You can put up with anything for 4 weeks"
"I just count down each shift.. 16, 15, 14....."
"If I like it I can extend. If I don't I'm not stuck in a nightmare assignment"
"There's not enough time to get into the politics in the place"
"It's like the honeymoon just began and then it's over"
 

I've heard all these things said about short term assignments. My own reasons for taking short term, 4 to 8 week assignments, is a combination of the above and the great freedom of being able to work for a month, and take 2 to 4 weeks off to explore the area. Working 4 days a week or more means more money in a shorter time. Then I can travel, explore, and spend that extra money on  a vacation adventure. It sure beats 2 weeks vacation a year.

Short terms will ususally guarantee 48 hours of work a week, a good pay, a private (occasionally shared) extended stay america type housing, and a rental car. They'll fly you in the day before and send you home the day after. Or you can opt to drive home. (word of warning.. HPO will not pay for a rental car if you drive to your assignment and have a car available to you) So whatever your reasons for taking a short term assignment the very nature of their "slam bam thank you ma'am", in and out, short and sweet, job length means you have to make a few concessions. I've put together my own survival list.

 And Now .....A little information I've collected about short term assignments.
 

Housing on short term assignments.

When you take a 4 or 6 week assignment you are often housed in an Extended Stay America type hotel. These hotels usually have studio rooms with a bed and a couch, and also a fully equipped kitchen. This is a big improvement from trying to manage in a regular motel room with only a microwave and bar fridge.

In the best case scenario you can be housed in a fully equipped apartment, one bedroom if you are alone, and 2 bedroom, 2 bath, if you share. These apartments will have corporate packages. That means everything you need should be provided.

Extended Stay...

Bedroom/living area: usually has a queen bed with linen, couch and/or chair, tv, dresser and bedside table, often a coffee table and/or end table. You will probably also have a desk with a phone and data port. You'll have adequate lamps, usually 3.
Kitchen will usually be fully equipped with full fridge, stove, microwave, dishes, mugs, glasses, and silverware for 4, towels and pot holder, pots and pans (sizes might vary.. I didn't have a pot large enough to boil pasta) dish drainer, cutting board, occasionally a sharp knife (?), toaster and coffee maker.
Bathroom, adequate towels and washcloths, toilet paper and soap.

You'll get full room service once a week, with bedmaking and cleaning, emptying garbages, and linen changes, and another day for towel changes.
These hotels usually have laundry facilities and workout rooms. If you're very lucky you'll have access to a sauna or pool, but I haven't had that yet in an extended stay.

In an apartment with corporate housing you will have the same as above without the room service, but you'll sometimes have a vacuum or electric broom. You may have an assortment of other utensils or appliances left behind by other travelers. You will have one set of sheets and towels, also towels for the kitchen.
 

Shopping...

Occasionally you'll want to buy a few things to make your short term apartment/motel stay more comfortable. A picture or some candles. This tiem around I bought a beautiful angel statue which sits on my coffee table and welcomes me home. I will head to the dollar store, Walmart, Kmart, etc., thrift store and/or search garage sales for items I might need or want to make my housing my homey. Near the end of my assignment I'll either head to the thrift store and buy and extra suitcase to take home my loot, mail or ship it home, give things to other travelers or people at work, or just leave things behind. So I don't want to spend a lot of money while on assignment.

First shopping for a 4 weeker usually consists of 'everything'.
 

My basic list:
salt and pepper in those little shakers.
assorted veggies, onions, carrots, peppers, broccoli, etc.
a bag of salad
container of salad dressing (I like the balsamic type)
meats in serving sizes, fast frys beef, pork chops, chicken breast, and ground beef
bag of rice
bag of pasta
soya sauce
spaghetti sauce
a few boxes of pasta mixes
a couple of cans of soup
small bag of frozen corn
small bottle of olive oil
12 grain bread
cans of soda
milk
juice
small container of butter
a few frozen dinners
cereal
coffee
creamer
coffee filters
dozen eggs
few cans of tuna
small squeeze bottle of mayonaise
soap for dishes
soap for laundry
dryer sheets (if I didn't pack them)
kleenex
small zip lock bags
bottle of wine for celebration
I think that's about it.

With these items I can make myself plenty of good, easy to prepare meals and have lunches for work. I usually pack a wooden spoon because I like to cook with one. I'll also buy a wine glass, because when I do have a drink of wine I like one in a wine glass. This assignment I've been here 2 weeks have a glass and haven't used it yet. LOL. I don't drink if I'm working, and when I went out on saturday to buy a bottle of wine it was after 8pm. That's when I found out that you can't buy wine in Connecticut from 8pm saturday night until monday morning. Guess I'll have to break my wine glass in next week. LOL.
 

First Day....

I usually fly in on Sunday, pick up my rental car, drive to my housing, get unpacked, find out if there are any other travelers housed int eh same hotel or complex, then I'll head out to get groceries. If I have time, and I usually do, I'll make a run to the hospital just to see how long it takes to get to work and make a run through of the hospital and unit I'm going to be working in. If I don't already have it I'll check my schedule, then I'll introduce myself to the staff I'm going to be working with (if they're not too too busy).
 

Work...

If you are used to 13 week assignments you'll probably find short term assignments a bit different. You won't get the same orientation. You might get a half a day of hospital orientation and then the rest of the day in the unit being buddied and finding out where things are and the paperwork you need. You might get into the unit and get a quick "here's the dirty utility room, there's the pyxis, we don't have a clerk today, thePCT had to go home early and we're short staffed, Can you take the patients in the end room?" Or you may end up with 2 full days of orientation. The key to surviving it all is flexibility.
Keep a small booklet to keep all your numbers in, your new home phone number, your unit number, the computer code, the door to the lounge, all these new numbers will swim around in your head if you don't write them down to keep track. Find out who to get in touch with if you want to pick up more shifts. Make sure you write your phone number or cell phone number down in all their staff call books (there may be more than one) if you want more shifts, and short termers ususally want to work! Don't be afraid to ask lots of questions, we can't be expected to know how the unit runs if we don't ask. And having a short orientation means your orientation continues while you're working. The staff ususally knows this and don't mind answering your questions.

Hope this helps you get through your first 4 week assignment.