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I have had some readers ask me what is the #1 travel credit card I would recommend. My answer is always the same, which is the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card. It has a $95 annual fee but the initial sign up bonus is 60,000 points after spending $4,000 within the first 3 months. The 60,000 points can be worth way over $1,000!

The reason this is my go to card is because it provides car rental insurance if you pay with this card. I also like the transfer partners this card has. For example, I can transfer points to Hyatt or Intercontinental, United or Southwest etc.

My favorite way to use these chase points are to transfer them to British Airways. British Airways is a partner of American Airlines. So, I am able to fly roundtrip from Miami to Haiti for 15,000 British Airways miles on American Airlines. This round trip flight typically costs $500-700 out of pocket, so using miles is a no-brainer.

I also like transferring chase points to stay at Hyatt hotels. In Hawaii, the hotels typically cost $400/night. By transferring 20,000 of my chase points to Hyatt, I am able to stay one night for free. For instance, if I used my 60,000 chase points to stay at a Hyatt hotel in Maui, I would be able to save $1200 of cash for the 3 nights. 

This card also provides trip cancellation insurance. If your trip is cancelled due to sickness or severe weather, you can be reimbursed for pre-paid nonrefundable expenses. In addition, if your baggage is delayed by 6 hours or more, you can be reimbursed up to $100 per day until your baggage is delivered to you. This $100 credit covers purchasing new clothes, toiletries, or other important items missing from your bag.

While on assignment, some agencies may provide an apartment for you to live in.

Before you move in, be sure to complete the check list of the condition of the place. I highly recommended taking pictures of the apartment upon move-in and when moving out. I have read many stories of apartment buildings trying to charge tenants for damages to the unit that were previously there. I never thought much of it until one of my friends had a similar experience.

My friend has a dog so she had to pay a pet deposit fee to the property she was living in. When she was moving out, her apartment was in perfect shape. However, a few months later she contacted the agency to find out if she would be given back the pet deposit fee. The agency housing representative told her that the apartment management kept the pet deposit fee due to the condition of the unit.

My friend was surprised and asked them to send her pictures of unit. Through the pictures she saw that there was some floor damage, wall scruff marks, and dents on the front door. These were damages made by the moving crew for the rental furniture!

Unfortunately, my friend was unable to provide pictures of the unit on the day she moved out which would have showed the apartment was in better condition. As a result, she lost her $400 pet deposit fee. The moral of the story is to always document everything!

I decided to extend my stay in Chicago because it’s an awesome city! Over the summer there has been a festival almost every week; for example we had a jazz festival, bar-b-q festival, international movies etc. I love going to the various parks for bike riding or long walks. Biking on the lake shore trail with a view of Lake Michigan is beautiful!

There are countless museums. The Art Institute of Chicago is a must. They have the famous “American Gothic” Painting, and many impressionist works of Van Gogh and Monet. I have also enjoyed the Field Museum, which has dinosaur skeletons and immersive cultural experiences.

The night life is great too. I have had tons of fun going to roof top bars and dancing. I also like the variety of food options here. I made it my mission to find the best deep dish pizza, and after trying 6 different places, I have decided my favorite is “Lou Malnati”. My other guilty pleasure is this Mexican ice cream shop called “La Michoacana”. My go-to is the home made mango ice cream, and you can find these shops all over Chicago.

It’s safe to say there is so much to do in Chicago and I highly recommend it as an option for your next travel adventures. I wouldn’t mind living here permanently if they didn’t have such brutal winters. 

This summer I am celebrating working over 4 years as a traveling nurse practitioner. So far I have worked at more than 20 different sites. If you follow my blog I am sure you are aware of all of the ups and downs throughout this journey. I thought it would be fun to share the top 5 reasons I still love working as a traveling nurse practitioner.

1. Flexibility – As a traveling nurse practitioner, I can choose to take a month off at a time if I feel like it. I don’t have to work holidays if I don’t want to. I can decide if I want to avoid working weekends or if I prefer a 12-hour schedule.
   
