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I mentioned back when I was working in Maine that I was considering giving up my personal car. I was over driving more than 8 hours per assignment, and half of the time my car just sat at home in Miami. It was an expensive car too. The audi s5 convertible cost about $800/month + $200/month for car insurance.

When my lease was up I decided to return my car without getting a new one. While working, I am provided with a rental car and car insurance. I kept my own private insurance just in case for $15/month as a backup. I thought I would rent a car when I am home for the week, but luckily I haven’t needed to as of yet. I can usually borrow one of my relatives car or have my friends pick me up.

Besides the $1000/month I am saving on car payments and car insurance, I am also saving money on avoiding paying for premium gas. I am also saving money on car maintenance and repairs.

Although I miss having my sports car, I am happy with my decision to give up my car. It helps me live a minimalist lifestyle and save as much as possible for the future.

Without having a car to pack up all my stuff, I am more limited to what I can bring on assignment. This has been a fun challenge because I get to practice being a minimalist. However, I usually go home at least once in the middle of an assignment, so I am able to switch out some of my clothes.

I also like having a rental car because when I need to get to the airport I can just return the car there. I don’t have to worry about who will take me to the airport or spending $30-40 on uber. I have also been upgraded to luxury vehicles for free, several times. I have gotten upgraded to a cadillac sedan, cadillac suv, and camaro.

This is just another example how you can save so much money by being a traveling nurse practitioner.

As a teenager you think being 30 years old is, well – old. In your late 20’s you realizing turning 30 is actually not so bad afterall. Especially these days people are living until their 90’s+. It’s crazy to think I’ve only lived 1/3 of my life – which feels like forever.

Upon my return from Egypt and Morocco, my sister threw me a surprise 30^th birthday party. It was a women’s only tea party, where I was able to share afternoon tea with my family and friends. I was shocked she was able to pull this off. As I am typically a very observant person and I know my sister so well, that I know when she is lying to me. I honestly thought we were just celebrating my birthday on our trip. Little did I know she had a big party waiting for me.

During my tea party, I was coronated as Queen Sophia. My family and friends joke that I was probably a Queen in a previous life because I always expect the best and have an indestructible confidence. I think I was a bit awkward during the spotlight. As an introvert I don’t like that much attention…

I am extremely grateful for the surprise and being able to celebrate with close family and friends. In fact, I am still on a high from the party that I feel like I can tackle any obstacle at this time.

This milestone has allowed me to reflect on my life and I feel extremely blessed. I have a career that I love; family and friends that are always there for me; I am comfortable financially; and I am happy to be able to continue to discover and learn new things. There seriously isn’t one thing I would change about my life right now.

I always thought that once I became 30 I would finally feel the desire to settle down. However, in actuality I feel like my zest for exploration has grown even more! I don’t have any expectations for the next chapter of my life, but I do know one thing – it is going to be remarkable!

I just celebrated my 30^th birthday last month. I wanted to go somewhere exotic and decided to plan a trip to Egypt. Since Morocco is on the way, that became part of the itinerary as well.

We spent a few days in Marrakech and Casablanca, Morocco. Morocco reminded me of the movie Aladdin. The people were friendly but always quick to ask for a tip, weather by giving you directions or offering to take your picture. I enjoyed the mixture of French and Arabic. I was able to practice my French while enjoying Moroccan crepes.

I have heard that it may be uncomfortable traveling to Morocco as a woman. I quickly learned why. My sister and I couldn’t walk on the streets or in the bazaar for even one minute without a man coming up to us to chat. “Where are you from?” “Wow you are so beautiful!” “What is your name?” “What language do you speak” etc. We were honestly greeted by hundreds of men all day with “hello”, even some passing by on their moped would whisper “nice!” in our ear as they drove by.

It got to a point that we hired a guide just to pretty much be our body guard.

My favorite part of Morocco was staying at this gorgeous Riad in Marrakech. A Riad in an Andalusian home where there is a courtyard in the middle.

My second favorite part was visiting the Hassan II mosque in Casablanca. It was absolutely breath taking!

Prior to going to Egypt, a lot of people asked me if I was afraid. I answered no because these days it’s even scary living in the USA. Plus, I learned that what you see on TV isn’t necessary true. I am so glad I didn’t allow fear to prevent me from visiting Egypt because it was such an amazing experience!

Our first day we visited the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx. We rode on camels and explored the majestic world wonder in awe. We visited the Egyptian Museum where we were able to see King Tut’s treasures and royal mummies.

