Ewa Beach

U.S.A. Hawaii

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hi,

I am a traveler and I am trying to plan my next assingment. I want to go to Hawaii, but I don't necessarily like a huge city environment. I am trying to get to Maui, but so far the only position my company has found is Ewa Beach in Oahu. I am not familiar at all with the area and am wondering...is Ewa beach very urban, is it a good place to live, has anyone every worked at St. Francis hospital there? Any thoughts, facts would be helpful.

Thanks.

Oh wow! I did work at St. Francis in Ewa Beach back in 1993! Oh golly, Hawaii was a good experience for me. Wow!

I worked there for 9 months not as a nurse but as a nurses aide (I was still going to nursing school at the time.) The hospital was quite small- 1 floor was med/surg, one floor was ob/gyn and I think there was one more floor but I don't remember what it was. There were a few telemetry beds and a few long term care beds on the med/surg floor where I worked. The acuity was low. Staffing there was good, but many people speak broken english, especially the nurses aides. Especially the patients too- quite a few did not speak english!

The island of Owahu was quite busy. The island itself was busy, especially on that side of the island (the leeward side). There is traffic and most people that are not military speak broken english. The literacy rate is high over there. (Now you know why I did not stay there for my education.)

The area is kind of like a large suburb. There are only 3 highways on Owahu, therfore the traffic on the highways are busy. I found it safe and easy to navigate. There is extensive public transportation available.

The people were very friendly. It was more beautiful than the pictures and I was able to participate in activites from swimming to hiking to plain exporing the island.

Hope this helps.

)

By the way, keep in mind that the island is small. Honolulu is visible from Ewa Beach. Downtown Honolulu is not in walking distance, but nothing is really far away either (except the mainland USA.) Traffic makes everything take longer.

Aloha Travler

I am not a nurse yet, nursing student, but I live on Oahu, on the Leewrad side where St. Francis West is located. And I will do my last rotation at this hospital in the ER. Maybe I can tell you more later. Anyway, I love Hawaii. Traffic can be very heavy and a pain, but if you can live close to where you work it is not that bad. Also depends on your shift of course. if you decide to take the assignment at St. Francis- West make sure you check houses or appartments in either Kapolei, Ewa Beach, maybe Waikele (not Waikiki that is too far), maybe even Mililani- you do not really want to live in Waipahu town. Some areas are very run down, low income housing areas, lots of crime and drugs. I am not rrying to scare you but even paradise has those problems. Other than that Hawaii can be just great- weather is beautiful all year round, if you like watersports or the outdoors in gerneral- hey Hawaii is it.

As for the English speaking peolpe that were mentioned in the other reply- yes Hawaii is very multicultural. Meaning there are a lot of people form other countries that work and live here. Japanese, Chinese, Philipinos, Koreans, Vietnamese, and also Pacific Islanders of course. Some of them do not speak English very well, but you can get used to it and adapt if you are open to it. Hawaii is not like any other State in the US- it is very Asian and maybe too Asian for some peole. I hope this helps a bit. I think it would be a great experience for you to live and work here for a while.

Aloha!

My family and I still feel quite new here, having relocated here since March of this year. We wanted a new change, away from the fast-pace life of the mainland . It was very tough in the beginning since both our extended families(and we have many!) are all in the mainland(Cali) but esp. hardest during the holidays, And the kids missing all their friends and the fact that we have no support system. But my husband & I are pretty adventurous and like to try new places but this is our first major decision(to move)to another state just to experience something new. But we're sticking it through and we've got each other. It's actually made us closer as a family. And yes one thing I love here are the people. They are probably more cordial here than in the mainland. There's not as much competition in terms of lifestyle or education,home, etc. , less judging , more accepting of people. my husband likes it here too, altho he misses the traveling( the drives up north, down south, etc. that we usually do during vacations). That's one of the negatives, I think. In terms of education, I feel it is the parents involvement in their kid's school that will ultimately make their kid successful. But so far, i feel the teachers are very good here! we've been lucky so far. I live in Kapolei and it's the best area I've seen here to live and raise a family. Sorry I wrote too much! Hope it made sense!Good Luck!!

