings that you can peruse at your convenience. You can message the job-poster for more information or apply with your BluePipes documents when ready. Select the button below to discover why over 25% of travel nurses trust us to help them manage their careers!

Let’s take a look at our list of the best travel nursing companies of 2018!

About the Best Travel Nursing Companies of 2018

We strongly encourage you to review the company descriptions below. You’ll discover how each company made this year’s list. We also provide some general details about each company that may help you decide which ones you might want to contact. Of course, we recommend contacting them all!

1. Prime Time Healthcare

Simply put, Prime Time Healthcare had an amazing year. Their average score increased on nearly every rating service. For example, their average score on Travel Nursing Central went from 54.4 to 89. They went from 3.6 to 4.6 on Indeed.

Most impressive was the fact that they nearly tripled their total number of reviews. Last year, they tallied 90 total reviews across the platforms we monitored. This year, they tallied 327 across those same platforms. We also counted 71 reviews from Google for a total of 398 reviews.

Prime Time Healthcare is based in Omaha, Nebraska. They’re no stranger to accolades and awards. They were recognized as one of the best places to work in Omaha for 2016 and 2017. They won an Omaha’s Choice Award in 2016.

BluePipes members can connect with Prime Time Healthcare and their recruiters here.

2. Triage Staffing

Triage Staffing comes in at number 2 on our list for the second year in a row. The Omaha, NE based company was founded in 2006 as a boutique staffing firm specializing in Radiology. They quickly became a full-service healthcare staffing company providing services for all modalities. Inc. Magazine recognized Triage Staffing as one of the nation’s fastest growing companies for 3 years in a row.

Triage tallied a total of 316 reviews across the platforms we monitored last year. They added 113 new reviews across those same platforms this year. We also counted a whopping 149 reviews from Google.

It’s important to note that Triage Staffing has the highest Aggregate Score of all the companies on our list at 95.669. Again, the Aggregate Score is the average score across all the platforms we measured this year. It does not include the additional scores we tallied to account for the difference between this year and last year.

BluePipes members can connect with Triage Staffing and their recruiters here.

3. FlexCare Medical Staffing

It’s certainly no surprise FlexCare Medical Staffing made our list again this year. They’ve made it on Travel Nursing Central’s list of top travel nursing companies for the last 5 years. They’ve been on Highway Hypodermics’ list for the last 8 years! They might be the most decorated company in the history of travel nursing.

FlexCare had 1,165 total reviews across the platforms we measured last year. They added 257 new reviews across the same platforms this year. Additionally, we counted 37 reviews from Google. With a total of 1,421 reviews, FlexCare is by far the most reviewed company on our list.

BluePipes members can connect with FlexCare Medical Staffing and their recruiters here.

4. Travel Nurse Across America

Travel Nurse Across America (TNAA) is one of the largest travel nursing companies on the list, if not the largest. They also have a solid history of recognition on the annual lists of best travel nursing companies. TNAA made it on Travel Nursing Central’s list of top travel nursing companies the las 5 years.

We tallied a total of 848 scores across all platforms for TNAA this year. They received a whopping 391 new reviews in the last year. They had 183 new reviews on Travel Nursing Central and 171 new reviews on Highway Hypodermics. This is impressive considering that these platforms take steps to ensure that only travel nurses submit reviews.

TNAA received 6.23 of their total 95.78 points from their “Difference Score”. That was the fourth highest “Difference Score” of all the companies on our list. They had a great year in reviews!

BluePipes members can connect with Travel Nurse Across America and their recruiters here.

5. Host Healthcare

Host Healthcare was founded in 2012. They have quickly gained recognition as one of the best travel nursing companies to work for. For example, they were listed as one of the best travel nursing companies of 2017 on Travel Nursing Central. Additionally, they’ve made it on Highway Hypodermics’ list for the last two years.

Moreover, they were recognized as one of the fastest-growing healthcare staffing firms in 2017 by Staffing Industry Analysts. They were also recognized as one of the best places to work in San Diego by the San Diego Business Journal. Finally, they even won an award from City Beat News for Excellence in Customer Service.

