Travel Nursing During a Pandemic

When I started this job, I anticipated having so much sight-seeing and exploring to do that three months would pass in no time! The corona virus had other plans, and North Carolina shut down ON MY BIRTHDAY. Now I have a useless groupon for a massage...

Fortunately, for the first two weeks, Teddy and I spent a lot of time driving around finding murals, ice cream, dog parks, and witnessing some of the worst drivers I've ever seen. If you are a Charlotte native, I'm sorry, but ya'll are scary!

Surprisingly, the most semi-consistent aspect is still work. Our hospital census is relatively low, resulting in a lot of people getting called off. However, there is no shortage of traumas, involuntary psych admits, and garden-variety med surge patients. My background in cardiology never prepared me for all these external fixators (pins and rods sticking out of peoples' limbs) or giving so many anti-psychotic medications.

The fear that that we were facing a global pandemic felt surreal until the hospital set up a huge triage tent and started screening us before work. The policies haven't stopped changing since day one. Our N-95 masks can be cleaned three times, now twice. Personally, I don't think they should be cleaned at all, but the PPE shortage is affecting everyone. I've been told asymptomatic patients with a pending covid result don't need precautions, but I choose to use them anyway. The same goes for any patient with a tracheostomy and/or breathing treatments. Mask on, mask off. The skin is falling off of my hands one layer at a time. After gowning up, I feel like the government agents that fumigate the house in E.T. I've never been so over-heated or hated the smell of coffee breath more in my entire life.

Overall, there is a shortage of nursing jobs around the country because of a general low census. No one wants to go to the hospital, understandably so. My contract is over in a few, short weeks and everything is up in the air after that. As of last week, I put in a month-long extension request here in Charlotte. If that's not accepted, my goal is to submit applications to hospitals in northern Arkansas or Illinois so I can be closer to home. My sister called me out on the phone about it, stating, "I guess you're not as much of a loner as you thought, huh?" Between cancelling my flight last month, missing my brother's 21st birthday, and working Mother's Day, there have been a lot of shed tears.

That being said, it has been an amazing time of self-reflection, self-sufficiency, and appreciation for the connections with my family and friends. The way people have banded together during this world-wide crisis is truly heart-warming and reinforces my belief in humanity. To all my fellow nurses, you are strong and brave and incredible! Keep fighting the good fight! To my support system, thank you for everything! Your prayers and encouragement mean more than you can know. To everyone scared and uncertain, we really are going to get through this together and be stronger for it!

Stay safe!

Emma Grace and Teddy