Meet Tiffany! Tiffany has worked in healthcare for over 25 years in a variety of roles and just recently took the leap to try out travel nursing. Traveling is one of her passions – in fact she’s visited all 50 states except Alaska! Learn more about her below:
What is your current specialty and placement?
Long term care
What is your favorite part of being a travel healthcare worker?
I enjoy the flexibility and travel options that is a part of travel nursing.
What is a place on your bucket list for a travel job?
I would enjoy an assignment on the east coast, especially the state of Maine. Other places of interest are Oregon, Hawaii and the Carolinas.
Tell us about your career history – how did you become a travel clinician?
I have been a registered nurse for 25 years and have worked in a variety of settings including medical-surgical, bariatrics, addiction nursing, and oncology. I have been in leadership roles as well including director of nursing, nurse manager, nurse clinician and have been a contractual nurse consultant for 20 years. I have only been traveling for six months and currently travel within 25 minutes from my home. It was an opportunity to see if I would like it before going to far from home. So far, I enjoy this new experience very much.
Have you found any sort of community while being a travel clinician?
I work with other travel nurses and that has been nice.
What are some of your favorite hobbies and activities outside of work?
I am halfway through earning my Ph.D. in Health Science, which takes up quite a bit of my off hours. I have enjoyed wildlife photography for a number of years. My hobbies include: photography, cross country skiing during the winter months and lastly, the love of travel is my true passion. I have been
to every state except Alaska and to seven European countries and a full decade of travel to Mexico for vacations.
What do you always pack?
A healthy lunch and school books to read on my break!
Any advice for future travelers?
Go for it! Change is healthy and adds adventure to one’s life.
What are your go-to ways to relieve stress?
I meditate every morning and have lots of inspirational reading that keeps me in the moment. I also live on the lake and am surrounded by wildlife. Bird watching is relaxing as well as adding to a memorial garden I planted after my mother’s passing. I believe that self-care is not optional. I schedule time for myself as I would a routine appointment.
Tell us a little about your mental health journey. What do you struggle with/have you struggled with in the past? What has helped you work through your struggles?
I took 6 months off last year for my own self-care. I spent the time off enjoying my family, looking and focusing on myself after 30 years working in healthcare. It was my first “sabbatical” in 32 years. I admit I suffered from burnout during the first year of the pandemic. I returned to work in a travel position and felt much more rested and ready to return to work.