Host Healthcare moved up from number 9 on our list last year to number 5 this year. They had 139 total reviews across the platforms we measured last year. They added 82 new reviews across the same platforms this year. Additionally, we counted 34 reviews from Google. Their Aggregate Score came in at 94.07!

BluePipes members can connect with Host Healthcare and their recruiters here.

6. OR Nurses Nationwide

OR Nurses Nationwide is a nurse owned and operated full service healthcare staffing company. So, don’t let the name fool you. They staff nationwide for all modalities. They have physical offices in Memphis, TN, Dallas, TX and Houston, TX. They also operate a sister company called Travel Nurses, Inc.

They were the number 1 ranked company on our list last year. However, their place at number 6 this year isn’t an indication that they didn’t have a good year. In fact, OR Nurses Nationwide has the second highest Aggregate Score of all the companies on our list at 95.32. That’s actually a slight increase from last year!

BluePipes members can connect with OR Nurses Nationwide and their recruiters here.

7. Fusion Medical Staffing

Fusion Medical Staffing is another company that has achieved tremendous accomplishments in a relatively short period. Scott Wehner and Sam Wageman founded the company in 2009. Since then, Fusion has been recognized time and time again as a great place to work.

They’ve been recognized numerous times as one of the best places to work in Omaha, NE. In fact, they won so many times that they were recognized with the “Sustained Excellence Award”. Additionally, Fusion made it on Travel Nursing Central’s list the last 2 years. They made Highway Hypodermics’ list this year. Moreover, Staffing Industry Analysts recognized Fusion as the best staffing company to temp for in North America this year.

We counted 806 total reviews for Fusion across all the platforms we measured this year. They came in with the third highest Aggregate Score at 94.30. Simply put, it was another great year for Fusion.

BluePipes members can connect with Fusion Medical Staffing and their recruiters here.

8. Atlas Medstaff

A recent study found that Atlas Medstaff was one of the most popular travel nursing companies on Facebook. It turns out that travel nurses registered a relatively large number of glowing comments about the company during the study’s timeframe. Therefore, it may come as a surprise to find Atlas at number 8 on our list.

Well, don’t let that position fool you. Atlas Medstaff received a Total Score of 94.89 on our list. Meanwhile, companies 4 through 10 on our list are separated by less than 1 point. Moreover, Atlas accomplished this with a modest 239 total reviews. If their travelers ever turn their sights to singing the company’s praises on review services, then we would expect to see Atlas move up the list significantly.

BluePipes members can connect with Atlas Medstaff and their recruiters here.

9. Axis Medical Staffing

Axis Medical Staffing is based in Seattle, Washington. The company was founded in 2004 by Ryan Skjonsberg and Adam McKinnon. From their humble beginning staffing per diem shifts at local hospitals with the help of a fax machine, Ryan and Adam have grown Axis into a respected national healthcare staffing company.

They had 123 total reviews across the platforms we measured last year. They added 27 new reviews across the same platforms this year. They were the number 5 company on our list last year. They had another solid year with a sight increase in their Aggregate Score.

BluePipes members can connect with Axis Medical Staffing and their recruiters here.

10. Chesapeake Medical Staffing

A team of nursing and staffing management professionals founded Chesapeake Medical Staffing (CMS) in 2001. CMS started out by staffing RNs both on contract and PRN in Baltimore area hospitals. By 2011, they were staffing all nursing, allied and physician modalities, and even launched home care and residential services throughout Maryland. In 2016, they began to expand their travel contract nursing services and have placed staff in NC, MA, PA, DC, VA, NJ, DE, and NY.

Chesapeake Medical Staffing made our list with 58 total reviews across all platforms. They had 19 new reviews in the last year. Most of their reviews come from Facebook and Indeed where they had average scores of 4.9 and 4.4 respectively.

While Chesapeake Medical Staffing has job orders nationwide, they have a major footprint in their home state of Maryland, and throughout the mid-Atlantic and northeast. They provide PRN, local contract, and travel staff to a large portion of hospitals and healthcare providers throughout the state. They even have a Maryland Residential Services License to staff home care.

BluePipes members can connect with Chesapeake Medical Staffing and their recruiters here.