2. Traveling – Exploring the country has been a tremendous amount of fun. I also get to catch up with friends and relatives in numerous cities. Not to mention accumulating miles and points from traveling for work has allowed me to travel abroad on a regular basis for nearly free.
   
3. Increase in Income and Savings – Working in locum tenens I am paid higher than I would be working at a permanent job. I also do not have a car or house payment so my expenses are less than your average worker. As a result, I am able to save at a fast pace and who knows, maybe I will retire early.
   
4. Learning– The learning curve while being a traveling nurse practitioner is astounding. Between working in various types of facilities to caring for different patient populations, I am always kept on my toes. For someone that loves to learn, being a locum tenens provider has taught me so much.
   
5. Freedom – There is no better feeling than working at a place you don’t “need” to be at. Knowing you can quickly find another job if you aren’t happy or appreciated at your current job unloads a burden that most employees have. In combination with having a bulk load of savings to fall back on, I always have the mentality that the site needs me more than I need them.

I went down to Miami to celebrate my grandfather’s 80^th birthday last month. We threw a party for him and he had a blast! While I was down there, I decided to spend a few days in the Bahamas. It’s less than an hour flight from Miami.

I went with one of my best friends and we stayed at the Atlantis Bahamas which was amazing! From our hotel room we could see the stingray pool and the floating river. The beaches were even better than I remembered (I have been to the Bahamas many times before). The water was so clear and various shades of blue.

On the property we were also able to see turtles, aquariums, and go on a water slide through a shark tank.

One of the days we took a jetboat to a private island where they have pigs on the beach. I was really excited to see the pigs. Although they were super cute and fun to feed, the reality was that they were pooping everywhere none stop. On this same excursion, we went snorkeling and were able to feed stingrays. Our guides caught some conch shells and made a fresh conch salad for us which was delicious.

It was a quick getaway to paradise but so worth it. The Bahamians are such nice and friendly people. If I lived in Miami permanently again, I would go back to the Bahamas once a month! Do you have any plans for the summer?

A few years ago, I wrote “Conflict in the Workplace”. I decided it was time to touch upon this subject again. Sadly, I have noticed that sometimes when you are the “new” provider (new to the site), you sometimes have to go through a hazing process. This process consists of the older providers taking advantage of you. Forcing you to see all of the walk-ins and helping them if they are behind.

When I first start working somewhere, the first few weeks are a bit slow since my schedule isn’t fully open yet. I am more than open to helping the other providers with their workload. However, my pet peeve if being taken advantage of!

My current work setting consists of 4 female physicians and myself. 2 of them have been there the entire time the clinic has been open, and 1 of them is new. She started right after me. Unfortunately, the 2 physicians that have been there the longest don’t get along and it can be awkward at times. The 4^th physician has been on vacation for a few weeks, and she is the only one with the “yes I can” attitude. Therefore, we’ve had more walk-ins (patients without appointments) than usual.  

I am typically the most efficient one, so I offer to see walk-ins all of the time. One day, we all had equally busy schedules, yet for some reason only the new physician and myself were seeing the walk-ins. After my 5^th walk-in, I was asked to see another one and I said “no the other 2 physicians have to pitch in”. To be frank, it was starting to bother me that there is no team effort amongst the physicians.

The next day the assistant medical director approached me and said she heard that I had refused to see a walk-in patient yesterday with chest pain. I was in shock because 1. I had no idea the patient they had asked me about had chest pain. 2. How did this information reach her? 3. Really? The only person that offers to see walk-ins is going to get in trouble?

I clarified with her that I had no idea the walk-in had chest pain, no one had notified me. And that I was just frustrated because the senior physicians never help out. Her approach was nice and she even brought up the fact that I am new but actually have the busiest schedule and lowest no-show rate.

Afterwards, I learned that the clinic manager was the one that reported the event to her. I was disappointed because it seemed sneaky. Why not come talk to me first?