We also traveled to Abu Simbel to see the gorgeous temple and were mesmerized by the hieroglyphics inside. We then went to Luxor which was my favorite city in Egypt. Our hotel was on the Nile River and we visited the Valley of Kings, where there were dozens of tombs we got to explore.

I loved learning about ancient Egypt and seeing the relics in real life. It was really fascinating.

Interestingly, all of the Egyptians we spoke to made it clear that they would love to live in the USA if they had the opportunity to. It seemed that a lot of the Egyptians are struggling financially, especially those in the tourism industry. I honestly felt safe the entire time I was there, and hope that this post will inspire others to visit Egypt as well.

 

Being a minimalist means you practice an intentional life and freedom from the passion to possess. Americans are known to be consumers and spending the majority of their lives working to buy things. Being a traveling nurse practitioner has put a lot of things into perspective. Since I cannot travel with all of my belongings, it keeps me from purchasing items on a regular basis. It also has led to me declutter both my home and life.

Before when I would travel abroad, I was that person that had to buy dozens of souvenirs. These souvenirs end up just sitting as decorations and collect dust in my home. Now when I travel, I have to remind myself that there is no point in buying souvenirs (or more than 1 item hehe) because the best part of traveling are the memories created – not the things purchased.

I used to have 3 tall bookshelves full of books. I have always loved to read and like owning books, and holding them in my hand. I later realized there is no point in keeping a library at home. It just becomes more things that collect dust and you need to pack up every time you move. I ended up donating or selling the majority of my books, of course keeping some of my favorite ones. Now when I purchase a new book, after I finish reading it I will just give it to a friend to share the love.

My other guilty pleasure is clothes. I have always enjoyed having a full closet, with many options – so when the time comes for a special occasion, I am already prepared. Luckily, I discovered the app “Poshmark”. This is an app where people sell their used clothes. I have made hundreds of dollars selling my old clothes on this app. This allows me to get rid of clothes on a regular basis. I now have a rule that whenever I buy new clothes, I have to get rid of the same amount of old clothing items.

Growing up 1 of 4 children, I lived in big houses. Thus, I always thought I wanted to own a big house when I was older. The more I travel for work, the more I realize I would actually prefer to have a smaller home. A bigger house means more items you need to fill it up, more time spent cleaning, and more money wasted.

How has being a traveling nurse practitioner enabled you to become a minimalist?

My first week back in Virginia, I stayed at the Renaissance Marriott Hotel. It was a nice hotel on the water with city views. I actually ended up moving into a high-rise condo next door. I was initially not that interested in moving into the condo because I prefer living somewhere where I can park right in front of my home. However, once I toured the condo, it was an immediate yes. I am on the 23^rd floor and have views after views. The unit is also very spacious, sometimes I wonder if it’s a bit too spacious. But I guess I shouldn’t complain that my food pantry is meant for a family of 6.

The amenities are great too. There is a gym, pool, tennis court, pool table room, and walking trail on the water. There is a concierge and valet parking if desired.

Before moving into the condo, furniture was delivered and cable/internet was set up. I was able to pick up my keys on Friday after work. I moved in the following Saturday (the agency kept the hotel for me overnight).

I love sharing my current housing situation while on assignment, because many of my readers worry about living full time in a hotel or traveling with their family and not being accommodated. I just wanted to show that many times the housing arrangement exceeds expectations.

For the Fall I originally wanted to go back to the West Coast. Yet, I realized that I needed to be home several times for holidays, trips, and other festivities. So being on the west coast wouldn’t be ideal because of the distance.

The medical director from a site I used to work at in Virginia reached out to me asking if I could help in the fall. I originally was going to say no, because it was at a different clinic than I was at previously, so I wouldn’t even be able to see my old patients. When I thought about it more, I thought it was probably best that it was at a new clinic so I wouldn’t get attached to my patients again.

In addition, Virginia is a 2 hour flight from Miami and on the same time zone, making it pretty convenient to go home frequently. The site is also typically accepting of my time off – and knowing I would be taking almost 3.5 weeks off during that 3 month assignment, I figured it would be a good idea to work in Virginia after all.

I ended up doing a brief orientation again because it had been over 9 months since I worked with the company last. Fortunately, the EHR and work flow came back to me easily. On a positive note, the nursing staff and medical assistants at this clinic are all cordial and hard working. The patients are pleasant too. I do have to admit my first week was challenging emotionally. Although I knew some of the other providers from before (not well), I felt alone. Everyone I was previously close to was at the other clinic. I cheered up once I was able to meet up with everyone after work or on the weekend.

