Branston or Table Rock Lake area??

WoodsyCreature · Nov 18, 2005

Don't expect high salaries. Southern MO is one of the lowest paying areas in MO. The winters are relativly mild, but can have unexpected winter storms with ice and snow. The past 2-3 winters have been very mild, minimal snow, not much ice at all. Skaggs Hospital is the only hospital in Branson I believe, there are probably some home health agencies and LTCF. Best of luck and be sure you do your homework before relocating to the area.

futuregaspasser · Nov 18, 2005

Thank you. I will definately do some research

jenksb · Dec 3, 2005

I grew up near Branson and I worked at Skaggs Hospital for 6 years prior to moving to San Antonio, TX. Skaggs is the only hospital in that area unless you want to drive to Springfield. It is a beautiful place and the small hospital atmosphere is something that I loved. Everyone there is like family.

futuregaspasser · Dec 3, 2005

Thanks Jenksb! That is exactly what I am looking for. Do you have anymore info you can share?

wincha · Dec 3, 2005

My husband and I are looking to relocate when he is through with nursing school (I am a nurse also).
I am interested in Branson or Table Rock Lake area. Can anyone tell me more about it? Are there good options for work there? What is the weather like, particularly in the winter. Is there much snow?
Thanks!

You could live in springfield mo which is about 30 plus minutes from branson. cox south is a big hospital there and there is also st johns. i think there is a cox north but don't deal with it since they dont have peds(i take call for their peds in another city) all my friends who went to college in springfield stayed there and love it. they are a growing city. i would look into it. the people are nice. the salary won't be like the other major cities in mo but it will be better than branson. i have heard bad things about skaggs also.

jenksb · Dec 3, 2005

When I worked at Skaggs, they had 134 beds, I think. They had one floor for mostly medical patients and one floor for surgical. The few pediatric patients that they got went to the surgical floor. They don't have a pediatric ICU, so if kids get bad, they have to be flown to Springfield. They have an adult ICU that had 8 beds, and an adult CCU that had 6 beds it seems (or vice versa, I can't remember which was which), and a Step Down Unit. Their ER is always busy as they get so many visitors to the area. They have an OB department and Nursery as well. All of the floors take telemetry patients, but on the medical and surgical floors, the tele was monitored remotely from one of the units or from Step Down. They also have a large outpatient center. While I was there, I worked on the Medical floor and then on the Surgical floor. I enjoyed the Surgical floor the most. There are some people who will tell you that they have heard bad stories about Skaggs, but I heard bad stories about all of the hospitals around there at some point. Whenever things in health care don't go just as a patient/family hopes, they tend to talk poorly about the hospital as a whole. I have especially found that to be true after moving to San Antonio. If I ever move back to MO, Skaggs will always be my #1 choice.

hotdog19d · Dec 7, 2005

Skaggs is the only hospital in the branson area, but there is a hospital in harrison, AR which is only 30 or so minutes away, and tons of clinics, LTCF. One thing you need to remember is that pretty much every one in this area is older so if you don't like to work with the elderly this is not the area for you. Another thing that someone else metioned is the pay here. It's plain horrible. I know skagg's lpns start out at $10/hr.

My wife currently work at Skaggs. On the plus side She really enjoys the coworkers she has on her unit. The downside is she gets floated and EO'ed constantly, and since she only works 2 days a week because of school that really puts on strain on the pocketbook. If you want I'll have her post more on here if you have anymore questions.

jenksb · Dec 7, 2005

It is true that the pay in that entire area is low. When I started at Skaggs, I made the same amount that my fellow nursing school graduates made in Springfield. That amount, however, is very small compared to what is available here in San Antonio with a similar cost of living. Is the pay better in Harrison than in Branson? I did get floated fairly often while I was there, but it is nice to get out and see what else is going on. (I just didn't like floating to the ER) What area of nursing are you interested in, futuregaspasser?

futuregaspasser · Dec 7, 2005

I actually work in a level III Neonatal ICU. I love it there and am not sure I want to give it up. So I am not sure if the area is right for me. Is there anything within driving distance?

jenksb · Dec 9, 2005

Cox South Hospital in Springfield is not that far of a drive if you move close to Hwy 65. It is maybe a 30-40 minute drive, and it is a nice road. If Neonatal ICU is what you are looking for, I don't think you will find what you want in Branson. I know lots of people who make that commute every day without complaints if they are on 12 hour shifts.

eddy · Dec 14, 2005

Great place to live. Low cost of living. The pay is quite low compared to the rest of the state. However, quality of life and cheap housing probably makes up for it. Plus, it is an area that is growing incredibly fast. Expect property values to climb aggressively and pay to go up as well in the future. Probably a good time to invest in a home there.

I have heard there is a tremendous demand for home care in the area.