Whitney, H., CNP, who won the Locum Hero Award in 2020, says that locum tenens NP jobs provide her the freedom she never had when working permanent roles in hospitals and facilities.

When between trips abroad, Whitney works as a locum tenens provider with Barton Associates, taking assignments mainly in underserved areas throughout the United States. According to Whitney, locum tenens have given her the freedom and flexibility to make her frequency of volunteering possible. Learn more about Whitney, her volunteer work, locum tenens and more!

For Locum Hero Winner Heather H., FNP, locum tenens work provides the necessary flexibility she needs to live a happy life, including the humanitarian work that won her Barton’s 2020 Locum Hero award.

“It’s the work-life balance. I feel like locum tenens allows me to find that balance between work, humanitarian volunteering, and time with my family and friends. It’s provided me an opportunity to have balance in my life, which is key for happiness.”

She also advises prospective locum providers to try it out: “If it fits with your life and with your goals, I would do it. Don’t be afraid. You can learn anywhere. I’m still in the novice phase of being a provider, but I continue to learn every day from my patients and others with whom I work.”

Read more of Heather’s story.

Many nurse practitioners work locum tenens jobs for a change of pace, or to gain experience in a different specialty.

Nadia S. DNP, FNP, used locum work to take on exciting new challenges.

“Although I’ll always have a heart for primary care, after several years of working in family practice, I started to feel the urge to branch out into a different area of medicine. I was ready for a change of pace and to use my hands-on procedural skills more. Thankfully, as a locum tenens provider, I have the ability to choose contracts that best fit my lifestyle and preference. So, when the opportunity came up to work in an urgent care setting, I jumped at the chance when offered the position.” – Nadia S. DNP, FNP    Read Nadia’s NP story!

To most healthcare providers, working from the beach may seem impossible. But that’s exactly how Terry spent her winter as a locum NP:

“I got a telemedicine locum assignment,” she says. “And I did it from the beach or the pool, it was awesome. And I have to tell you, when I had anxious patients on the phone, I would just show my video. If I was at the ocean, they would hear the ocean in the background and ask “are you at the beach?” I’m like “yeah! Do you want to look at it?” And I would show them the waves and stuff. And it just totally calmed them down! They felt great.”

Learn more about Terry’s travels as a locum NP