Recycling is very much like reusing, except with the purpose of creating new stuff out of old stuff instead of wasting time, energy and useable resources like glass, plastic, aluminum, paper, and wood. By recycling we reduce the need for raw materials that make the products and things we can recycle.
Last week I wrote about ways in which you can reduce energy use and other ways in which you can save yourself money and the planet while working your next travel nursing assignment . Today I will expand on ways you can be green by reusing, or repurposing items – taking a once useful item and using it again to suit your new need. It’s a lot easier than it sounds and all it takes is just a little creativity.
Being a travel nurse can really make living easy. Your housing is provided, your utility bills paid and you’re making great money. With all these wonderful benefits of travel nursing it can be easy to get carried away and live a frivolous life. That’s fine as long as you can afford to, but there are some matters in which you should really take a closer look at, more specifically what you waste.
Traveling to your next assignment without your pooch (or kitty-were not discriminating!) would seem incomplete. You come home everyday to find them waiting by the door to greet you, that it would seem like something is amiss if they weren’t along for the ride. So there’s no reason you shouldn’t take along your favorite furry friends with you on your travel nursing assignments, just as long as you set it up with the staffing agency you are working with.
Last week we discussed taking a travel nursing assignment with a facility entering into a strike. This week, we’ll take a look at what that entails. Taking a contract with a facility on strike can be lucrative work, but that work also comes at a price, uncertainty. If you are contracted for a facility just [...]
An experienced traveler recently emailed asking about working at a facility on strike. In my book I have a section that covers strike work pretty extensively, but wanted to offer a few general facts that might be helpful if you decide to pursue this type of assignment. When you mention “strike work” to a travel [...]
If any of the readers here were wondering where I’ve been the last couple of weeks, well let me just tell you. Maybe you’ve heard of this little contest that’s going on right now – and I hope you have, otherwise those two weeks have been wasted. The ‘Give It a Shot! Nurses Week T-shirt Challenge.’ has been my focus as of late and it’s the first contest of any sort that Medical Solutions and Fibers.com has ever hosted, so I’ve been working diligently on trying to get the word out to make it as big a success as possible. So far so good! As of today we have 78 entries and counting.
A recent question from a would-be traveler seemed easy enough to answer. She wondered, “How do you tell what things are included in the pay rate my travel company quotes me?”
My instant reaction was, “um, ask?” While that answer is essentially what I conveyed, her question does bring about an interesting point. When did a pay rate start to include more than what you are to be paid on an hourly basis? If that last sentence seems clear as mud, let me try to add some clarity.
I can’t imagine the level of attention to detail a traveling nurse must have, day in and day out. With little room for mistakes, a nurse must continually be alert and ready for action at any given notice and this is especially true since they are given little time to adapt to the new facilities during their various traveling assignments. How you prepare and react to any given situation is a direct reflection of the type of nurse you may be. One determining factor on just how prepared a nurse may be is in how a nurse completes their charting and documentation.
The benefits of a travel nurse far out weight that of being a perm nurse, at least in my eyes. Of course it takes a certain personality to be able to carve a successful career out of being a traveling nurse and for some, being stationary is exactly what they want to do. However, if given the opportunity to take my skills on the road for 13 weeks at a time all the while receiving paid housing, insurance, per diems, etc. you can bet your sweet bippy I’d be the first to sign up. There are numerous benefits to a traveling career that one can take advantage of to secure themselves, vocationally and financially.
The day you decide to go forth as a traveling nurse is a monumental one. You’re saying, “Bring it on!” You’re ready to take on the unknown with little or no help, you’re a loner, a rebel. You are a special breed and there are just a few of you who are able to do so. It may be less lonely to travel with friend but it can prove to be a better experience doing it alone. Being content when you’re all by yourself is not about keeping yourself occupied until the next social engagement.
As a traveling nurse you have a greater chance at experiencing fatigue. Besides the normal workload of nurse, you a have the added stress of finding a new assignment every 13 weeks or so and on top of that, getting to your new traveling nurse job. There’s the packing, organizing, traveling and everything in between. Then you work tirelessly for 10-12 hours at a time every week. You’re on your feet constantly and you must be ready at all times to tackle whatever comes your way, no matter how you feel. All these elements can make a traveling nurse’s life seem pretty harried and the one thing that can wipe all that away is sunshine, beaches and a drink with a little umbrella in it – that’s right we’re talking vacation!
How are those new years resolutions holding up? I’m sure you’re well on your way to sculpting that body you’ve always dreamed of, have already read a few books and quit smoking. Wait, those are my resolutions and the answers are no, no and working on it. I think it’s best to do what a friend of mine says and that’s making new years goals, not resolutions. That way you have the whole year to accomplish whatever it is you’d like to change!
As a traveling nurse you already have much to adjust to. Perhaps you’re moving from east to west so you have the differing time zones which can put your sleep schedule all out of whack. Then there’s the new hours in which you’ll be working, maybe going from day to night shift and there’s also the possibility of you taking on a different role. The list is vast when it comes to making the adjustments for travel nurses. The most important of these changes is within the traveling nurse themselves.
Last week we talked about preparing for the start of a new assignment. Despite swearing that I would never follow in my mother’s footsteps of being a “list” person, I must say that a good “to-do” list can be very helpful in keeping track of all the things that need to be accomplished when embarking on a travel assignment.
