How to Minimize Travel Stress and Enjoy Your Locums Assignment
When you’re embarking on a new locums assignment, the last thing you need is a stressful travel experience. Trusted locum tenens agencies, like Cross Country Locums, know this and want you to have a stress-free trip, so you’ll return for more! That’s why locums travel departments are dedicated to streamlining processes for providers. You can also take measures to help ensure your experience runs as smoothly as possible. Here are our top tips for stress-free travel, whether you’re flying or driving.
Locum Tenens Tips for Stress-Free Travel
- Turn your travel arrangements over to the travel experts. Working locums is like having your own travel agent. Your locums travel team will arrange your flight, rental car, and accommodations based off your recommendations through your recruiter.
- Leave the trouble-shooting to the team. Reach out to your recruiter and rely on them to work out any glitches with a rental car or your flight or with check-in to your lodgings. If you run into challenges, call on your recruiter to sort it out while you kick back and relax.
- Drive, if possible. Many physicians and APPs prefer to have their vehicles with them on assignment. Driving can be more reliable than flying. It can also give you more freedom, depending on the location of your assignment. You’ll be able to pack more and take your vehicle to and from work. You can avoid renting a car, taking public transportation or waiting on an uber. Plus, you’ll be able to use your vehicle to explore the local area.
- Arrive in advance. If you’ll be flying, tell your recruiter you want to arrive ahead of time. If you’ll be driving, give yourself an extra day. That way, you can scout out your assignment and get settled into your hotel or housing before you start. This will also give you some leeway if your flight is delayed or you have car trouble.
- Streamline. Take only what’s necessary. If you have a short assignment and are flying, try to fit your belongings into a carryon. This can reduce the stress of dealing with baggage claim or the risk of the airline losing your bags.
- Get travel insurance. Travel insurance can be a wise investment for locums providers – especially those who travel frequently. Travel insurance can help cover losses due to lost baggage, theft of property, flight delays, canceled trips, evacuation costs and emergency medical expenses.
- Sign up for TSA precheck. Getting a precheck from the TSA can help streamline your travel experience. You’ll have to take some steps ahead of time and pay a fee, but precheck pays off when you’re breezing through airport security.
- Take advantage of travel rewards. Really want to reduce stress? Take another vacation. Using your locums travel to rack up travel rewards points can set you up for free trips. You can use points toward flights, hotel rooms and more.
- Visit relaxing locations. Whether you’re happiest at the beach, mountains, forests, lakes, rivers, deserts or plains, your locums recruiter can find the ideal spot for you. When you partner with Cross Country Locums, you’ll have access to assignments in nearly any type of location across the country.
Get started on your next locum tenens adventure today.