11. Tailored Healthcare Staffing

Tailored Healthcare Staffing moved up on our list from 15 last year to 11 this year. Both Highway Hypodermics and Travel Nursing Central have included Tailored Healthcare Staffing on their lists of the top travel nursing companies for the last 3 years straight.

We tallied a total of 400 reviews for Tailored this year. The vast majority of their reviews were from Travel Nursing Central, Highway Hypodermics and Facebook. They continue to rack up solid scores across all platforms.

BluePipes members can connect with Tailored Healthcare Staffing and their recruiters here.

12. Medical Staffing Solutions, Inc.

Travel Nursing Central has listed Medical Staffing Solutions, Inc. on their lest of the best travel nursing companies for 4 straight years. We tallied a total of 191 scores for them across all platforms this year. They received 26 new scores compared to last year. Travel Nursing Central accounted for 22 of those new reviews.

Medical Staffing Solutions, Inc. is based in Wisconsin where they have a very solid footprint. They also staff nationwide.

BluePipes members can connect with Medical Staffing Solutions, Inc. and their recruiters here.

13. LiquidAgents Healthcare

This is the second year in a row that we have had LiquidAgents ranked at number 13 on our list. LiquidAgents had 397 total reviews across the platforms we measured last year. They added 215 new reviews across the same platforms this year. Additionally, we counted 74 reviews from Google. They have a total of 640 reviews. Travel Nursing Central has included Liquid Agents on their list of the best travel nursing companies the last 2 years.

14. MAS Medical Staffing

MAS Medical Staffing had a great year in reviews. Their average score on Facebook increased from 4.5 last year to 4.6 this year. Meanwhile, their average score on Indeed went from 3.8 to 4.0. Finally, users on GlassDoor gave MAS strong enough reviews to increase their average score from 3.8 to 4.3. As a result, Mas Medical Staffing made our list based in large part on their Difference Score which was the second highest of any company on the list.

While MAS staffs nationwide, they have a huge footprint in the New England states. They have a whopping 12 offices in the region.

BluePipes members can connect with MAS Medical Staffing and their recruiters here.

15. PPR Travel Nursing

PPR has been in business for 23 years. The “Great Places to Work Institute by Fortune Magazine” has recognized PPR Talent Management as one of the best small to medium sized companies to work for in 13 of those 23 years. In 2016, PPR was one of 35 companies that Gallup recognized with their “Great Workplace Award.”

PPR is another company that achieved an exceptional year-over-year increase in average scores. They increased their average score on Travel Nursing Central from 72.4 to 82.4 after travel nurses added 51 new reviews for them on the platform. By our calculation, PPR’s average score for the new reviews on TNC was 90.6. Meanwhile, PPR increased their average score on Indeed from 3.7 to 4.6. Finally, they increased their average score on GlassDoor from 4.2 to 4.4. To top it all off, PPR earned the number 1 spot on Highway Hypodermics list of the top travel nursing companies for 2018.

BluePipes members can connect with PPR Travel Nursing and their recruiters here.

16. TotalMed Staffing

TotalMed Staffing moved up one spot on our list from last year coming in at number 16 this year. TotalMed had 379 total reviews across the platforms we measured last year. They added 98 new reviews across the same platforms this year. Additionally, we counted 25 reviews from Google this year.

TotalMed has earned a spot on Travel Nursing Central’s list of top companies for the last 4 years. They made it on Highway Hypodermics’ list in 2014, 2015 and 2016.

BluePipes members can connect with TotalMed Staffing and their recruiters here.

17. LRS Healthcare

This is LRS Healthcare’s second year on our list. They came in at number 7 last year. However, don’t let the lower position fool you. They actually had a pretty solid year in reviews. For example, they slightly increased their average scores on Travel Nursing Central, Indeed and Highway Hypodermics. They also racked up 74 new reviews on GlassDoor where they have an average score of 4.5.

BluePipes members can connect with LRS Healthcare and their recruiters here.

18. Cirrus Medical Staffing

Cirrus Medical Staffing has been in business for more than 15 years. Staffing Industry Analysts ranked them among the 25 largest healthcare staffing firms in 2017.

