Hey, brain stuff listeners. Today, instead of a normal episode, we have for you another preview of the podcast On the Job now if you miss the first one. We've teamed up with On the Job to bring you a few samples of what they do, which is engage with professionals from all kinds of businesses about what they do, from running a gig economy business to cleaning up the streets literally. Through these stories, the team tries to help explain and explore different aspects of what working means in
our world today. They're sponsoring us to run these samples. I think it's a good fit because it's a look into how different jobs work that maybe we've never thought too much about. In today's episode, they're speaking with a pediatric flight nurse about what it's like to care for patients from a helicopter. We'll feature some previews of future
episodes in the future, though. If you want to hear more or explore their previous six seasons, you can find On the Job from Express Employment Services wherever you get your podcasts.
Oddly enough, and this is gonna sound so funny, I am a baseball field person. Like I look for a baseball field every time we take off.
Oh look, there's a baseball field.
Maybe it's the softball player in me, but I like love to see them from up high.
That's Asia b. She's thirty years old, lives in Maryland, and technically speaking, she's a critical care transport nurse at a large pediatric hospital in Philadelphia. But Asia's version of critical care transport nursing is quite unique because she's what's referred to in her line of work as a flight nurse.
Yeah. So, a flight nurse is someone who essentially goes and picks up patients in aircraft that can either be a helicopter, it could be a fixed wing or any of those kind of vehicles that fly.
In honor of International Nurses Day, I spoke with Asia about her job as a fly, why she fell in love with such a risky career, and how she balances the demands of such an intense job with motherhood and everything else she's got going on in life. And if you've never heard of flight nursing, you're not alone, because prior to taking this job, neither had Asia. But as an experienced er nurse and a self described thrill seeker, Asia knew the moment she heard that you could take
care of patients while soaring through the air. That she'd found the job for her. There was only one little issue. She'd never been in a helicopter before. Tell me about that first flight you took. Were you nervous?
So we got a page and they send you an alert saying this is dispatch, this is the patient and they're like, yeah, you guys are going to go up for a flight today. And I was like what. They're like, Yeah, you're going to go up in the helicopter today.
And then, as she explained it, things started getting real. She and her team take the elevator to the top floor of the hospital and then walk out to the helipad. It's cold and it's windy, and her adrenaline is pumping.
And then the nurse who had came with that crew is like, oh, is this your first flight.
I'm like yep.
She was like, oh okay, Like here's the you know, I'm gonna show you the parts of the helicopter. Stay in the front, don't walk towards the back. It's kind of like when you're having a baby. They're telling you all these things and you're like, I can't focus, like and then I must have got too far away. She was like, stay close, member.
I was like, oh God, I forgot already for Asia. That uncertainty, that big question mark at the beginning of each day is one of the best parts of the job. But it's a job not without risks. You have a son, right I do.
He's a five year old and my son's name is Tate.
Does your son worry about you going up in the helicopter?
He's my son is so I don't know if he actually has grasped the idea that I am like that it's so dangerous in his mind. You know, when you're that young, Oh, the beauty of innocence, You just don't understand.
This is dangerous.
Mommy's job is dangerous.
So here's the thing. Well, this episode is about Asia, it's also about nurses everywhere. It's about those millions of men and women who put on their nurses scrupts each day and do their jobs, no matter how difficult or exhausting or downnight dangerous it might be. At the height of the pandemic, entire cities came to a standstill as people banged pots and pans and screamed in praise of nurses.
And doctors and other frontline workers. Maybe you were one of those people who, at seven o'clock every night shouted out your window or stomped up and down on your fire scheme in praise of our frontline workers, in praise of our heroes. And as things return to a sense of normalcy, I'm wondering if we can't find some way to continue thanking those people, people like Asia, who we turn to in are times of need. If you'd like to thank Asia, you can check her out on our
website Motheringdemama dot com. For on the job, I'm Avery Thompson.
A strong work ethic takes pride in a job well done. This is the kind of person you need. Express Employment professionals can help because, in good times or bad, we understand how critical it is to manage your business for today with the right workforce. We offer hiring solutions to fit changing demands. Express knows Jobs. Get to know Express. Go to Expresspros dot com to find a location near you.