50 assignments and counting for one occupational therapist

August 30th, 2017 3 Min read 50 assignments and counting for one occupational therapist Blog
[caption id="attachment_11012" align="alignright" width="225"] Kellie ziplining along the Potomac River.[/caption] Kellie, an occupational therapist, has traveled to more than 50 assignments with CompHealth since 1999. One of her assignments got her to stay on permanently but after five years she was ready to travel again and has been doing travel assignments 48 or so weeks every year since 2009. Born and raised in Michigan, she returns often to her home state to see family but the opportunity to see the country keeps pulling her back on the road. “I wasn’t sure where exactly I wanted to settle down and so I decided to travel and I still haven’t figured out where I want to settle down,” she says. “I like seeing different parts of the country, places where I never would have thought that I was going to go to. I like meeting new people and different things.” Going into assignments she is often the only OT in the practice and finds herself being warmly welcomed and appreciated for being there. She first learned about traveling OT jobs in OT Practice Magazine shortly after graduating in 1995. A few years later she found herself on her first travel assignment. [caption id="attachment_11011" align="alignright" width="300"] Segway touring in Front Royal, VA.[/caption] After this many travel assignments she finds the benefits include meeting new people and seeing parts of the country she wouldn’t otherwise ever visit. The downside is moving every 13 weeks, although she has had the opportunity to go back to some assignments again allowing her to reconnect with old friends and coworkers. One of her favorite assignments was Front Royal, Virginia. She had great coworkers and learned a lot of new skills. She also loved exploring the outdoors, hiking, kayaking and doing an off-road Segway tour. Throw in a wine festival, cider tastings and great restaurants and you have a great assignment. [caption id="attachment_11008" align="alignright" width="300"] Horseback riding in Winchester, VA.[/caption] What she likes most in an assignment is a lack of traffic. While she has taken assignments in big cities like Cincinnati and Baltimore she really prefers small towns and the atmosphere they have. She recommends OTs thinking about traveling make sure they will have a mentor or colleague at an assignment that can help them. “The Front Royal job, I had a lot of experience but some of the patients that I saw I hadn’t seen in numerous years so luckily the other OT that I worked with was able to assist me in some of the stuff so that was very beneficial,” she says. “Then I was able to help her students with some things too so that was fun.” [caption id="attachment_11010" align="alignright" width="300"] Kellie taking in the balloon festival in Topeka, KS.[/caption] When asked why she keeps coming back to assignments with CompHealth, Kellie says: “I love the people that I’m working with. The whole team is great. When my scheduler is out of town she’ll give us a heads up and tell us who we can get in contact with. While we’re on assignment or waiting for the next assignment they’ll check in every other week if not weekly just to make sure everything is going well or to see if anything has changed or if there are any problems. Whereas the other assignment I didn’t hear from my person in a month at a time so just the people at CompHealth are really friendly and easy to get a hold of.” Ready to start your own journey toward 50 assignments? Check out our open OT jobs. 

Author

Chad Saley

Chad Saley

Chad Saley is a public relations manager at CHG Healthcare, the parent company of CompHealth.

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