It’s been more than two years since COVID began. Healthcare staffing shortages have been amplified for that long. The problem didn’t start then — it’s been a thing for decades — but that’s when it became a more widely publicized issue. For two years, the public has been aware that…

It was my first travel contract during the height of the pandemic. I was working a high-paying contract with a company providing crucial staffing to hospitals all over Texas. For travel nurses, it is known that we are hired to fill a need. The hospitals don’t hire us to fix…

Nursing Care After RaDonda Vaught I recently wrote an article in which I blamed RaDonda Vaught for her negligence. I supported (and still support) the outcome of her case. In my opinion, it was right to revoke her nursing license, and the charge of criminal negligence seems appropriate to me. I’ve spent the last few…

The RaDonda Vaught Trial I read through articles about RaDonda Vaught. They don’t reconcile with the outrage I’ve seen on social media: nurses are concerned that this could happen to them, too. “We’re all capable of making mistakes,” they say. “Are they going to start throwing us all in jail?”…

An SBAR open letter to nurse leaders Situation As a travel nurse, I have experienced many different leaders. Some are absent, while some micromanage. Some have no organization or direction, while some are too rigid. I’ve only encountered one leader who actually “gets it.” …

While I was documenting an argument I had with a drunk lady in one room, I noticed the Charge Nurse running. He never runs. Curious, I followed him into one of the Resuscitation Rooms. CPR-in-progress. EMS had just brought him in. He looked young. Well, young for a person to…

I wear cowboy boots to work. 12 hours a day. Three or four shifts a week. No, they don’t hurt my feet; they actually feel great! But, my socks don’t come up high enough, and the top of the boots rub on my calves. I’ve been wearing boots to work…

They taught you the wrong stroke assessment — Some Background I became a lifeguard when I was 15 and started teaching Lifeguarding, First Aid, and CPR classes only a few years later. I loved it. I loved teaching and I loved finding a way to help people learn the information not only for the test, but to remember it forever…

We all deserve more. Traveling nurses work as contractors for hospitals. As it has been reported recently in the news, they make more money than those nurses who work directly for hospitals. This angers some people. It’s only reasonable that full-time staff nurses aren’t happy about working next to temporary…