[jdtrn]

I think that you should not be so quick to pass judgement on the school system in Hawaii when the grammar in your post leaves much to be desired. You might want to think about "spell check" prior to sending your posts. Also, if you did get a proper education, you would realize that your statement about sending your child back to the states is incorrect, as Hawaii IS A STATE. You made comments of this nature twice in your posting.

Loving mom, if you are deciding to relocate to Hawaii, you may contact me at any time. I will help you make the adjustments and find suitable schools for your children. I can also make some suggestions regarding housing, travel, sites and attractions, and anything else you can think of.

Don't let one person's experience ruin it for you. I believe that the attitude that a person carries with them will dictate the experiences they are likely to have.

Finally, if you decide to work for Tripler as an agency or travel nurse, you will get paid less than everyone else. It is common knowledge amongst Hawaii nurses that Tripler pays less. This is because they have binding fixed rates that are worked into their contracts. Agencies can not pay employees more because from a business standpoint, it is just impossible. However, if you decide to become a staff nurse there, the pay is pretty good as they add in a 25% cost of living allowance. The also have a child care co-op on site if you have small children.

[cobber]

jdtrn....

I'm wondering if you can tell me a little bit more about tripler....I am a newley graduated nurse and just starting my commitment to the army and I have been assigned to tripler after basic training. All I know about tripler is what you can get off the website....which is really not too much. I'm a little nervous because I am new to the army, a new nurse, and have only lived in Montana (where I grew up) and Minnesota(where I went to school)....so needless to say things will be way different and I'm trying to prepare myself as much as possible. Thank you for the help.

Lisa

[kcalohagirl]

Hi Lisa, I grew up in Montana too! I'll be applying to work at Tripler within the next 6 months or so as a civilian, however I do know at least one person who works there now. I'll drop an email and see what I can find out for you, or see if I can match the two of you up via email.

Good luck! Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

[cobber]

Thanks kcalohagirl!

Maybe we'll will run into each other....I won't be there till end of Oct. Any info you have is certainly welcome. Good luck with applying.

Lisa

[ChelleChelle]

I arrived in Hawaii as a travelling nurse in 1990 and have been here ever since. My husband and I always thought we would move back to the mainland after about 1.5 years..........but now, 17 years later here we stay.

Hawaii like anyplace has it's pros & cons and it's definitely not for everyone............but it is a beautiful place, with a lot of culture, friendly and supportive people, and if you love the water and the outdoors then it is definitely a great place to live.

For at least the first 10 years, I lived here I thought of it as more of a "working vacation". Spent plenty of time sightseeing and playing tourist. Even signed up with a local nursing agency as a way of working on the neighbor islands. I "mushed" all my shifts at home together so I could have 6 days off in a row. The agency would fly me to Maui or Kauai or the Big Island to work for a couple of shifts..........leaving me 4 days to play before flying back home!

The schools are as schools everywhere some excellent, some not so good. A large percentage of professionals put their children in private schools.........more so than anywhere else I have lived. But hey, Barack Obama went to high school in Honolulu and look where he is now.

The Queen's Medical Center does offer a relocation bonus if you agree to work for at least 18 months in a critically needed position. Most of the inpatient RN positions fit into this category. The medical center also may be able to offer you "temporary" housing when you first arrive. Info on the $5000.00 relocation bonus is posted on the internet at: http://www.queens.org/jobs/criticallyneeded.html

Job rate for an RN with at least 2 years of experience is right around $40.00 per hour plus differentials for shift, longevity, etc. The salary ranges are posted at: http://www.queens.org/jobs/rnsalary.html
The staff nurses are also getting a raise in December of this year.

Queen's is a 550-ish bed hosptial with a large number of specialty units (cardiac, neuro, a new cancer institute, level 2 trauma service, ED, med/surg, OB, etc., etc.).

Since you were asking about pediatric units, the main pediatric hospital on Oahu is Kapiolani Women's & Childrens. Queen's does have a small pediatric unit on Pauahi 7 which also admits med/surg urology patients. The surgical trauma and neuro ICU also admit pediatric patients.

Feel free to PM me for more information or call the nurse recruiter directly. Her name is Pauline Menor-Ozoa @ 808-547-4954

[missmakena]

Aloha,
I have been reading some of the other threads in response to yours.
First relocating to hawaii is a life style change! It is expensive to live here, you have to get on a plane everytime you want to go somewhere, water and electricity are a premium! The trade off is lifestyle is easy, sun, and a beautiful warm ocean. Your children will adjust and some areas of the island of Oahu have great schools, good teachers, and good kids. But Yes there are rotten schools here, and sometimes racially motivated activity against some kids.
Second: I personally think tripler or as someone called it Crippler is a good hospital. I have been there in a teaching roll. Some of the outpatient nurses are fantastic, esp. the Urology dept.. Every hospital has errors that have occured!! Yes the CO2 incident did occur, but what the other writer failed to tell you is that because there have been so many deployments Tripler started bringing back some retired "military" nurses that had not been in patient care situations for years. Medication errors occured. I know several travelers who have loved their assignments there but if your skills aren't strong yet never accept an assignment that would jepordize your nsg lic.
hope this helps!

[userinhiRN]

Originally Posted by missmakena

Aloha,
I have been reading some of the other threads in response to yours.
First relocating to hawaii is a life style change! It is expensive to live here, you have to get on a plane everytime you want to go somewhere, water and electricity are a premium! The trade off is lifestyle is easy, sun, and a beautiful warm ocean. Your children will adjust and some areas of the island of Oahu have great schools, good teachers, and good kids. But Yes there are rotten schools here, and sometimes racially motivated activity against some kids.
Second: I personally think tripler or as someone called it Crippler is a good hospital. I have been there in a teaching roll. Some of the outpatient nurses are fantastic, esp. the Urology dept.. Every hospital has errors that have occured!! Yes the CO2 incident did occur, but what the other writer failed to tell you is that because there have been so many deployments Tripler started bringing back some retired "military" nurses that had not been in patient care situations for years. Medication errors occured. I know several travelers who have loved their assignments there but if your skills aren't strong yet never accept an assignment that would jepordize your nsg lic.
hope this helps!

What the writer also failed to mention is that the error was not attributable to nurses. It was a system error between the surgical tech and the NICU doctor. No nurses involved in this one.

As far as calling it Cripper, I have worked at three hospitals in Hawaii in the past 11 years, and Tripler is one of the best with nurses really wanting to look after their patients and doctors more willing to listen to nurses than the civilian hospitals. It's not perfect, nowhere is, but the atmosphere at Tripler is very civil and welcoming. I have heard that OB does have a LOT of traveller nurses which does make things a little hit n miss depending on the skill set of the month, but I had my 3 babies at Tripler and would have my kids there all over again. Great docs, great nurses, some leadership is questionable, but the same can be said of any hospital.

Good luck in whatever you all decide (or get assigned for the military)