Girl takes Poles round America (5)
I believe the answer is:
susan
'girl' is the definition.
'poles round america' is the wordplay.
'poles' becomes 'SN' (North and South poles).
'round' indicates putting letters inside.
'america' becomes 'usa' (United States of America).
'sn' placed around 'usa' is 'SUSAN'.
'takes' is the link.
(Other definitions for susan that I've seen before include "When lazy, she's a revolving tray on a dining table" , "female" , "Girl (sometimes lazy?)" , "sometimes lazy, passing round the condiments" , "Girl's name; lazy -" .)