They made our list this year based in large part on the strength of their Difference Score. Their Difference Score of 6.7 was the third highest on our list. Their average score on Travel Nursing Central increased from 73.1 to 74. Their average score on Facebook increased from 4.4 to 4.5, on Indeed from 4.2 to 4.3 and on GlassDoor from 4.1 to 4.6.

BluePipes members can connect with Cirrus Medical Staffing and their recruiters here.

19. Voyage Healthcare

Voyage Healthcare had a total of 31 reviews last year so they didn’t meet the minimum requirement of 50 for us to consider them on our list. This year, they added 32 new reviews to bring their total to 63. With the minimum met, they made our list based strictly on the strength of their Aggregate Score of 91.42. They had a great year for a small company! They experienced scoring increases across the board.

BluePipes members can connect with Voyage Healthcare and their recruiters here.

20. White Glove Care

White Glove Care is an intriguing addition to this year’s list of the best travel nursing companies. White Glove is based in New York where they’ve had a massive presence all throughout the state ever since their inception in 1997. Seriously, if you are interested in working anywhere in New York, in any modality or specialty and in any capacity, PRN, Travel or otherwise, then it’s a good idea to contact White Glove. They’re experts in the state and are deeply connected with its healthcare providers. All that said, they also have contracts in surrounding states and nationwide.

White Glove Care has no reviews on Travel Nursing Central and only 2 on Highway Hypodermics. However, don’t let that fool you. They have 83 reviews on Facebook, 134 on Indeed, 84 on GlassDoor and a whopping 667 on Google! As mentioned above, they have a huge local presence so its no surprise that they have so many scores on Google. With 969 total reviews they’re the second most reviewed company on our list.

BluePipes members can connect with Voyage Healthcare and their recruiters here.

About BluePipes’ List of Best Travel Nursing Companies

As mentioned above, the scoring system we use to determine the best travel nursing companies of the year is a little complex. Moreover, there are several variables that are useful for both travel nurses and companies to consider. What follows is a detailed discussion about those variables along with a breakdown of the scoring system for one of the companies on the list.

Ratings and Reviews from Travel Nurses vs. Internal Staff

It’s important to note that the rating services we use to compile this list fall into two categories. The first category takes steps to ensure that they are accepting reviews only from travel nurses. Travel Nursing Central and Highway Hypodermics are in this category.

The second category accepts reviews from both travel nurses and internal employees like recruiters and account managers. Facebook, Indeed, Glassdoor, and Google are in this category.

This is important because one might argue that ratings from internal staff are irrelevant to travel nurses. However, we believe that the best travel nursing companies are those that provide an excellent experience for both their internal staff and their travelers. Moreover, we believe that happy internal staff members are more likely to provide amazing service to travel nurses and unhappy internal staff members are more likely to provide bad service to travel nurses.

Travel Nursing Company “Review Solicitation”

Travel nurses may also want to consider “Review Solicitation” when relying on reviews to find the best travel nursing companies. Review Solicitation is when a company solicits reviews from their employees or customers. The problem is that the company may choose to solicit reviews from only those who the company knows are happy with the service. Therefore, the reviews may not be truly representative of the company’s performance.

Unfortunately, this is a reality that exists on every review platform and for every product or service. The only question is whether or not a company engages in the practice. Ultimately, we believe that the practice will become widespread, if it isn’t already, given that consumers are increasingly using reviews to help them make buying decisions. In the end, it’s up to the specific review service to determine how they’ll handle this.

As a result, we recommend perusing the actual reviews of the companies you’re interested in. You’ll find that some companies have a higher percentage of reviews from internal employees. You’ll also be able to check out the negative reviews to find issues that may be of importance to you. For your convenience, we have a list of links to all the travel nursing company rating and review websites for each company.

Changes in Rating and Review Services We Considered

As we mentioned above, we made some changes to the review services we considered this year. Unfortunately, we had to remove Travel Nursing Blogs from the scoring system. We did this for two reasons. First, the number of reviews on the website did not increase significantly. Second, Travel Nursing Blogs does not list an average score for each company. Instead, they only display the star-graphic. Therefore, we would need to add up every score for each company to determine the actual average rating. We weren’t about to do that again!

