OT-Slow Board Day Question

I LOVED my two years travel nursing. I was able to pack my whole family up in our toy hauler and crisscross the country. Great pay and locations (Grass Valley, CA Tucson, Glens falls, NY and Hilton head, SC. Tons of freedom and variation in nursing opportunities.

A good friend of mine from residency is a doc in the PICU at Children's Mercy. He seems to like the place. I'm not sure if that's a thought, comment, or contribution, maybe more of a tidbit.  Good luck to her on her journey! I imagine her skills will be in high demand.

I believe Gaylord "Greg" Focker took the same route. He didn't want to go for the MD. His portfolio is strong to quite strong. /s

I don't know much about travel nursing, but nursing is an incredibly flexible skill. She could stay at the bedside for an entire career, become a hospital administrator, get into quality improvement work, get into public health / public policy, become an NP or CRNA, do research... the list goes on and on. Great foundation to have. 

Travel nurses and techs are in big demand and get paid premium.  They get to choose where they go and it’s a great way to see some of the world.  Sometimes older folks do it when the lifestyle permits.

The negative would be if your goal is to move up into management you don’t build the network and you also are leaving behind friends as you move.

Its a good gig if it suits you for a period of your life.

Has she thought about being a PA?

My cousin did the traveling nurse program for a number of years and loved it. Went all over the US and the world. I asked her and she highly recommends it. 

Clearly another option would be as an NP. Some states allow you to practice independently. It is portable and very much in demand. Easier to get in to an NP program after working as a nurse for a few years.

Entrance requirement to med school would likely entail further undergraduate courses than what she has already taken.

Speaking with the experience of being a physician with many years of practice.

My niece is going to school to be a PA. She graduated magna cum laude from Tulane, so had the grades and smarts to go to med school but wanted a more balanced life so chose the PA route. I think if you know that about yourself, it's smart to take that route. 

I have a couple clients that are traveling nurses,  they enjoy it...  for an unattached 20 or 30 something it seems like a pretty good gig.   one uses it to live a working snowbird lifestyle.... PA in the summer months, AZ in the winter months.   The other does shorter stints in various states.

I am not a nurse, so I can't really help there. But I did spend almost 20 years of my career traveling extensively. This was mostly 7-10 day type trips out of the country once a month or so. I'd spend 4-5 days before the trip prepping and packing and such, and then another 3-7 days getting over jet lag once home (East Asia trips were a nightmare. Singapore or South Korea could take up to two weeks to get back to normal sometimes). Add it all up, and I was spending anywhere from a half to 3/4 of each month somewhere in the "trip process." 

Here's the moral to my story that may apply to your daughter: The above lifestyle was "fun and exciting" from my late 20s into my mid 30s. From mid 30s to mid 40s, it became a drag. Now that it is over (and I'm in my early 50s), I honestly don't think I could do it. It would kill me... 

My girlfriend is a travel ICU nurse. They’re a lot of perks to traveling…new places, different people, money etc.  She is also now wanting to settle down and have a family (we’re 34 and 33) and that has been a struggle for her. She’s still young to be able to be a travel nurse, learn along the way and still go back for her doctorate’s. Might as do it while she’s young so family and settling down do not become a factor. She could also get into a lucrative sales job after her years of experience if she wanted.  

All I can say is I think your daughter made the right choice between being a doctor and a nurse.  I work around a lot of doctors (mostly ortho/spine surgeons).  The money is fantastic, but the life is horrible.  I would say about 50% of them would choose a different line of work if they could go back.  Several have retired early and have gone into the business side of things. 

I've worked in the medical field for the past 20 years or so and had the "opportunity" to spend about a week in the hospital back in 2008 before my cancer was diagnosed and I can tell you without hesitation, that the quality of the nursing care you receive is by far the #1 variable in the quality of your care.  Nurses are the absolute backbone of healthcare and when I was hospitalized I had fantastic nurses who obviously cared deeply about their patients.

I know this wasnt your question OP but I just wanted to take the opportunity to give a shout out for nurses in general and to congradulate your daughter on her career choice.  She'll be somebody's angel on earth sooner rather than later.

Seems stressful and difficult. I feel like nurses are every bit as smart as doctors but their jobs are so much harder.

A lot of money to be made in travel nursing. Basically the only nurses who are paid what they deserve. 

My sister is a nurse and if I can give you any advice it'd be to tell her often to advocate for herself, and support her. This is true for all professions but especially healthcare- they will take advantage of you if you let them.

Humblebragging alert.

I heard a nurse practitioner is the way to go. Btw a Dr and a nurse. 

I'm not a nurse.  However, I know people in healthcare - both from a nursing and physician perspective.

Of the nurses I know, one went on for a Masters and got into Adminstration and heads the nursing organization of a major Chicago area health care system.  She enjoys it and its been very rewarding.

There are also travel nurses I know - and as others have noted - it can be very enjoyable during the "right" time of life.   Travel can be enjoyable, and for some - extremely enjoyable.   But, it can "wear down" after a while depending on the individual.

From my conversations with others in the medical community, there's a great demand for nurses and she can both explore and write her own ticket.

Wishing her well as she reaches her decision.

The only thing I know about travel nursing is that there's a website set up for housing, a la VRBO. My son was looking for a temporary place to live in Phoenix for a few months and that's the resource he used. 

As with most jobs, who you work for and with is going to be more important that where you work.  If the environment isn’t good, find somewhere else and someone else.  Build up relationships across the hospital as they are usually the key to finding future jobs.  Don’t be afraid to try something new, whether a new area or a new role.  Learn.  Get skills in Epic if the hospital uses it.  Connect with patients; if hospital downplays or discourages that, start looking.  Stay positive.  Respect and learn from those more experienced.

- observations I’ve made from the nurses in the family

oh and KC is great!