Coming Home from an Assignment as a Travel Healthcare Professional
By: Elena Hernandez
Deploying with Krucial definitely has its perks – the ability to work with a community of caring medical staff, helping patients in need, and challenging yourself with a difficult crisis assignment. Although the connections made during deployments can be lifelong, we understand that many of our staff members experience homesickness.
While our deployments are a minimum of 4 weeks, we have been fortunate enough to have nurses who have deployed with us for even longer! We love to hear our staff’s stories about their assignments, but we also wanted to know how it felt coming back home after a deployment – and received a mix of emotions.
One of our Krucial Krew Members, Alyssa Scarnaty said, “When I first got home, it was rough. I felt like there was a divide between normal people and everyone in healthcare.” She reflected on how spending so much time on her assignment made her realize the severity of others not following COVID precautions.
“I wanted to go back right away because Krucial felt like home when nowhere and no one else did.”
While we are grateful for our hardworking staff, we also understand the toll the severity of assignments can take on those deployed. Remaining positive and dedicated to helping others is among many of our responses, and we thank Alyssa and everyone alike.
More positive stories included being greeted by family, pets, and friends up arriving home. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, so it’s no surprise that emotions can be heightened once returning to loved ones. A fellow Krew member said coming home was “Emotional – Once my kids hugged me, I lost it.”
Another Krew member compared the feeling akin to “a child on Christmas morning.”
The excitement can be overwhelming, as well. After spending an extended amount of time in crisis mode, the feeling of attempting to wind back down can be unsettling. Many of our Krew members noted that they felt some anxiety, and had a hard time adjusting to much quieter surroundings.
Although the adjustment period may be difficult at first, we know that our staff is strong enough to overcome it. The best remedy for anxiety and unfamiliarity is to check in with yourself and give close attention to your mental health.
We love to hear our staff’s stories about their assignments, but we also wanted to know how it felt coming back home after a deployment – and received a mix of emotions.
