it’s always interesting going new places. I love it. I have fun and treat people as if I’ve known them for years. I have fun at work while getting the serious things done in a quick and efficient manner. I believe that this relaxes the crew and the patient. I always state that I’m not new to anesthesia but am new to the facility and why I’m going through the paperwork a little more.
I expect to be checked on a little more or observed more closely if in a “Care team” model. CRNA group the same happens just because they don’t know me or what I do/don’t know. It’s just how things go. I also expect them to vary the assignments from big to little to tiny and see how they wish to utilize my skill-set... it’s a way of interviewing me. They see if I complain or fumble or have issue with those that have the most awesome personality. These things are part of the locum political environment. I generally say that I stay out of the politics by being a locum. I should have been saying that I remain outside of the political arena that most ACT CRNAs are in. It’s not that it doesn’t exist ... it’s just significantly less than full-time staff typically experience.
I have some docs and CRNAs that try to teach me at times ... from how I should hold my Miller to doing a CVP fall whenever doing a central line. I’m not above learning and I’ll simply nod or oblige if they want something simple that’ll re-assure them that my intervention is done safely and efficiently.
I guess what I’m saying is that each place I go I expect a period of assessment in some way. I expect to be thrown in to the mix quickly and handed around to the different personalities and surgeons. I always listen too. When I hear “oh, they put him there...” I know it’ll be an interesting day. I think we, as locum providers, need to know whom the client is, how to handle interpersonal communications, and have to be more knowledgeable in a broader scope of practice than most institutions utilize.
I think it takes about 4-6 weeks for a place to get used to a new provider whether it be locum or permanent... then 5-9 months to understand how a place operates and if they are a good provider fit.
These are just my thoughts on the day.