I know I have to give the new clinic a chance, and there is really nothing wrong with it. But obviously my old clinic has my heart since I was there for one year. I am still able to see how my old patients are doing when we have our monthly provider’s meeting. And I have even seen some of them around town :).

Side note: my first day working, the medical director already asked me to extend. Here we go again…..

After working in Maine and Ft. Lauderdale, FL, I went on a 2 week trip to South Africa. Direct flights from the US are about 18 hours. So my friend and I opted to stop in Brazil on the way to South Africa to break up the trip. The flight from Brazil to South Africa is only 8 hours.

We had an amazing time in Brazil. I was a bit nervous to go because I have heard stories about tourists being kidnapped and mugged. I wasn’t much of a target though since most Brazilians thought I was local. We stayed on Copacabana beach which was gorgeous with the mountain backdrops.

 

My favorite part was seeing Christ the Redeemer. I had seen the one in Peru previously, but the one in Rio de Janeiro is much bigger and more breath taking. I also enjoyed trying acai bowls for the first time (acai is native to Brazil).

 

After a few days we headed to Johannesburg, South Africa. It was interesting to watch my friend’s culture shock. There were a lot of Africans on the road, just hanging out, and moderate amounts of trash all over. To me it didn’t seem that bad in comparison to Haiti.

However, apparently Johannesburg isn’t the safest place in South Africa. There is a high unemployement rate (mostly from Northern Africans migrating south) and poverty. Unfortunately, we were told that tourists were often targeted in the city and were encouraged to avoid walking on our own.

In Johannesburg we went to the apartheid museum which I found interesting and learned a bit more about Nelson Mendela. It was interesting to see how much he is still beloved by his people.

The following few days we spent at Kruger National Park on a safari. It was fascinating being able to witness many animals in their natural habitats. I loved seeing a herd of elephants walking together with their baby elephants. I loved seeing the same elephants knock down trees to eat their roots.

Other animals we saw include baboons, hyenas, giraffes, zebras, lions, vultures, impalas, hippos, rhinos, buffalo etc. We stayed overnight in a bungalow which exceeded my expectations. There was a shower and even a heater in the room (it was cold at night). The lodging reserve also had a restaurant on site.

The last leg of our trip included Cape Town, South Africa. Cape Town blew me away. It was absolutely beautiful there! It reminded me of California, between the beaches and mountains, along with the cool weather and wineries. Some highlights were going to see the penguins at Boulder Beach and the views from Table Mountain.

The Southern Africans were very nice and polite. I appreciated that they didn’t try to take advantage of us (tourists and Americans) and wouldn’t expect/demand a tip. Everything was super cheap so we tried to be as generous as possible.

Overall I had a great experience on this trip! It’s crazy to think that I will already be back at work in a different location in a few days. I feel like I am still processing all of the amazing things I saw on the trip and recuperating from the jetlag.

Thanks for your feedback about sharing the Fairway Mortgage Nurse Practitioner loan program. Here is some more information about how they document income for 1099 independent contracts, which will apply to most traveling nurse practitioners.

As you might know, with conventional loans this can be a real challenge because if you don’t have a full two-year history, they consider you self-employed, and there’s virtually no way to get the loan done. The great thing about Fairway’s loan programs is they will allow a client to qualify based on 1099 income sometimes without any history at all. It depends on the employment contract, and how it’s worded, and if there’s some guarantees in there.

Often times they can do just an employment or offer letter for a 1099 or independent contractor. You don’t even need your first paycheck stub. Now if you’re already on the job, no problem. They have solutions for that as well. If you’re an independent contractor, you’ve run into some challenges getting financing, or you anticipate you might run into challenges, I welcome you to contact them through their website at: https://nursepractitionerhomeloans.com/ for more info.

As many of you know, I despise when the term ‘mid-level’ is used to describe us nurse practitioners. When I correct people that use that term, sometimes they ask what title I would prefer to be called. I tell them to just call me what I am, a nurse practitioner. I don’t know why there is even a word at all to group nurse practitioners and physician assistants together. Does it really save that much time instead of saying both titles? Not to mention that nurse practitioners and physician assistants are very different, with a different model of care.

