ER Cowgirl Turned PACU Princess

A nurse shares how decades working in the ER helped her feel joyful in the PACU

Welcome to Nurse Ascent, a twice-weekly newsletter created by nurses for nurses. This week one nurse shares the value in choosing her own assignment scheduling via travel nursing. We also talk about a recall on cheese due to metal fragments, changes to pediatric hepatitis B vaccines, and how global efforts in vaccination have lowered measles worldwide.

But first, a moment of appreciation for those special shifts...

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Nurse Spotlight: Anita Lambert, RN

What I do for work

I’ve been an ER nurse for over 30 years, including 13 years of travel nursing. Since 2022, I’ve been working in pre-op and PACU, and I am now taking travel assignments again. A few years ago, I started running paint-and-sip art classes and began writing. Last month, one of my personal memoir stories was published in a digital magazine based in Australia called AEON, and I’m now working on a follow-up story.

How I got here

After nursing school, I started working in adolescent psychiatry. When funding for that facility was cut, we lost a lot of much-needed staff. I began to feel like my license was at risk and knew I had to leave. I came across a job in the ER in my town, and my enthusiasm dazzled the nurse manager, who ended up hiring me. I had to work hard because I had minimal medical experience, but I eventually found my way and spent 30 years in the ER. The ER grew my humanity and blew my mind open with things I could have never imagined witnessing. I spent my last several years there as a travel nurse before taking a PACU position in 2022.

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More on Anita

A day in my life

For me, PACU nursing is joyful because there’s time between patients, you get prior warning that someone is coming, and you have time to look up their history so you feel prepared. You get professional time to get report from anesthesia and also look over patients with the OR nurse to review their wounds. It feels like a luxury—an hour to bring someone who is completely out into the waking world, especially considering they’re opening their eyes in a completely different place from where they started.

What I do for fun & to relax

I’ve traveled extensively outside the US, and one of the biggest gifts I give myself is the ability to experience other cultures. After 30 years in nursing, I’m at a point in life where I don’t see the value in working day in and day out while never being able to build up PTO or take a long break. The flexibility of travel contracts gives me the freedom to take time off, reset myself, and remember who I am and what I stand for. I can make enough money on an assignment to take time to pursue my artistic endeavors during my breaks—photography, watercolor, painting, ceramics, and writing.

Share your story & be entered to win

As part of our effort to spotlight nurses, we’d love to feature you in an upcoming issue of Nurse Ascent! Share your story by filling out our quick interview form, and you’ll be entered into a raffle to win a $50 gift card.

Headlines in Healthcare

Shredded cheese recalled due to metal fragments

Shredded cheese made by Great Lakes Cheese Company has recalled 250,000 cases of cheese due to potential metal fragments from supplier raw material. If ingested, these fragments can cause internal injuries. According to Health News, these cheeses are sold at major retailers including Target, Walmart, and Aldi.

Plan to reverse newborn vaccine recommendations

A group of advisors for the CDC are getting ready to vote on the removal of the recommendation that every baby receive a hepatitis B vaccine at birth. According to NBC News, the vaccine has come universally recommended for newborns in the U.S since the early 1990s. It has decreased the cases of acute hepatitis B infections in kids by 99%. The virus can be passed from mother to baby during childbirth and can lead to liver disease and early death. There is no cure.

Measles deaths lowered 88% worldwide

Global immunization programs have aided in an 88% drop in measles deaths from 2000 - 2024, saving roughly 59 million lives in that time frame from the preventable disease. According to the WHO, in 2024 an estimated 95,000 died from measles, mostly under the age of 5 years old. While this is the lowest recorded annual death toll since 2000, cases of measles have surged to 11 million in 2024, 800,000 more than pre-pandemic years in 2019.

An image of author Katie Scoggins is pictured.

Meet the author:
Katie Scoggins
(RN, BSN & Health Writer)

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