Anyone know about California?

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Specializes in NICU,ER, psych.

HI! I'm on my first assignment right now in St. Louis, MO (I'm from Florida) with american mobile. So far things are great I just finished my 6th week and its a 13 week assignment. I want to travel to California with a friend in May but we cant decide if we should stick with my recruiter or find a new company. I trust my recruiter but I dont think they will offer us a rental car and they only reimburse for either gas or airfare. My recruiter said it will probably be a Kaiser hospital. Does anyone know about kaiser permanente? Also does anyone know of any companies that would pay for us to rent a car or ship our cars? Or do you think its best to stick with a company that I know?:uhoh3: Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

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Specializes in Education, Administration, Magnet.

I think, I have seen some threads that don't talk good about Kaiser. But you might want to type it in the allnurses search tab and look there.

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I live in UT and travel to cali once a month- I use intelistaf, I go to San Luis Obispo- 40-44/hr. Nice rea-convienent staffing company.

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im finishing up my assignment here in kaiser permanente-sunset. there are quite a few kaisers... this one was great. i have no complaints about it... well the only thing is floating at midnight, i did that alot... but if you can look passed that it is a real great place to work. i know alot of travelers have extended i personally did two terms here and that was a first for me so it must have been good. they have lots of travelers so you dont feel like an outsider as much! kaiser panorama city i heard was not bad and west la i heard wasnt so bad either but i have never worked at those. hope that helps!

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Having worked at Kaiser Lakeview in Anahiem for over a year thru registry I can tell you it is without a doubt the scariest facility I have ever worked and I will NEVER return to that facility. They offer 8 hour shifts, 8-4:30 and I worked MedSurg, Tele, ER, newborn nursery and the entire hospital was run horribly.

I received NO ORIENTATION, got NO HELP from anyone and the charting system is so backwards I can't even describe it. Labs are often found in someone elses chart, that's if you can find the charts. They grab these MD's fresh out of school and while that's not a bad thing, you rarely deal with the same one twice. They do not observe standard precautions, in fact many of the sinks in patient rooms don't work. I have seen CNA's walk from room to room with the same dynamap, even going into isolation rooms without any handwashing.

The cafeteria is awful, expensing and you will spend half your break waiting for something to be prepared. The rooms are in poor condition, often the beds don't work and they were using Baxter pumps that had been recalled because they would randomly bolus fluids. By the way, I did file complaints with every agency possible and got no feedback. As far as I know they are still in business. Rarely a day would go by that they didn't have a code pink, the patients were just discharged with no follow up, the list goes on and on.

They did seem to appreciate the agency nurses but we rarely got any support from the "lift team" or a CNA. I'll never go back and I would discourage any friend or family member from being treated there.

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Hello, If you are looking for a California assignment you should give Mobile Medical Staffing a call. I have been with them for my last 3 assignments. They pay for airfare to and from assignment, rental car, and fully-furnished house. They also have a great referral bonus that is no joke. You should give them a call and tell them Jason referred you. Their number is 1-888-667-3040. Good luck.

Happy travels,

Jason

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You don't want to drive to California? You wimp :) I drove here from Wisconsin because I need my car and a rental wasn't possible from the agency I'm using here (Bestaff). I'm working L&D at a CHW hospital in Santa Maria, and living in Pismo Beach, by San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara. I haven't worked at a Kaiser but would like to work at one next assignment. I've heard that they are among the higher paying facilities. What agencies do you all recommend for Cali? I want to stay by the coast.

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Stay AWAY from Kaiser hospitals. Panorama and West LA float you like you are a boat.

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I would strongly recommend shopping around for the company that offers you the best deal for you. I would look into working an assignment in Northern California if making a good hourly payrate is important to you. I could definetely give you some great advice if you are traveling with a friend that could financially benefit both of you. Feel free to send me a PM and we can discuss it in greater detail. Good luck.

Happy travels,

Jason

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