Night moves: VA Maine offers night shift nursing opportunities

Are you a nursing night owl? Do you bring your best between dusk and dawn? Right now, the VA Maine Healthcare System needs registered nurses in a number of positions to fill out their night shift team, which makes this a perfect opportunity to make the move to a VA career.

Opportunities to explore

Our nurses are the core of all we do at VA, and they work across disciplines and in all treatment settings. The current night shift opportunities in Maine are representative of that career diversity.

As an RN coming into VA Maine, you could find a new home on the medical and surgical team, or work in the Community Living Center with Veterans who need more full-time care. There are also openings on the system’s mental health inpatient care team or even as an inpatient float nurse.

Whatever your chosen role, we’ll encourage you to advance in your career and contribute to our culture of improvement and innovation. Our nurses often rise to leadership positions, helping create new models of care, introducing new nursing roles and advancing existing ones.

“VA offers so much more than any other employer,” shared Laura J. Sarmiento, MSN, RN and a VA nurse recruiter. “Because we’re so flexible and we want to attract the best and brightest nurses, there’s always upward mobility.”

The Pine Tree State

Rolling mountains, placid streams and plenty of forest trails are all part of the package when you live in Maine, to say nothing of the beautiful 3,500 miles of rugged Atlantic coastline for you to explore. If you’re looking for a more rural setting, you could do far worse than Maine.

That is not to say there isn’t something for urban dwellers in the state, as well. Augusta, the state capitol and home to the VA Maine Healthcare System, boasts museums, parks, restaurants and other amazing places that offer opportunities to explore the history and culture of the region.

Overall, Maine ranks highly on many quality-of-life surveys. Affordable housing, a low cost of living and low crime rates, coupled with the convenience of the cities and the charms of the countryside, make the Pine Tree State a popular relocation destination.

Benefits beyond the norm

At VA, our nurses have a profound impact on the lives of Veterans every day. As you consider a career in nursing with VA, keep in mind that there are many benefits that come with the job beyond the greatest mission in all of health care.

We offer our employees strong starting salaries based on education, training and experience (with a differential for night shifts, as well). The positions at VA Maine also qualify for a signing bonus of up to $20,000!

Whatever role you choose, you’ll also have access to education benefits like the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP). Under this program, VA employees with qualifying student loans who are in specific, difficult-to-recruit direct patient care positions can receive up to $200,000 over a five-year period.

Additionally, our flexible schedules, 13 to 26 paid vacation/personal days, 13 sick days annually with no limit on accumulation, and 11 paid federal holidays each year, offer lots of time to enjoy all that Maine has to offer you and your loved ones.

Taking the next step in your VA career couldn’t be easier for nurses. We offer unrestricted licensing and relocation, so typically you won’t lose any benefits, accumulated paid leave or pay when you transfer from another VA facility. If the time comes when you choose to move on, you’ll be eligible to work at any of our 1,300 facilities across the nation and in some U.S. territories.

Work at VA

Step into a nursing career as part of the night shift at the VA Maine Healthcare System, and start learning what it means to serve Veterans.

• APPLY for an open position at the VA Maine Healthcare System.
• EXPLORE VA nursing careers.
• CONTACT Melissa Lasley at VAMENURSINGGJOBS@va.gov for information.
• LEARN about the benefits of a VA career at www.VAcareers.va.gov.

Positions listed in this post were open at the time of publication. All current available positions are listed at USAJobs.gov.