Talent Tribe: Latoya

We’d like you to meet Latoya, a member of the Springboard Healthcare talent tribe of successful traveling cath lab clinicians.

Where are you originally from?

I’m from Chicago – born and raised.

Tell us about your family…

I’m a single parent with two kids, a son Amir who is 16 and a daughter Anaya who is 9. They travel with me and love it.

What role do you play in the cath lab on your assignments?

I’m a cath lab RN and specialize in different parts of the cath lab, including EP and IR as well as general cath lab. Before I was a traveling clinician, I worked in cath lab management.

Where are you currently located and where else have you had assignments?

I am currently in Maryland and I’ve been here since January 2018. I’ve also worked in Missouri, Illinois and Washington states.

What do you like about your work?

I love helping people. It’s so gratifying when someone comes in having a heart attack and you’re able to see them go from one extreme to another and help save their life. They come in with crushing chest pain thinking they are going to die and a few minutes later are feeling much better – often even joking and laughing with you – and you were a part of that change.

What do you like about being a traveling cath lab RN?

I like going to other places and seeing how different hospital systems work. I like working with and meeting new people. You really learn a lot when you work in lots of locations. I like not being stuck in one place, but being able to move around – you don’t get burned out this way. I always remember that I’m there to promote health and educate and that helps keep me motivated.

What are the biggest benefits you’ve experienced as a traveling cath RN?

Being paid more and being able to afford to live better and provide more for my kids are the biggest benefits. Also, being able to travel across the country with my kids from assignment to assignment is great. We have gone from the east coast to the west coast by car and been through half a dozen states. We make it educational and make stops to learn things about the places we travel through that enrich our lives. I think my kids have really benefited from this.

What advice would you give to new traveling cath clinicians?

Finding good housing in a new location can be hard. My Springboard relationship manager has helped me a lot with this and it has made such a difference to have him helping me with housing. Also, travel light in terms of stuff! Finally, sometimes you can enter a hostile work environment where everyone is tired and overworked. Let them know you are there to make things easier for them and to lighten their load. I find when I go into a new assignment with this state of mind, everything goes pretty smooth.

What are your travel hacks?

My smart phone, for sure. I have everything on it. My best app is Waze for GPS, maps, traffic alerts and live navigation. I also have wi-fi in my car through OnStar, which keeps my kids connected and entertained on long drives.

Tell us about your recruiting experience with Springboard Healthcare…

I’m comfortable with my relationship manager (recruiter) and trust him as I know he has my best interest in mind. I can reach him anytime and he is always there for me to make my life easier and help. Springboard takes very good care of me. I am very happy with them and have referred lots of other clinicians to them.

Final thoughts…

Being a traveling cath lab RN has been a great experience – a once in a lifetime experience, really. I’m so grateful I took this step and left everything behind to start something new. It was a fearful thing to do, but I made a good choice and am happy about it. I plan to do this work and travel as long as I’m able.