{"id":3799,"date":"2020-08-26T18:33:54","date_gmt":"2020-08-26T18:33:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/?p=3799"},"modified":"2023-11-18T03:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-11-18T03:00:00","slug":"travel-nursing-experience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/travel-nursing-experience\/","title":{"rendered":"The Travel Nurse Experience with Leah and Kelley"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3792\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/IMG_5916.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/IMG_5916.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/IMG_5916-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/IMG_5916-600x450.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/what-is-wanderly\/\">Wanderly<\/a> has had a long standing relationship with Leah Gnitka, an incredible travel nurse we met through Nurse Kelley, our Chief Nurse Advocate. This week, we are posting travel nursing stories by travel nurses! This week Leah, aka <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/scrubsinasuitcase\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>@scrubsinasuitcase<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0is sharing her exciting story. We came across her photos and<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/whatitsliketobeatravelnurse\/\"> loved seeing her adventure thus far<\/a>, so we wanted to get to know her a little more with Nurse Kelley. Leah and Kelley hosted a travel nurse meet-up before Covid-19 happened in Seattle with an incredible turnout. Since then, they have worked together on podcast, emails, giveaways, and blogs to assist the travel nurse community with whatever they may need. We asked Leah to give us her inside scoop on being a travel nurse. Her responses are below! Enjoy! Let us know if you have any more questions for her that are not covered in this blog post. We are available to you. Of course, if any of you have any amazing travel nursing stories please feel free to share and we&#8217;ll feature you next!<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3794\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/IMG_5964.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/IMG_5964.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/IMG_5964-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/IMG_5964-600x450.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>See what Leah has to say:<\/p>\n<div><em>&#8220;Hi, my name is Leah and I am a travel nurse from Minnesota! I am currently on my second travel assignment in New Orleans and I absolutely love it! There is always something to do here and the weather is warm\u2600\u00a0also they have delicious beignets!&#8221;<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-1394\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Screen-Shot-2018-02-01-at-6.36.21-PM-240x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"240\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Screen-Shot-2018-02-01-at-6.36.21-PM-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Screen-Shot-2018-02-01-at-6.36.21-PM.png 480w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px\" \/><\/em><\/div>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_62 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title \" >Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/travel-nursing-experience\/#What_was_your_first_travel_assignment\" title=\"What was your first travel assignment?\">What was your first travel assignment?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/travel-nursing-experience\/#What_did_you_do_in_West_Virginia\" title=\"What did you do in West Virginia?\">What did you do in West Virginia?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/travel-nursing-experience\/#Whats_your_favorite_part_of_being_a_travel_nurse\" title=\"What&#8217;s your favorite part of\u00a0being a travel nurse?\">What&#8217;s your favorite part of\u00a0being a travel nurse?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/travel-nursing-experience\/#Whats_the_most_challenging_part_of_being_a_travel_nurse\" title=\"What&#8217;s the most challenging part of being a travel nurse?\">What&#8217;s the most challenging part of being a travel nurse?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/travel-nursing-experience\/#Time_for_some_randomness_Share_anything_else_about_you\" title=\"Time for some randomness! Share anything else about you:\">Time for some randomness! Share anything else about you:<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_was_your_first_travel_assignment\"><\/span>What was your first travel assignment?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><em>&#8220;My first assignment was in West Virginia, and the state pleasantly surprised me! I heard stories about how people don\u2019t wear shoes there and don\u2019t have teeth. But what I found out for myself was how nice everyone was and how beautiful the state is! In West Virginia I learned to live outside of my comfort zone.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_did_you_do_in_West_Virginia\"><\/span>What did you do in West Virginia?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><em>&#8220;I climbed Seneca rocks, went hiking by myself, chased waterfalls, and BASE jumped off a bridge! I met so many wonderful people and saw so many beautiful views during my stay there. But most importantly I learned the mentality of \u201cyou only live once.