Hi everyone, I read and read and never post anything so thought it was time. First off Kim I love your surf nurse! I have surfed once- and not so well but love to dive and snorkel. I live in Oregon and will be a RN this time next year, I have family in Piai? (spelling) on Maui and want to end up on one of the islands when I am done with school. RNmom04- how brave of you all to pick up and go, my boys are 16,18,19 and will all be on their own next year. They are all for mom living in Hawaii so they can come visit. I have been watching the hawaii posts and learning alot. Will be going in august again to visit and scope out the place!- Hey Kim, is learning hawaiian a good idea? what one other language do you think would be most beneficial to get a little education on? Mahalo! Denise-surfnese

My goal is to move to Oahu by August. I am presently looking for a travel position. I have a daughter that will be started Grade 8 and was rather concerned. After reading your comments about the Kapolei area, perhaps I should not worry. Do any of your children attend the Kapolei Middle School. Please e-mail me, I would love to chat about the area that you live in. Thanks.

[email protected]

Specializes in Everything but psych!.

I moved from Minneapolis, MN and lived in Oahu, in Waipahu for about 8 months. I probably would still be there if my mom, who lives in Upper Michigan, hadn't gotten deathly ill, requiring around the clock home health care. Hubby and I quit our jobs, picked up, and moved back to the mainland, to nurse her back to health. We lived with my mom and dad for 18 months, and then ended up moving to Milwaukee. We never did get back to Hawaii, but it really is a beautiful area, and the native Hawaiians are beautiful people with rich culture.

I was working full time at St. Francis Liliha, but also worked agency and spent a good amount of shifts at St. Francis West. The Ewa Beach area is very nice. I wouldn't hesitate to move there again. St. Francis West was a very nice hospital to work at. I enjoyed working there, and would have preferred my full time job to be there, rather than Liliha!

One thing I do have to say up front. I have never seen such big cockroaches! EEEEOOOOWWW! I still get shivers up my spine. Color me as "not a bug person."

I have written my woes before. Overall, I did not have a good time in Hawaii. I found that being a tourist there was great, but being a local was not always what it seemed. If you would like to e-mail me regarding it, I would be happy to respond and relate my concerns to you. There will always be people who really liked it, and people , like me, who didn't. Good luck to you. [email protected]

Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

What about a travel assignment at Tripler Army Medical Center? Its near Honolulu between Wikiki and Pearl Harbor. I know they always have travel spots open because I get stuff in the mail (my hubby is retired military) all the time. We visited last year, although we liked it - its a lot like Japan was when we were stationed there in the 70's.

Specializes in Everything but psych!.

Tripler is an absolutely wonderful assignment to take. Most people who take that one, stay for as long as they can. Tripler is a beautiful hospital overlooking Pearl Harbor and Honolulu. Wished I could have gotten that assignment, but I was in the wrong area. They look mostly for ICU nurses.

I live in Kapolei and my wife teaches at Kapolei High (Special Ed) and a friend teaches at Kapolei Middle School. You can email her at [email protected] if you want to ask her questions.

Specializes in OR.

Aloha,

You didn't write too much.

I want to talk my wife into us moving to Hawaii next year, as your family has done.

She wants your old state of CA (her old state too), but I feel why settle for second best when you CAN have Paradise. Nothing is perfect, but Hawaii is closest.

Are homes similar in the San Diego area compared to the Honolulu-vacinity (price, size, neighborhoods, etc.?

What can your experiences add to this?

I feel like $600K for an average new home in San Diego is a but of a ripoff. If I'm gonna live poor, might as well be in Hawaii. And my wife is Asian so that part you all have been mentioning is fine with us.

Mahalo,

Brian

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