I immediately called the Chief Medical Officer. He is the physician that recruited me to come help out in Chicago and is my direct supervisor. In my mind I was thinking, I don’t want to be in a place where things are going to be thrown out of proportion.

I explained what happened and I was relieved when the Chief Medical Officer apologized! He agreed with my reasoning for deferring the walk-ins. He agreed that the real problem is the fact that the senior physicians never pitch in and it has been an ongoing problem there. He also agreed that the clinic manager should have spoken to me about it before sending an email up the chain. He told me not to worry and that he will have a meeting with everyone next week.

I felt better after our conversation but his last comment threw me off guard. He told me that the physicians told him that I leave at 4pm (our clinic closes at 5pm). But he responded to them “good for her that she is that efficient!”. To be clear, we all have the same amount of patients scheduled. The physicians have had the same patient panel for 5 years – these same patients come once a month. So, at this point they should know them really well! I have absolutely no idea why they are always behind.

The funny part is that they don’t seem to realize that I don’t HAVE to be here. That I am doing them a favor. If I wasn’t here, guess who would have to cover all of those patients? Them! Not to mention I often help them when they are behind or offer to see their walk-ins. But instead of being appreciative they are being HATERS!

As most of you know, I am very reluctant to extend an assignment for various reasons. The longer I stay in a place, the more burnt out I become; the more drama I witness or become a part of; And the more antsy I get remaining stagnant. The only time I have ever extended, I ended up staying at that site for an entire year! At the end, I was exhausted and too attached to my patients. I told myself I would never extend again.

Fast forward to now and I find myself extending in Chicago. I had visited Chicago before but I didn’t realize how awesome it would be to live here. There is so much to do, historical activities, festivals, night life, cultural diversity, and delicious food.

I also really enjoy my current job. My patients are mostly Hispanic so it reminds me a bit of home (Miami). My patient population is geriatric so I am able to form a relationship with them, as they come to the clinic on a monthly basis or sooner. Plus, I find the job rewarding because you can measure your outcomes as patients become healthier and avoid going to the hospital.

As much as I was open to extending, it would be a big sacrifice for me to extend. Especially since it will be summer and I would be giving up the opportunity to go to other states that are finally warm. So, when I was approached by my recruiter about extending, I told her I was interested, but couldn’t extend for free. Since the site had already increased my hourly rate at the start of the assignment, I knew they would be reluctant to pay anymore.

However, I told them that the last time I extended was with their same company in Virginia, and they had given me an extension bonus. The site was quick to say they couldn’t cover any more costs, as I expected. My recruiter let them know I was not interested in extending in that case.

I was not concerned during the negotiations because I knew the site needed me.

They had no Spanish speaking provider available to cover the 250 patients I had accumulated. They needed me way more than I needed them.

I was not surprised when my recruiter eventually told me that they had agreed to my extension bonus after all. But they wanted to squeeze every last minute out of me. If I request any time off during the extension, I will have to make up for it at the end.

I am happy to spend more time in Chicago, but I really hope I won’t regret it!

1. Pack light. Bring necessary clothes and accessories, as well as personal items. Try to buy toiletries when you arrive to the site. Bed linen, towels, and sometimes kitchenware are provided depending on where you are staying throughout your assignment. 
   
2. Join loyalty programs. Create an account with most rewards programs including airlines and hotels to accumulate miles and points when traveling. You can use these points during your time off to travel for leisure for free.  
   
3. Keep documents accessible. Put a copy of all your licenses, vaccine records and other documents in a Google doc so that you can send them easily regardless of where you are. Also, try to keep your CAQH profile up to date with recent work history and copies of malpractice insurance. This will facilitate current and future credentialing. 
   
4. Establish rapport with your recruiter. Communicate your needs to your recruiter. They are your best ally but they cannot help you if they do not know what you need. If you have an issue, be sure to be upfront about it right away. 
   
5. Be flexible. The more open minded you are about the site location and type of practice, the more successful you will be. Try to be flexible with scheduling and the needs of the site as well.
   
