Travel Nursing: Contract Cancelled

This is probably the hardest blog I will ever have to write for many reasons!

I have always tried to keep my experience with Travel Nursing positive with just a hint of reality. No one wants to read and I surly don’t want to focus on the negative aspects day in and day out. This career choice truly does have some amazing once in a lifetime opportunities that far outweighs the bad, but there are times when it does not.

I’m going to let you in on a part of me that I don’t talk about. I have had some life altering health issues since 2018 which led me to need a more flexible work situation where I could take extended time off. This was what led me to quitting my staff job and why I moved back to Texas. I decided to start Travel Nursing because it gave me that flexibility and allowed me to work when my health was good and take off when I needed to rest. My health improved and I started to feel the best I had in years. It wasn’t until Reno, NV that my health started to deteriorate again and my symptoms were back in full force. My health remained poor all the way through my remaining days in Reno and throughout my entire Tyler, Tx contract. This led to my summer off and staying close to home! I spent my summer in and out of Dr.’s offices, hospitals, and resting as much as possible.

After a summer of doing ”nothing”, I was ready to have a purpose again. I was feeling ready to return to work, but I knew I needed to choose a job that sounded like a good fit. I wanted 8 hr days because these shifts have always been easier on my body than 10 hr days, and I wanted limited or no call. Missouri contract checked those boxes, but only on paper!!!

I know in my last blog I touched on my first week on 8 hr shifts, but let me give you the full story.

Monday and Tuesday was hospital orientation. Wednesday morning, I arrived on the floor and within 15 minutes of being there, I knew that my assignment was going to push me past 8 hrs. I asked the nurse making the assignments how they handled relieving nurses when assignments ran late. The nurse was pretty rude in her body language and tone and said ”we don’t do that. You will have to stay until your done.” I did tell her that I was contracted at 8 hr days/5 days a week and that I was under the impression that this position was for 8 hours. It took a whole 2 minutes for the Manager to come find me and take me into her office. She told me she had received a complaint about me regarding the assignment/schedule. This was a ”GREAT” first impression of how this department works and how their staff treats each other. The manager proceeded to inform me (also in a not so friendly way) that when she interviewed me, she informed me of this ”situation” and how the department worked. I was never told this! The manager informed me that when I chose 8 hour shifts, I was essentially just choosing to work 5 days a week and that the hours per day did not matter because they don’t go off hours. She threatened to cancel my contract right then and I was just in complete shock of the entire situation at this point.

Just imagine being brand new to the floor, you haven’t been there for more than 20 minutes and you have had a nurse report you to the manager for asking a question and the manager threatens to cancel your contract for trying to get them to honor what was agreed upon (or what I thought was agreed upon). In the moment, I thought ”Okay, lets find a solution. Let’s work this out”… but, in the end, I chose 8 hr shifts for a reason! I chose the shorter shifts for my health and to keep me from having another relapse. Over the weekend, I found myself having early symptoms and completely dreading going back to that hospital! Yesterday was my finale straw. I knew I was done and that there was no way that I could make it through this contract with my health intact.

There are some things that just aren’t worth it! I reached out to my recruiter on my lunch break and told her I needed to know my options for cancelling this contract. After talking with her my options were simple and yet complicated at the same time. I could have her fight for my contract and force them to honor it or simply cancel on my end. Both options have draw backs. If I fight my contract and force their hand, I KNOW FOR A FACT that I would be creating a hostile work environment for myself and I would have to live in that for the next 12 weeks. If I cancel on my end, I would be burning a bridge, putting a blemish on my travel records, and need a Dr.’s note stating I am healthy enough to return to work when/if I decided to take another contract.

In the end, I just wanted out! I couldn’t stand the sight of the manager for how she treated me in my first time meeting her and no job is worth living in a hostile work environment. I chose to simply cancel on my end. Yesterday was my last day on Contract #8.

So, where does this leave me? Completely and utterly lost. I have no idea what is next for me. I have no idea whether or not I will ever step foot inside a hospital again as a nurse. In this moment, I am completely broken and feeling defeated, but I also feel so incredibly relieved!!

This is truth, this is my truth and I’m okay with it.

We will be spending another few days here in Missouri before heading out, but we won’t be headed straight home! We will be making our way to the east coast to spend time with family and friends!

My adventures may have changed in a heartbeat, but I won’t let that stop me from enjoying RV life and travel. Life post-Travel Nursing starts now!