What it's like to live in Yuma

cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN · Sep 12, 2006

Hot!

I think the problem of retain nurses is not just localized to Az, but to everywhere.

I've heard that people like working in Yuma. It's in the middle of nowhere, but at least its closer to Cali then if you lived in Phoenix or Tucson.

Just be prepared. I am an Az native, and when I stop in Yuma on a road trip, I even think it's ridicuously hot in the summer!

Kabin · Sep 13, 2006

I've only passed through Yuma when I drive to California. And it is hot. I guess it's grown alot in the last few years but I only know it as a stop off to use the restroom and grab a bite to eat. There's lots of ilegal immigrants there so I'd guess the local hospitals are doing poor financially. It may be a good place to get started and then leave in a year or two.

Nurse-To-Be-Joy · Sep 13, 2006

Hey,

I live in Yuma and I really like it. It gets VERY hot in the summers, but winters are great. The hospital (there's just one here) is a nice place to work and I'm excited to start there once I'm an RN. Yes, there is a lot of illegals and they are always all over the news. If you have any more questions, feel free to pm me.

Multicollinearity, BSN, RN · Sep 14, 2006

My grandparents lived in Yuma for decades before they passed away. So I spent summers there growing up. I have other family there now. Yuma is hell on Earth, IMHO. sorry nursetobejoy, I can't help it. This is how I feel.

:chair:

I have lived thru 122 degrees in Yuma. It's so hot that you feel yourself melting and evaporating going from your car to indoors. It is dusty. Really dusty. There's just dirt and the sky. Oh, and the aroma of pesticide wafts through the air, from the many crops.

All the doorhandles on doors at stores are wrapped with cloth or something so you don't burn your skin (seriously) during the summer. It is a poor town. Poverty and more poverty. I did see quite a few more middle-class homes when I drove through last time. It's great if Yuma is developing a middle-class.

Speak Spanish or perish. Algodones is a Mexican border city a few miles away.

All that said, I would live there if that's what it took to come to the US. You could get used to the US and then decide where else you'd like to go (or stay).

My father was hospitalized at YRMC a couple of years ago. I drove there frantically. YRMC is fantastic. I think they have a top-notch hospital there. I was pleasantly surprised and significantly impressed with the hospital and dad's nurses. They also offer traditional pensions for employees. How unusual is that?! So great hospital, great benefits.

mariel7 · Sep 14, 2006

Wow, thanks so much for all your responses, appreciate them..what's bothering me most is about the place being real dusty. Got 2 kids with allergic rhinitis (dusts as trigger factor), but i guess will just have to do something about it, for at least 2 years. Got a contract to honor..but i'll just see. Again muchas gracias (gee, I don't think i' learn Spanish) but that's America right so I suppose everyone knows English which is the only language i'll be able to use with patients.

Multicollinearity, BSN, RN · Sep 14, 2006

Many folks in Yuma will not speak English! I'd start learning some Spanish NOW!

Nurse-To-Be-Joy · Sep 15, 2006

But many people DO speak English. And the charge nurses were pretty good about trying to give Spanish-only pts to nurses who were blingual. But there is a plethora of interpreters available.

And as for being a town of poverty, I highly disagree with that. Yes, there are those kind of neighborhoods. But the majority of my friends and family are middle class with nice homes and cars. We work, have insurance, wear nice clothes, etc.

It IS hot, but you really do get used to it. And if you're working 7-7 (am or pm shift), you go in to work before it's really hot and leave after the sun has started to go down.

(The pesticides/fields are not in the center of town. And generally in a typical residential middle-class area, there is not an overabundance of dirt. That's more in the outskirts, near the fields, etc.)

Multicollinearity, BSN, RN · Sep 15, 2006

But many people DO speak English. And the charge nurses were pretty good about trying to give Spanish-only pts to nurses who were blingual. But there is a plethora of interpreters available.
And as for being a town of poverty, I highly disagree with that. Yes, there are those kind of neighborhoods. But the majority of my friends and family are middle class with nice homes and cars. We work, have insurance, wear nice clothes, etc.
It IS hot, but you really do get used to it. And if you're working 7-7 (am or pm shift), you go in to work before it's really hot and leave after the sun has started to go down.
(The pesticides/fields are not in the center of town. And generally in a typical residential middle-class area, there is not an overabundance of dirt. That's more in the outskirts, near the fields, etc.)

I'm sorry I posted my thoughts like I did. Seriously and sincerely. Last night when I posted that I was on 2 hours of sleep and about to blow a fuse after taking an exam. So I was feeling down/pissy/irritable for things that have nothing to do with Yuma when I posted my thoughts. Please excuse my post. I was only thinking of of the negative.

mariel7 · Sep 15, 2006

But many people DO speak English. And the charge nurses were pretty good about trying to give Spanish-only pts to nurses who were blingual. But there is a plethora of interpreters available.
And as for being a town of poverty, I highly disagree with that. Yes, there are those kind of neighborhoods. But the majority of my friends and family are middle class with nice homes and cars. We work, have insurance, wear nice clothes, etc.
It IS hot, but you really do get used to it. And if you're working 7-7 (am or pm shift), you go in to work before it's really hot and leave after the sun has started to go down.
(The pesticides/fields are not in the center of town. And generally in a typical residential middle-class area, there is not an overabundance of dirt. That's more in the outskirts, near the fields, etc.)

Thanks Nurse-To-Be-Joy . That gives me comfort indeed. And somehow lifted the gloom that I felt when I thought about how remote and hot and dusty the place is (?).Still, lookin' forward to be there myself.

mariel7 · Sep 15, 2006

I'm sorry I posted my thoughts like I did. Seriously and sincerely. Last night when I posted that I was on 2 hours of sleep and about to blow a fuse after taking an exam. So I was feeling down/pissy/irritable for things that have nothing to do with Yuma when I posted my thoughts. Please excuse my post. I was only thinking of of the negative.

:wink2: Oh not totally negative--thanks for saying that the hospital, staff & all is top-notch & fantastic. As for the negatives, i do appreciate them as well, you know diff people-diff perspectives...But I do understand how Nurse-To-Be-Joy must have felt..

cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN · Sep 15, 2006

And somehow lifted the gloom that I felt when I thought about how remote and hot and dusty the place is (?).Still, lookin' forward to be there myself.

Well, it still is really, really hot (and remote). To be honest, Az is a very dusty place!