Those are six words that I never thought would come out of my mouth!! Our move to Wichita gave me an opportunity for the first time since 2004 to just take a break from working and take in all the changes that were happening in our life. I will admit that it WAS very refreshing at first. The first 3 weeks were great; sit by the pool, sleep in, look for houses/apartments, spend time with Dean, get to know the new city, go to morning zumba,ect. But, Wichita isn't THAT big of a city so the exploring only took about a week, we got burned out by the lack of places to live quickly, and Dean soon had to go back to work himself. (the air force gave him a 7 day vaca to help me search for a house and get acquainted with the city) I even decided that I would register for come college classes to take up time and sadly learned that I had missed the registration deadline for summer (June 1st). SO....it appeared that my only option was too start a job search.(BOO!!!) Being a full-time, stay-at-home puppy mom just wasn't doing it for me anymore. Luckily, during our house hunting fiasco I made Dean stop at a couple places-including a Dr's office-to put in some applications. Not thinking that anything would come of this job opportunity I also put in applications at a home health agency and a long term care facility. Because, if you are not familiar with healthcare you know that there's not a huge demand for LPN's in an office setting. To my surprise I got two calls that week!! One from the doctor's office and another from the long term care facility. I was feeling so lucky I almost went out and bought a lottery ticket! I knew at this point that I was at least going to get one job offer; the long term care facility. I have been a nurse for about 3.5 years and almost exclusively worked in long term care and short term rehab. It's kind of my niche, if you will. So, I feel more than comfortable interviewing for a position that I know I am 110% capable of rocking! The doctor's office on the other hand was going to take some preparation. I have zero office experience (even in college I worked retail!) and most certainly no family medicine experience. I soon realized it was time to turn on my charm:) It was really the only chance I had, charm the pants off of HR (what do they know REALLY about nursing??) and at least get my foot in the door. By then, it would be too tedious to interview and hire someone else when I had already learned most of my job in the first couple days (i really am a quick learner!). I interviewed for both jobs the same day. Family MedCenter at 10am and Manor Care at 2pm. My charm, talent, and overall knowledge (you know you love it!) worked instantly at Manor Care and I was offered and accepted (what the heck) a full time 2nd shift position with the largest corporate long term care company in the United States. This was good for two reasons:1. LTC is my comfort zone so it would be easy to catch on to my job responsibilities and 2. Manor care has 500 facilities in the US so I would almost be guaranteed a job anywhere that we move. The only problem was that Kansas denies employment to health care professionals who don't have an active Kansas License and mine was pending. So, I was hired but scheduled to start at the beginning of June. This ended up being the best "clause" ever because in the time that it took for me to get my temporary permit from the state Family MedCenter called me back to offer a second interview. (YAY!) This time with their office manager (RN) and the MA I would possibly working alongside. OK, NOW I'M NERVOUS! I can't charm these people, they actually (hopefully) know what my skills and experiences should be:( Much to my surprise, I seemed to be exactly what they were looking for. They were pleasantly surprised that I had previous training on EMR (as this is what they operate under in the office) and actually impressed that I had worked in long term care and short term rehab because the job at this office required me to be very familiar with pharmacology and labs. (BINGO! I KNOW THIS STUFF!) So we laughed, I bragged about how great I am and we shook hands. I left the office with the reassurance that I would get a call to tell me either way, if I was being offered the job or just not the right fit. At this point I was still convinced that this was a loss and I would be returning to LTC. Please don't get me wrong, I actually REALLY love long term care. My fellow nurses, CNA's and KMA's will tell me I'm crazy but I really do love it. I love the rush of have to manage your time when there's an emergency and you have scheduled assessments to do and an admission comes in and at the end of the night it's all finished and you go home (somewhat) on time. It a feeling of accomplishment that I love! And the residents! Who doesn't love a little old lady who calls you fat or ugly or tired just because she's like 104 and can!?? Or a man who probably can't see past his palm who tells you you're beautiful every time you walk into his room? (and you may go in there every hour! SERIOUSLY!) BUT. BUT, BUT, BUT. Being a nurse for 3-4 years and only working in one environment/field of nursing can be limiting. And as much as I love what I did in LTC, I also thrive for the opportunity for advancement and learning. Even though working at a Dr's office doesn't scream: EXCITING, it's new and different, and not an opportunity I have ever been given. So, when Cathy the office manager called me back I was sure that her tone was saying "sorry, you suck. have a great life." So sure that when she offered me the job I had to act like my phone broke up so that I could gather my thoughts! I was being offered a job that I actually wanted, I would get to possibly learn something new, and I was getting to keep my salary from LTC. THIS CAN'T BE REAL??! At this point I was 100% sure that we had been transported to OZ! I couldn't believe that as a nurse I was finally going to have a 8-5, no weekend, no holiday job with my own desk. WOW. I have a real job! I will admit there was a small internal struggle when she told me I would work mon-fri with a half day thurs because if you've ever talked to a nurse about work-perks, they will have told you that working 3 days a week is the best part! But you make sacrifices (yes, 5 days a week is a sacrifice) to get something you want. SO...I ACCEPTED TO JOB!! I started this monday and so far, so good. It's a little humbling because I really am a little lost about the whole hustle and bustle and office protocol. I learned quickly that chewing gum is a big no-no:( But in exchange we get a catered lunch 3 times a week. sooo.....I can learn to carry mints:) But weekends off and no holidays will be a welcome change! I just hope this isn't a honeymoon phase and that I really continue to like it!
