The Beginning

Welcome to my blog everyone. If you are here, you are aware that I am heading to Rankin Inlet, Nunavut. If you are not aware, Nunavut is basically above Manitoba and on the Hudson Bay.

I start the journey on Sunday, July 22nd with a 0810 flight to Winnipeg with a 50 minute layover, then up to Nunavut.  I will be in Rankin Inlet but 1pm Toronto time. The community is 1 hour behind us. It has been quit a busy time getting ready for the journey. First was the paper work to be licensed in Nunavut, the doctor's appointment, the calls for extra travel insurance and other information to travel, getting prescriptions filled, preparing the dry goods to take, the toilet paper to pack and the packing for 4 months with weight restrictions and the different climate and anything else I can think of.

The weather now is like our spring/fall weather here and the winter will start in October. There is only 3 hours of darkness at night at this time of year. I will be above the tree line... the tundra. Maybe I will not have allergy/asthma problems!!!!

From what I know at this point, I will working in a 10 bed in patient unit with another RPN/LPN and and a RN with support of an inter professional team. I will working 12 hour rotating shifts with opportunities of overtime. I will be living in a 2-3 bedroom apartment sharing with other short term employees of the government. Nutrition can be a challenge and expensive. There is a Canada Northern Nutrition program that does subsidize nutritional food. So you pop drinkers...12 pops are $24. Eggs are the same price as down here. I am sure that I will share more about the food on this adventure I am on.

I will be including pictures for all of you to see what it is like. If you have questions please let me know. I want to share the learning I am going to do.

Also I would like to thank the nurses who I was out to dinner with tonight for my send off.  And of course my husband who is supporting me in this adventure. I have also set up a Skype account. Isn't technology great? When my sister did Northern Nursing early in her career...it was letters back and forth, not the instant access we have now.

Take care everyone,
Carol