\u201d I used to be scared to do things by myself.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;I used to be scared of heights. But in West Virginia I learned to push myself to my limits because I knew I might not have that opportunity again. The results when I pushed myself were wonderful. I wouldn\u2019t have had as many adventures if I didn\u2019t learn to push myself. So here\u2019s to more solo hikes and jumping off high objects!&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Whats_your_favorite_part_of_being_a_travel_nurse\"><\/span><strong>What&#8217;s your favorite part of\u00a0being a travel nurse?<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<div>\u00a0<em style=\"font-size: inherit;\">&#8220;My favorite part of my job (besides getting to explore new areas) is getting to meet so many different nurses and learn from them. It\u2019s so fun to compare the different hospitals and staff and see how things are done. I have already learned a lot!&#8221;<\/em><\/div>\n<h2><\/h2>\n<div>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Whats_the_most_challenging_part_of_being_a_travel_nurse\"><\/span><strong>What&#8217;s the most challenging part of being a travel nurse?<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div>&#8220;Honestly, I feel the hardest part of being a travel nurse is saying goodbyes once the assignment is up. It\u2019s hard to leave your friends and co-workers you made along the way.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Time_for_some_randomness_Share_anything_else_about_you\"><\/span><strong>Time for some randomness! Share anything else about you:<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<div>\u00a0&#8220;<em style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">A few random facts about me are that I love cats, my coffee order go-to is a mint mocha, and my dream state <\/em><span style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">for<\/span><em style=\"font-size: 1rem;\"> travel nursing is Hawaii?&#8221;<\/em><\/div>\n<h2><\/h2>\n<div>Leah and Nurse Kelley have hosted travel nurse meet-ups together across America, and they look forward to continuing to bring travelers together when the world resumes.<\/div>\n<h2><\/h2>\n<div>Thanks for sharing on this week&#8217;s Nurse Talk, Leah! We wish you the best in your current and future travel assignments! We&#8217;ll be publishing more <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/emily-travel-nursing-story\/\">travel nursing stories<\/a> so stay tuned!<\/div>\n<h2><\/h2>\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3795\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/IMG_5975.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" \/><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>For more information and to find your favorite travel assignment, visit us at <a href=\"http:\/\/wanderly.us\">Wanderly<\/a>.<\/div>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Wanderly has had a long standing relationship with Leah Gnitka, an incredible travel nurse we met through Nurse Kelley, our Chief Nurse Advocate. This week, we are posting travel nursing stories by travel nurses! This week Leah, aka @scrubsinasuitcase\u00a0is sharing her exciting story. We came across her photos and loved seeing her adventure thus far, [&hellip;]<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":{"author_name":"Kelley","author_description":"","author_user_level":10,"author_avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fe55d4feb1c4e681b976a3b0f3c15157?s=96&r=g"},"featured_media":3486,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[48,54,20],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/81355063_10214356862226578_5312848380211232768_n.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"Kelley","author_link":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/author\/manshu\/"},"featured_image":{"size_thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/81355063_10214356862226578_5312848380211232768_n-150x150.jpg","size_medium":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/81355063_10214356862226578_5312848380211232768_n-300x300.jpg","size_large":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/81355063_10214356862226578_5312848380211232768_n.jpg","size_full":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/81355063_10214356862226578_5312848380211232768_n.jpg"},"loftocean-view-count":["2193"],"category":[{"id":48,"slug":"travel-nursing-inspiration","name":"Inspiration"},{"id":54,"slug":"nurse-life","name":"Nurse Life"},{"id":20,"slug":"travel-nursing-destinations","name":"Travel Destinations"}],"post_tag":null,"views":6254,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/81355063_10214356862226578_5312848380211232768_n.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p92mSz-Zh","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3799"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16637"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3799"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3799\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5306,"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3799\/revisions\/5306"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3486"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3799"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3799"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wanderly.us\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3799"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}