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Longtime friends and Virginia natives Erin Buhmann, Page Huffman and Jordan Keller decided to attend nursing school together — but the fun didn’t stop after they graduated in 2012. When Erin returned from a medical mission to Africa, she knew what the next step for “the Wolfpack” was.
“We had all heard of travel nursing while we were in school, but I met another traveler on my medical mission who talked about how much she enjoyed it and that she had learned so much,” Erin recalls. “When I got home, Page, Jordan and I talked about it and decided we were ready.”
Though finding three travel nursing jobs together in different parts of the country and in two different specialties — cardiology and neurology — hasn’t been easy, Erin says their recruiter at RNnetwork has been up to the challenge.
“We love Matt! He emails us about once a week, and we can always get in touch with him,” Erin expresses. “He makes things easy and accessible, and the paychecks are easy to read and always right.”
Though the three spend the majority of their year together, heading to new assignments every few months, they haven’t grown tired of each other yet.
“I couldn’t imagine doing travel nursing without my friends,” Jordan says. “One of the hardest challenges for me is getting homesick, and it’s easier when Page and Erin and I are together. Even when we’re home in Virginia, we’re together — and we still like to go on vacations with one another!”
Page, who does neurology nursing while Jordan and Erin work in cardiology, agrees.
“Living together isn’t easy, and some of our habits are stronger than others, but it’s worked really well and made our friendship better,” she says. “We’re closer now because we’ve had to rely on each other in cities where we don’t know anybody and had each other to get through it.”
Jordan recommends having an open mind and remembering that it’s only a 12-hour shift if you’re having a hard time adjusting, and Erin recommends pushing yourself to different limits so that you come out a better nurse. Page recommends finding a friend to travel with, especially for your first assignment.
“If you travel with friends, take the housing stipend and find a place you can live together using Craigslist or another housing site,” Erin suggests. “Join travel nursing groups on Facebook, such as The Gypsy Nurse, to find people to live with, tips on living in certain cities and other suggestions from travel nurses.”
Though their time traveling together won’t last forever, Jordan, Page and Erin are enjoying the ride and already have plans for the future.
“Jordan has had a boyfriend for four years, and it’s difficult for them to be apart — though I know she would have regretted missing this opportunity to experience the country with her friends,” Erin says. “When she gets married, Page and I will keep trekking on. I’ve always wanted to be a nurse and travel all around the country, and now I can do both at once.”
Read our “Tips for Bringing Your Spouse on a Travel Nursing Assignment” for more ideas about making an assignment work for everyone — and check out our open travel nurse jobs to get started!
