Best Hospitals in Chicoland Area to Work At

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Hi everyone. Just wondering what hospitals you all thought were the best to work at. I have two little ones 6 and 5 and just trying to get a feel. Living near Gurnee, but willing to drive for a good job!

Thanks,

Soozen

I'm not a nurse yet, but have worked as a PCT at Loyola and Northwestern; loyola's easy to get to, relatively close to the 294/290 interchange, but research the floor. The management on the tele floor is a nightmare, the turnover is huge, and they don't treat their employees very well on that particular floor; unsure about the rest of it. I know some ER nurses there who I thought were really jaded, but there are a few who I've noticed are great with patients. Nurses and techs who have done fire-able things were not fired becuase they're short staffed.

Northwestern, on the other hand, they have massage therapists come to the particular floor I work on twice a week, for both the patients and the staff... may be my particular floor, unsure, but I start an externship on a different floor at NW next week, so I'll figure it out! The cafeteria at NW is awesome...

I know the western suburbs well; I echo the Oak Park suggestion, adn also suggest LaGrange/Lagrange Park; excellent public schools, more of a "community" feel, I think, than Oak Park. As a smaller hospital, Hinsdale I think is a good place to work...but don't know that from experience, just from what I hear from friends who work there.

Good luck!

Edited to add- I don't know Rush nurses, but I know physicians there, and had a surgery there a few years ago- and I'd work there in a heartbeat. I hope my first job post-graduation is either at Rush or NW....and hopefully, as my name suggests, in the neuro ICU or the epilepsy monitoring unit, etc....

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Thank you Neuro, I have an interview with Rush on the 26th. I'm still looking at different cities, but appreciate your opinion. Good luck to you.

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Rush is a good choice. I haven't worked there but hear good things about them from many different sources. Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights is also a very good hospital to work for; one of my best friends has worked there for years in the ED and is very happy. Loyola also has a good reputation and is a HUGE teaching facility.

I would avoid any hospital that is part of the "Resurrection" group at all costs. PM me for details.

Welcome to the Windy City!

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I've done rotations at Res hospitals...St Mary's, St. Elizabeth's, West Sub...had only mediocre experiences there. I'd definately look elsewhere also aside from those 3 at least....yeah, Loyola is a huge teaching hospital for certain. I love the teaching hospital atmosphere....just stay away from tele....look elsewhere if you're looking for cardiac tele before you go to Loyola.

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I've done rotations at Res hospitals...St Mary's, St. Elizabeth's, West Sub...had only mediocre experiences there. I'd definately look elsewhere also aside from those 3 at least....yeah, Loyola is a huge teaching hospital for certain. I love the teaching hospital atmosphere....just stay away from tele....look elsewhere if you're looking for cardiac tele before you go to Loyola.

ITA!! One of my RN school friends is on a tele floor at Loyola and said the very same thing. Loyola does it all -- burns, trauma, transplants (I think) medical school, nursing school w/Master's fast track. Big, busy place. There are lots of good teaching hospitals if you like that in the area.

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ITA!! One of my RN school friends is on a tele floor at Loyola and said the very same thing.

Said the same thing about staying away from Loyola tele? Yeah, they do transplants....heart, lung, liver, etc.....Mike Bahkos is the big time cardiac surgeon there....but I'd still really research working on that floor. Granted, I was not a nurse on that floor, but I'd think twice about it.

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Said the same thing about staying away from Loyola tele? Yeah, they do transplants....heart, lung, liver, etc.....Mike Bahkos is the big time cardiac surgeon there....but I'd still really research working on that floor. Granted, I was not a nurse on that floor, but I'd think twice about it.

She said that the tele units were too new and disorganized/not well supplied (sound like Res?) to the point of not being able to find dressings. Also very short staffed and used lots of travelers/agency nurses, but she loves their scheduling (one weekend on, three off, because they have so many Baylor nurses).

Second hand information, though.

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She said that the tele units were too new and disorganized/not well supplied (sound like Res?) to the point of not being able to find dressings. Also very short staffed and used lots of travelers/agency nurses, but she loves their scheduling (one weekend on, three off, because they have so many Baylor nurses).

Second hand information, though.

Okay, how many of these places are unionized, here every hospital is union. I was surprised this isn't the case there for many it seems, unless that has changed.

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The California nurses union is trying to move into IL; I get stuff from them all the time.

The only place that I have heard of for sure that is unionized is Stroger hospital (used to be Cook County, what the ER hospital is based on).

I haven't heard of any other area hospitals being unionized; has anyone else?

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Specializes in Maternal - Child Health.
The California nurses union is trying to move into IL; I get stuff from them all the time.

The only place that I have heard of for sure that is unionized is Stroger hospital (used to be Cook County, what the ER hospital is based on).

I haven't heard of any other area hospitals being unionized; has anyone else?

U of I is unionized as well. Rush, a non-union hospital, is in very close proximity to both U of I and Stroger, and strives to maintain salaries and benefits comparable to those of the nearby hospitals, without the hassles and expense of joining a union.

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Statistics show commuting erodes people's happiness. However, people tend to do it anyhow b/c they are basing the decision to do so off of the current mental state and desires when first deciding upon it. This tendency has something to do with cognitive biases and fallacies. When explained to me-it was done so using the example of someone who wants a fifth bedroom, so they move really far out into the suburbs to afford it, but they (as you may be doing) underestimate the value of time(away from enjoyment, family, and persuing hobbies) and over esitmate the value of the fifth bedroom. There has to be some good places to work closer to your home. Just a little research to consider......Good luck!

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Specializes in Psych, Med/Surg, Home Health, Oncology.
U of I is unionized as well. Rush, a non-union hospital, is in very close proximity to both U of I and Stroger, and strives to maintain salaries and benefits comparable to those of the nearby hospitals, without the hassles and expense of joining a union.

I agree with this. I work for Ill. Masonic Med Ctr--part of the Advocate system. on the North side of Chicago--not far from St. Joseph. Advocate is really not a bad place to work. They work to keep the salary's competitive & believe they are.

They took over our smaller hospital about three yrs. ago & made sure they found places for all of us near our homes. We kept our senority and wages actually were higher.

I have also been getting mailings from the unions that want to get into the city. I have never worked for a hospital with a union.

Mary Ann

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