6. Ask questions. You will get a quick orientation and EHR training, so no need to worry about the adjustment. However, don’t forget to ask questions instead of assuming. Everyone is always more than willing to help.
   
7. Be aware of state practice laws. Unfortunately, each state has different practice standards for nurse practitioners. Familiarize yourself with the new state you will be working in. Do you need a collaborative agreement with a physician? Are you only able to prescribe a limited supply of narcotics?
   
8. Practice work-life balance. Being a traveler is the perfect time to start taking care of yourself both physically and emotionally. Take advantage of the new location to go out on hikes or to the beach. You can meet new people through multiple apps such as “MeetUp”, with common interests in your area.
   
9. Keep track of expenses. In order to take advantage of tax benefits, keep meticulous records of all your expenses on the road. This includes meals, laundry, mileage, car expenses, and cell phone bill etc.
   
10. Keep a positive attitude. It’s easy to get overwhelmed in a new environment. But honestly, the staff and patients are so happy to have you there, they would be willing to work with you to make things work. As long as you treat everyone with respect and carry a ‘can do’ attitude.

I gave up my personal vehicle over 6 months ago and have been obtaining rental cars during each work assignment (provided by mom job/agency). I recently shared my living arrangement in Chicago, IL. I mentioned that my job pays for me to have a parking spot, which is in a garage next to my apartment building.

As I am only human, unfortunately one day I was absentmindedly backing out of my parking spot when I accidentally hit the huge metal pole next to my car. There was a big dent on my front side bumper. I immediately felt dumb but then I looked around and noticed a lot of people’s cars had a similar yellow dent (the metal pole is yellow). Clearly, I am not the only one that has been careless.

 As per the damage, I was relieved because I knew my current assignment with Comp Health, always takes car rental insurance when booking me a reservation. In fact, when I returned my car, they just verified that I had car rental insurance (which I did), and no extra charges were made.

I felt lucky that it wasn’t my personal car, so I didn’t have to pay for the repairs, nor did I have to go through the process of getting it fixed.

Some agencies don’t provide car rental insurance. If that had been the case, I would have either had to pay for the repairs out of pocket or used my personal car insurance to cover the charges. Although I no longer have a personal vehicle, I still carry low cost car insurance. Thus, I have coverage when driving a car rental or even someone else’s car.

Despite having car insurance, I would rather not use it because I would be responsible for the $500 deductible. So, if an agency doesn’t provide car rental insurance, I will ask to pay for the car rental myself and have them reimburse me. This way, I can use my chase sapphire preferred credit card to pay, and as a benefit of the card it provides car rental insurance for free. I also use this benefit when I travel for leisure. I know many people that have used this benefit and it has saved them thousands of dollars. This is one of the main reasons I recommend this credit card on the ‘finances’ section of my blog.

Anyways, I figured I would use my small accident as an opportunity to share 3 ways you can have peace of mind when driving a car rental. Best case scenario is the agency will provide car rental insurance. If not, you can choose to use your own personal car insurance or pay with your chase sapphire preferred card to make use of their free benefit.

Like usual, I had my agency give me a hotel for the first week of my assignment, while I checked out some apartment options in person.

I ended up moving forward with an apartment that is 5 minutes from downtown, and 15 minutes from my job. The picture above is the view of downtown from my unit! The clinic I am working at is in the suburbs. I didn’t want to live in the suburbs but I also didn’t want to have a long commute.

So, I really lucked out by getting this place. It is in a modern building that recently underwent renovations. It is located in the “medical district” of Chicago. This is where they have University of Chicago Illinois and RUSH medical center etc. I like that there is a main street within walking distance with plenty of restaurants and shops.

My agency booked this apartment through traveler’s haven. The rent is $2100/mo for a 1 bedroom/1 bath (city life for you). This does not include the cost of renting furniture and utilities. In addition, my job/agency pays $135/mo for a parking spot.

I love my downtown views and the upgrades in the unit! To be honest, I feel a bit spoiled living here but it may facilitate my decision to extend.