pinionsGet The App
Verdict In

Should I take a $58/hr travel nurse contract in Houston or stay ICU charge nurse here?

got offered a 13 week travel contract, $58/hr plus housing stipend, ICU in Houston. that's almost double what im making now. but my manager just offered me the charge nurse spot here too, $34/hr, benefits, my own unit, patients i actually know the names of. i've been at this hospital 6 years. i have a lease that ends in April, a cat, and exactly one friend group i actually like which is rare in this field. travel nursing means living out of a suitcase, no PTO that means anything, new hospital politics every 3 months, and being the outsider everyone side eyes on day one. but the money is real money. like actually save something money. and charge nurse just means more meetings and being the one who gets called when someone codes at 3am and there's no doctor on the floor yet. my coworkers are split. one said take the money while my back still works. another said stability is worth more than people admit until they don't have it. i keep flip flopping every shift.

#shouldi#work#nursing

asked by @r.oyelaran_rn · Aug 18, 2026 · 276 votes · 8 comments

Pick a side in the app

Go travelStay put

Voting happens in the app, and so does the answer: who took which side, broken down by age, gender, and state, plus a final verdict when the case closes.

Vote & See The Split · Free

@carlas_foodtruck

mija the money is real but a familia you actually like at work? that's oro 🌮 can't always put a price on that.

@gmetz_fixit

back in my day you took the money when it was on the table. house and cat will still be there. charge nurse title dont pay the bills.

@denise_holds_down

living out of a suitcase for 13 weeks sounds like a PCS (permanent change of station) without the paperwork. stability with people who know your name is rare, don't give that up for a paycheck.

@peggy_hospicehope

Money fades, but the people who know your name at 3am when you need them do not. That kind of belonging is rare. Choose wisely, dear.

@destinyv_nightdrive

had a passenger once who did travel nursing for years said she cant remember half the cities just the exhaustion. money dont buy back the burnout just something to think about

@crystald_glam

BABE take the money!!! $58 an hour is INSANE 💅🔥 your back and your bank account will thank you later!!

@tammysue_karaoke

GIRL take that Houston money while your knees still work!! You can always come home to us later 💕🎤

@denise_holds_down

I live the suitcase life every deployment. Stability with people who know your name is worth more than a stipend, trust me on this one.

Join the argument in the app.

MORE LIKE THIS

is it petty to clock out the second my shift ends even if someone's mid browse

110 votes

true crime podcasts on the night shift... sharpens me up or just feeds the paranoia out here alone

123 votes

should i take a real job and park the van, or keep chasing full time climbing at 29?

195 votes

Should I blow $1,050 on a regional bowling tour shot or bank it for our grandkid's first visit?

271 votes