How to hire a visiting nurse

How to hire a visiting nurse, step by step

Here's a step-by-step visiting nurse hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a visiting nurse job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new visiting nurse
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

Post a visiting nurse job for free, promote it for a fee

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your visiting nurse job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a visiting nurse for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A visiting nurse's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, visiting nurses from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of visiting nurse salaries for various roles:

   Type of Visiting Nurse	Description	Hourly rate
   Visiting Nurse	Registered nurses (RNs) provide and coordinate patient care, educate patients and the public about various health conditions, and provide advice and emotional support to patients and their family members.	$22-45
   Nurse Clinician	A nurse clinician is a health expert who provides care and assistance to patients in hospitals, clinics, or similar establishments. Among their responsibilities include preparing equipment and documents, administering medication, monitoring the patient's condition, maintaining charts, and regularly reporting to physicians... Show more	$23-42
   Nurse Extern	The job of a nurse extern is to assist the mentor nurse in their nursing duties. They help the mentor nurse in various medical procedures such as administering medications or starting intravenous therapies... Show more	$13-22

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Home Health
   • Acute Care
   • HomeCare
   • Wound Care
   • Per Diem
   • Community Resources
   • Care Services
   • IV
   • Palliative Care
   • Health Aides
   • Care Management
   • Physician Orders
   • Catheter

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Provide care and manage gastrostomy, colostomy, and tracheostomy.
   • Consult and teach HHA the best ways of achieving goals direct to improvement of functional status of patient and safety.
   • Assist with obtaining proper DME and permanent services which permit patients to safely manage their medical treatment from their own home.
   • Case management of Medicare and manage care patients, including coordination of services, obtaining insurance authorization, interdisciplinary communication.
   • Complete CPI training to physically restrain patients.
   • Assess clients for eligibility for preventive TB therapy and administer tuberculosis medication.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your visiting nurse job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A visiting nurse salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, visiting nurses' average salary in florida is 54% less than in rhode island.
   • Seniority. Entry-level visiting nurses earn 52% less than senior-level visiting nurses.
   • Certifications. A visiting nurse with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a visiting nurse's salary.

   Average visiting nurse salary

   $66,671yearly

   $32.05 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level visiting nurse salary

   $46,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 23, 2025

4. Writing a visiting nurse job description

   A visiting nurse job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a visiting nurse job description:

   Visiting nurse job description example

   Job Schedule: Part Time
   Standard Hours: 24
   Job Shift: Shift 1
   Shift Details:
   
   

   Work where every moment matters.
   
   Every day, almost 30,000 Hartford HealthCare Colleagues come to work with one thing in common: Pride in what we do, knowing every moment matters here. We invite you to become part of Connecticut's most comprehensive healthcare network as a Weekend Visiting Nurse (RN).

   Hartford HealthCare at Home is growing! We currently have clinical opportunities to join an experienced multi-disciplinary team of clinicians.

   Job Description: Looking for Baylor Homecare RN

   For: either Friday, Saturday, Sunday or Saturday, Sunday, Monday 3 days per week, paid for 5 to provide skilled services to our patients in the community.

   As part of a person centered care model, this role will provide skilled nursing care to clients in home and community based settings ensuring the delivery of outcome based, high quality, cost effective care. This role will collaborate with all team members to achieve exceptional outcomes.

   Hartford Healthcare at Home offers a team-oriented structure, a comprehensive continuing education program and an excellent benefits package.

   -+ Medical and dental benefits

   -+ Flexible scheduling

   -+ Hospital-paid short term & long term disability insurance

   -+ 401K with company match

   -+ Continuing education and tuition reimbursement

   -+ Clinical specialty opportunities

   We believe in high standards. These standards allow us to bring out the very best in our clients and our staff.

   Qualifications

   Licensure: Registered Nurse with a license to practice in the State of CT

   Education: Graduate of an Associate's or diploma program in nursing; graduate of NLN approved BSN program, preferred

   Experience: One year nursing experience or one year nursing experience in a specialty; medical/surgery or home care, preferred. Computer skills preferred

   We take great care of careers.

   With locations around the state, Hartford HealthCare offers exciting opportunities for career development and growth. Here, you are part of an organization on the cutting edge - helping to bring new technologies, breakthrough treatments and community education to countless men, women and children. We know that a thriving organization starts with thriving employees-- we provide a competitive benefits program designed to ensure work/life balance. Every moment matters. And this is your moment.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right visiting nurse for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your visiting nurse job on Zippia to find and recruit visiting nurse candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit visiting nurses, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new visiting nurse

   Once you have selected a candidate for the visiting nurse position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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