Next, we added Google reviews to the scoring system. We did this for 2 reasons. First, we recognized that there are a significant number of reviews on the service, 2017 to be exact. That’s nearly as many as Highway Hypodermics has and nearly double what Travel Nursing Blogs had in 2017. Second, the rumor is that Google will continue to expand the visibility of this feature in the future. We expect the number of reviews to grow quickly as they do.

So, for 2018, we aggregated the scores for every travel nursing company we could find on Highway Hypodermics, Travel Nursing Central, Facebook, Indeed, GlassDoor, and Google.

Sample Breakdown of a Rating Score Used to Determine the Best Travel Nursing Companies

As we mentioned above, our rating system was pretty complex this year. Therefore, we are providing a detailed breakdown of the score for one of the companies below.

Each company receives a “Total Score”. The Total Score Is comprised of three components. They are as follows:

1. The “Aggregate Score”
2. The “Individual Difference Score”
3. The “Aggregate Difference Score”

Total Score = Aggregate Score + Individual Difference Score + Aggregate Difference Score

The Aggregate Score

Let’s take a look at a sample Aggregate Score. Here is the data we collected for FlexCare Medical Staffing:

Again, the 6 services each use one of three different scoring systems. TNC uses a 100-point system. HH uses a 20-point system. The rest use a 5-point system. We needed to choose one system and convert the others to that system in order to combine the scores.

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We chose to use a 100-point system. To convert HH’s scores, we multiplied them by 5 (5 * 20 = 100). To convert the 5-point scoring systems, we multiplied them by 20 (20 * 5 = 100).

In addition to converting the scores to a 100-point scale, we also needed to tally the total score for each company on each platform. For example, FlexCare’s total score on Highway Hypodermics was 18,919.4 (222 reviews * 17.04 * 5).

Next, we tallied the total score from each platform into one overall score. FlexCare’s total score was 131,691.4 (935 * 93.4 + 222 * 17.04 * 5 + 168 * 4.8 * 20 + 22 * 4.7 * 20 + 37 * 4.9 * 20 + 37 * 4.9 * 20 = 131,691.4).

Finally, we tallied the total number of reviews across all platforms and divided the overall score by the total number of reviews. FlexCare had 1,421 total reviews (935 + 222 + 168 + 22 + 37 + 37 = 1,421). Therefore, FlexCare’s Aggregate Score across all platforms was 92.675 (131,691.4 / 1421 = 92.675).

Individual Difference Score

The Individual Difference Score rewards or penalizes a company for the difference between their average score this year and their average score last year on each rating service. This year, we made significant changes to the algorithms that calculate these scores.

We’ve chosen to keep these calculations private this year to ensure that our list cannot be recreated. However, please contact us if you’re a healthcare staffing agency or travel nurse who is interested in learning more.

Aggregate Difference Score

The Aggregate Difference Score accounts for the difference in a company’s Aggregate Score between this year and last year. A company must have had more than 50 reviews in the prior year in order to qualify to receive the Aggregate Difference Score. We did this to ensure an adequate sample size.

Additionally, we had to account for the removal of Travel Nursing Blogs and the addition of Google in this year’s formula. To do so, we added the scores from Travel Nursing Blogs to keep it constant. Then, we removed the scores from Google so that we could make an apples-to-apples comparison.

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Let’s take a look using FlexCare as an example again. Last year, we counted 1,165 reviews for FlexCare. That’s more than 50 so they qualified for an Aggregate Difference Score.

FlexCare had an aggregate score of 91.721 last year. This year, FlexCare had an aggregate score of 92.40098453. Remember, this was their aggregate score for TNC, HH, Facebook, Indeed, GlassDoor and Travel Nursing Blogs (kept constant from last year). Therefore, FlexCare’s Aggregate Difference Score was .6799845 (92.40098453 – 91.721). And yes, all those decimal places matter. Seven companies on the list were separated by less than 1 point.

As my 3-year-old daughter would say, HOLY MOLY!!! That’s a lot of numbers to crunch. Thankfully, the spreadsheet did most of the work!

As always, we hope you found this article useful. We’d love to hear about your experiences with these companies. Please share them in the comments sections below!