Women’s History Month, Q&A 


 Karen Mote — President, Cross Country Locums 

 

 Q. Tell us about your extensive experience in the healthcare
 industry.


 A. I began working as a medical laboratory tech in a healthcare facility. I
 have always been passionate about healthcare and taking care of others. After
 the birth of my kids, I was looking to return to work. I got a call asking if
 I was interested in becoming a recruiter, and I was immediately intrigued. I
 am now in my 25th year and more passionate about Cross Country and the WHY
 behind what we do than ever!



 Q. How about your Cross Country journey? What originally drew you to the
 organization?


 A. I NEVER regretted my decision to take the leap of faith to join this
 company! This job allowed me to start a remote career and remain closely
 connected to patient care. I truly cared about the patient at the end of the
 placement, which became my North Star. If I worked hard and helped take care
 of as many patients as possible by providing locums coverage, it would result
 in also growing my business. Additionally, being able to work remotely when my
 kids were young, before remote was a thing, I could maintain a great work-life
 balance. I lived a long way from the office, so by working remotely, I was
 able to be more present for after-school sports.


 Q. What do you love most about being part of Cross Country Locums?


 A. I love the fact Cross Country cares about our clients, our providers, and
 their employees. I am a living testament that Cross Country recognizes
 employees that work hard. I moved from a recruiter to a sales role. From
 there, I was promoted to producing manager, director, and VP of the advanced
 practice team before moving into my current role as president of the
 <a
 href="/locums"
 rel="noopener noreferrer"
 target="_blank"
 >locums</a
 >
 division. Cross Country offers outstanding opportunities if you are invested
 and want to advance your career. Just look at my path!


 <img
 src="https://cdn.builder.io/api/v1/image/assets%2Fec23c65f480b4f8699dc832816bf2973%2F04935aa680364dd68a21ee2933354769"
 width="40%"
 />

Q. What inspires you in your position from day-to-day?

 A. As you can tell, I am very passionate about providing care
 to those that need help the most; it is the cornerstone of our culture! A
 slogan that the locums team uses is, “Care for all!” We take it personally and
 work hard to ensure everyone has access to medical care, even if they live at
 the bottom of the Grand Canyon! (We have a rural client that serves patients
 that live in a small village at the bottom of the canyon. They are either
 taken in by helicopter or donkey. Just last week, we had a physician that
 hiked six miles to get to the clinic because the helicopter couldn’t get in
 and the road was closed for donkeys.) It isn’t always easy, but our team will
 put in extra time to find the physicians and providers needed to provide the
 best care.

Q. What do you love the absolute most about your job?

 A. I love that we make a DIFFERENCE! I 100% believe we have a
 part in providing coverage for patients in need, but I also love what a
 difference we can make in our personal lives, too. This career rewards hard
 work, and the more you push yourself personally, the more you can make at
 Cross Country. I am passionate about caring for others, but I am also SUPER
 competitive, so I love that I could compete to beat my own records and compete
 with my teammates to be at the top of the leaderboard. When you love this as
 much as I do, it isn’t ever just a job!



 Q. Since so many of us work from home these days, do you have any tips or
 practices for taking a break (i.e., not going crazy!) during the day?
 


 A. Working remotely can consume you, so it’s essential to use
 a daily task list to help you stay focused on the things you need to
 accomplish the most. Otherwise, you will allow emails or calls to derail you,
 and you can spend your whole day chasing little things and not accomplish
 anything. It’s also important to stand up often and walk away from your desk
 to stretch. I LOVE that our company invested in the online corporate wellness
 platform
 <a href="https://www.burnalong.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"
 >Burnalong</a
 >
 for our employees. You can take a break and do a quick exercise or stretch
 class.



 When my kids were younger, I loved the flexibility to leave early and catch a
 sporting event, make dinner, and then come back to wrap up and call some
 providers later in the evening when they were home as well.



 Q. What’s a fun fact people who know you may not be aware of?


 A. My son-in-law, John King, is a country
 songwriter/performer who wrote a number-one song for Randy Houser and wrote a
 song that made it to the top 30 in the charts. In addition, he just released a
 new song called, “Grow Up Grow Old,” written for my daughter Hannah. He and
 Hannah started dating in high school. Watching him perform at the Grand Ole
 Opry was a step up from some of the small honky-tonks that we followed him to
 when he was in college. They now live just outside Nashville and have a
 beautiful four-year-old daughter and another that’s due in April!



 My world revolves around my little grandchildren! I have four, all four years
 old and younger, and a fifth one arriving soon. If you are around me for any
 amount of time, be prepared to look at many pictures of them!



 <img
 src="https://cdn.builder.io/api/v1/image/assets%2Fec23c65f480b4f8699dc832816bf2973%2F08c4984cbdf24305ba9191b02a5fa76a"
 width="40%"
 />


 I live in the country and love being outside getting dirty! I even have some
 pet ducks that live on a pond on our property. It’s impossible to feel
 stressed when watching my five ducks waddling into the barn so I can feed them
 corn every afternoon.



 Q. What’s one of the biggest changes you’ve noticed or encountered in the
 locums space over the past few years?


 A. One of the most significant changes I’ve noticed in the locums space over
 the past few years is how I no longer have to explain what “locum tenens” is.
 It is a necessary part of healthcare delivery. There are now more physicians
 than ever choosing to work locums for a better work-life balance and to
 prevent burnout, whereas years ago, we saw more semi-retired or retired
 physicians working in locums. Locums are also in higher demand than I’ve seen
 across all specialties. We’ve talked about the physician shortage for years
 due to the aging population and fewer physicians entering certain specialties.
 Still, the pandemic has also impacted the shortage due to some physicians
 deciding to retire a few years sooner than planned from excessive burnout. The
 need for advanced practitioners is higher than ever before in every specialty.


 Q. If you had one piece of advice for someone looking to carve out a career
 in healthcare, what would it be?


 A. This is an excellent career for anyone who is passionate
 about helping others, competitive and wants their income to reflect their hard
 work. It will never seem like work when you are passionate about what you do!
 If they are willing to roll up their sleeves and work hard just like they
 would if they were building up their own business, it will pay off and they
 will be successful.
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">#IAmCrossCountry</h2>

Karen Mote #IAmCrossCountry