I like the word ‘provider’ since we can interchangeably use it in PCP. PCP originally stood for primary care physician, but these days a lot of places use it to mean primary care provider. Another term that I have heard been used before is ‘clinician’. Although this title is not often used, I like it a lot. It represents what we really are, clinical experts. However, my issue is that is doesn’t encompass the fact that nursing is both a science and an art.

I don’t know why we even have to be grouped with physicians or physician assistants in the first place. As nurse practitioners become more popular, I prefer when organizations or patients just specify who they see. I like when patients say “I saw the nurse practitioner in the ER” or when clinic managers say “we are proud of what our physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants have been doing.”

What are your thoughts? Is there a preferable way you like to be called?

With that being said, I really liked this article called “Don’t Call Me a Mid-Level Provider!”

After Maine, I ended up covering a clinic in Ft. Lauderdale, FL for one week. The physician is a family friend and he asked me to let him know when I was available to provide coverage for one week, so that he could go on vacation. This way he wouldn’t have to close down his clinic, and there would be a provider present to see patients and provide medication refills etc.

Since we wouldn’t be going through an agency (lucky him), I charged him a higher hourly rate than I usually am paid through the agency. At first, he was looking to pay a lower rate than I was charging. He only wanted to pay $60/hour which is what permanent nurse practitioners make in the area.

However, I told him through an agency he would normally have to pay double that, since they are filling a demand and it is pretty costly. I was only charging him $90/h since we weren’t going through an agency, but realistically there is a premium for locum nurse practitioners. This is because I can easily learn the EHR (electronic health record) they are using in a matter of minutes and wouldn’t need a thorough orientation to provide coverage for one week. A non-locums provider, wouldn’t be able to jump into a new environment and start seeing patients within the first hour, as I am.

Eventually he agreed to my rate and I made sure to draft up a contract which stated the requested dates and hours to be worked, and the hourly pay. I also made sure that he added me onto his malpractice coverage. Since I wasn’t going through an agency, I had to be sure I was protecting myself – family friend or not.

Covering his clinic was pretty straight forward. His practice used Practice Fusion EHR which I was familiar with. The patient load was fair, about 12-15 patients per day. The majority of the patient population were Haitian, so it was fun practicing my Haitian Creole and French.

I realized how different the Haitian population is in comparison to their neighboring Hispanics. Hispanic patients typically come with a list of complaints and want to take as many medications as possible. Haitian patients seemed to be more shy and won’t tell you if something is bothering them unless you ask them directly. They aren’t interested in taking medications or even accepting that they are “sick”. This can be a bad thing because it seemed that a lot of them had complex chronic illnesses that could have been treated better early on, had the patient been compliant or honest.

I had forgotten how South Florida clinics sometimes run on Caribbean time. Meaning, patients often showed up 30-45 minutes late to their appointment but were still expected to be seen (by both staff and patient). In addition, they didn’t mind waiting an hour to be seen by the provider. Obviously, in more Americanized clinics, patients are considered no shows if they are more than 10 minutes late. And it’s all about lowering “wait times”.

I had a good experience covering the clinic for one week. I was a bit nervous at first since it was the first time I was doing this without the help or guidance of an agency. But everything worked out well. I suppose my 4 years of being a traveling nurse practitioner paid off.

My only issue was after completing the assignment, the physician of the clinic provided me with some unnecessary feedback. It was mostly just nit picking of my documentation. He told me I should describe how my patients look better (such as tall, obese, Caucasian, black). He said if a patient is anemic I should specify mild or severe (even though I listed the hemoglobin level under the diagnosis).

I tried not to let this feedback bother me because he clearly has never had a locums before. Everyone documents differently, and I consider myself to document thoroughly considering I have a nursing background. But of course, every provider has their own way of documenting and he can’t expect everyone to do it the way he wants it to be done.

Had his feedback been specific to patient management, such as “perhaps use this medication next time” or “refer this patient for a cardiology evaluation”, that would have been a different story. I welcome any criticism when it is beneficial.

Anyways, I just wanted to share my story providing coverage on my own. Maybe once you have enough experience as a traveling nurse practitioner, you can start providing coverage on your own too. Keep in mind, I didn’t need any housing or travel since the clinic was in my home area. So, there are definitely some benefits to working through an agency versus on your own, but that comes at a cost. Those benefits include completing credentialing, facilitating orientation, arranging and covering housing and travel, providing liability insurance etc. The main benefit of working without an agency will be increased pay.