Traveling NP

Before I accepted my assignment in Virginia, I asked about snow during the winter. The Medical Director assured me not to worry. She told me that it rarely snowed near Virginia Beach, and if it did, the entire city would shut down.

Coming from Florida, I prefer to be as warm as possible. I have seen snow several times before, but have never been a fan. Perhaps it is because snow is cold, wet, and dangerous to drive in.

When I made it safely into the New Year without snow, I believed I was impervious. The year prior, I had completed my Washington State assignment the day before it snowed!

Shortly after, a winter storm from the west was making its way to the east coast. The city became chaotic as everyone prepared for the storm. It reminded me of Florida during hurricane season.

It had snowed all night that Friday. When I awoke the following morning, I actually enjoyed the snow. The snow was powdery and soft, unlike snow I have seen before. It snowed half of the day, which was pretty neat since I have only seen snow on the ground, not coming from above.

When it finally stopped snowing, my car was completely covered. It took quite a while for me to dig it out of snow. I thought to myself – I do not see myself doing this everyday. I also wondered how people lived in the North East and Midwest where it snowed often.

The following day, the sun came out but it was still quite colder than usual. The snow started to melt, leaving an icy and slippery road. I did not leave my apartment all weekend, as I have never driven in snow, and did not want to get into an accident. Work was cancelled for Monday because the roads were still bad. Since we do not get snow that often, there is no infrastructure in place to clear up the roads when we do.

My co-workers were super sweet, as many of them checked in on me over the weekend to make sure I was okay. Other than a hint of cabin fever, I survived my first time living in snow!

For my birthday, my sister and I decided to take a trip to Iceland. In order to see the northern lights, we had to go during the winter. Although it did not snow, it was the coldest I have ever been. My face was constantly numb after being outside for 1 minute. Plus, the sun is only out for 5 hours each day during the winter.

Iceland was definitely worth visiting minus the freezing temperature and cold wind. We felt like we were on a different planet. We were often surrounded by both volcanoes and glaciers at the same time. There were visible fissures due to shifting of tectonic plates.

We really enjoyed the blue lagoon, which is a geothermal spa naturally heated by the magma underneath. It was so warm in the water that you forget how cold it is outside. There is also a bar in the lagoon so you can enjoy some drinks during your stay.

Waiting 2 hours in the middle of the night in the freezing cold was worth seeing the aurora borealis. Side note: if you ever go, make sure to bring a camera to capture the lights (iphone doesn’t work as well).

After my trip, tons of my friends have since visited Iceland or planned an upcoming trip after seeing my pictures. They have all enjoyed it too, and I highly recommended spending at least a few days there sometime in your life. It is a very unique place!

When I told my family and friends I was accepting my next assignment in Virginia, many of them looked surprised and asked me “why Virginia?” Having done my first assignments in Florida, Washington state, and California, they expected my next assignment to be somewhere “exciting”.

The reason I decided to go to Virginia is because I have tons of friends that live in the D.C. area from college. I didn’t bother trying to get a locums job in D.C. because it is so small that the probability of obtaining an assignment during the time frame I needed within my specialty, was slim.

Virginia is close enough that I can easily go to D.C. for any weekend of my choosing. It is only a 2 hour drive from where I live, or I can take the train or bus as alternative options. One of the most important factors of being near D.C., was that I needed to be in a place near New England that does not really snow much. I was guaranteed during my interview that it only snows near Virginia Beach once or twice per winter, and the entire city shuts down as a result.

Virginia is more interesting than people are aware of. There are tons of historical landmarks and museums including: Thomas Jefferson’s home, Mount Vernon (home of George Washington), Civil War Museums, American History museums, Naval museums etc.

I went to the Edgar Allan Poe museum in Richmond, VA one weekend. It was actually pretty creepy, with black cats running around and creaking floors. I shouldn’t have been surprised considering the main focus of the museum. Apparently, Edgar Allan Poe had lived in Richmond, VA with foster parents after his birth parents passed away.

In addition, I live fairly close to Williamsburg and Jamestown, which are pretty neat to visit because they still act like we are in colonial times. It is interesting to visit some of the first settlements of out forefathers.

There are also several underground caverns throughout Virginia, which I hope to visit when it warms up a bit. These come highly recommended by my co-workers. Lastly, I do not live too far from Virginia Beach. Although it is no south beach, I love to be near water!

So far, Virginia has been a great state to do locum tenens. It is close to many other states, which makes it easy to visit new places. I honestly think any state we choose to do locums in will be worthwhile, because there is always something new to learn!

I began my new assignment in Virginia and I am really enjoying it! Prior to my start date, the site seemed extremely excited for me to come. The medical director even called me on the day I arrived to Virginia to make sure I was okay!

The first week I was given orientation. I quickly learned how important patient outcomes and satisfaction was to this company. The CEO stated that “everyone is serving a patient or serving someone who is.”

New patients and follow up ER visits are 40 minute appointments; follow-ups are 20 minutes. This clinic focuses on geriatric patients, so the patients follow up minimally every month. There is an onsite pharmacy that provides pre-packaged 90-day supply of commonly used medications. Research shows that there is a lag time of 3-5 days between 30-day medication refills for many patients. Providing 90-day supply medications helps facilitate medication adherence.

Each new patient goes through a comprehensive assessment and plan which includes: new member orientation, obtaining prior medical records, baseline EKG, baseline labs, baseline ECHO, bleeding and bruising screening, depression and alcohol screening, and vibration perception threshold. The company believes in investing in the patient before they become sick.

There is onsite acupuncture and tai chai. Acupuncture is used for neck and back pain, anxiety, insomnia, and migraine headaches. Tai chai is done to help this population strengthen their balance to avoid falls. There are also on-site specialists such as Cardiology, Podiatry and Optometry.

The goal is to provide comprehensive and valuable primary care, to keep patients out of the hospital. Weekly huddles are done amongst the providers in the clinic to discuss ways they can improve patient outcomes. The average wait time for the patient between checking in and seeing their provider is 5 minutes! The patients each have a life card, in which they use to check in. This card contains their insurance information, allergies, personal contact information, and their last EKG test to provide to other providers if necessary.

This is a large umbrella organization that has many geriatric clinics in multiple states. If all goes well, we agreed that I can always help cover for them in other states. They actually originated from Miami, Florida, so it may be a good option for me if I ever decide to settle back down in Miami. Lastly, everyone that works here is super friendly, hardworking, and easy going. They have welcomed me with open arms and I am looking forward to working with them for the next few months.

After working in very busy practices in California for the majority of the year, I was afraid I would no longer be as passionate about my job as I used to be. I am glad to find that there are still plenty of great medical practices to work at. This is just another reason why working in locum tenens is so great!