In California, at last! Part 2 Ground School

The first week of ground school is over. I learned that I know quite a bit, but I have a lot more to learn. Words cannot express how much I love my new employer. It is the best company I have ever worked for. They truly believe in their vision and mission and make every effort to live by them.

The first couple of days was just like any other orientation. I received info on the hospital, what they do, how they do it, and who's who. I completed all the boring paperwork and was riveted by exciting videos on OSHA, HIPAA, and Infectious Diseases.

On my third day, I got to know the people I will be working with. I became a lot friendlier with the people I was orienting with - three other nurses and two paramedics. I sat in the room, looked around, wondered what I was doing there. Everyone in the room were highly-trained, highly-skilled professionals who are at the top of their games and I have no idea what I was doing in their company. Overwhelmed is a gigantic understatement.

My brain is still sore from all the information it's trying to digest from the past three days of lectures and demonstrations. I learned the differences between a helicopter and a small airplane and I was so proud of myself until I realized they also expected me to learn the different models of each and what type of gas each aircraft takes and if it's a single-engine or two-engine aircraft, etc. I have to know about terrain and weather conditions and flight instruments. I have to know about rotor blades and propellers. On top of all that, I'm supposed to take care of patients, too.

The aviation safety guy was awesome and what really stuck out in my mind from his entire lecture was that our aircrafts do not carry parachutes in case of an emergency in the air. Wow! But we get our own night vision goggles so I'm glad to know I can see at night while the ground gets closer at a much faster descent than planned. I was warned about very important things to not bump into – like the spinning rotor blades. Okay, all kidding aside, this company has been around for 20 years. They had one fatal crash due to weather. Their hiring standards for pilots are very high. They only hire well-trained, experienced pilots who have thousands of hours of flight time. The company believes in crew safety above all else.

I have months of training ahead of me and I am looking forward to it. I'm very scared but completely excited at the same time.

I have the first set of pictures from ground school. Tomorrow, I hope to find an address. Have a very good weekend. I hope the weather is good for you. It's rainy and gloomy here.