Duke employment, commute, etc

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Specializes in Neurosurgical ICU, Emergency, Psych, Art Therapy.

Hello,

I was just hired at Duke Hospital in Durham and I’m starting at the end of Summer. I was hoping to get some insight on a few things. Due to Covid, the orientation is now virtual, so I won’t have many opportunities to ask someone in person.

I’m moving from out of state and hoping to get an apartment in downtown Durham. How feasible is it to commute a few miles to work? Is Durham a bike-friendly city? Trying to avoid expensive parking as much as possible.

Also, does anyone have insight into the health insurance plans offered? Is the cheaper Duke health insurance decent? I don’t really have any major medical issues and just go to the doctor mainly for annual physical kind of stuff, but it would be nice to find a reliable primary physician and the cheaper insurance would require me to use a doctor within the Duke network

Thanks in advance!!

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Specializes in orthopedic/trauma, Informatics, diabetes.

Any place that would be close enough to bike to work is going to be cost prohibitive.

Remember you are competing with students, residents, doctors, university staff, not just hospital staff. There are remote parking lots that are not expensive. Buses run from the lots to the hosp.

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Specializes in Neurosurgical ICU, Emergency, Psych, Art Therapy.
On ‎6‎/‎26‎/‎2020 at 9:57 PM, mmc51264 said:

Any place that would be close enough to bike to work is going to be cost prohibitive.

Remember you are competing with students, residents, doctors, university staff, not just hospital staff. There are remote parking lots that are not expensive. Buses run from the lots to the hosp.

@mmc51264 My boyfriend is moving with me and I think overall we'd rather pay more for a nice downtown apartment than pay less and commute to pay for closer parking. We are both moving from a bigger city environment so we'd like to be in a more active/downtown area of Durham, with walking distance to restaurants, shops, etc. So far I've gotten some good advice on biking in and my bike has a motor so it's not necessarily serious pedaling the entire time. I'm definitely going to look into cheaper remote parking as well, especially for inclement weather days. I hope to visit the area soon, as I've never even been to Durham or Duke before. It's been a strange process just having virtual interviews due to COVID.

Do you find that you have overtime opportunities on your unit? Or do nurses ever pick up shifts on other floors/float to other units for extra shifts?

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Hi, Durham is not a very biker friendly place. It is getting better but still a lot of work ahead. Here's a map that shows bike lanes. https://durhamnc.gov/1031/Durham-Bike-Hike-Map

There are a few apartments right around Duke that would allow you to walk to work or you may be able to find a rental nearby. If you are use to living in a city, the rental prices probably will not be a shock. For those of us who have living in Durham for a few years, I get sticker shock looking at how much rent now costs in Durham.

Maybe look in to using the bus? Again, not great either but there are a couple of bus stops by Duke that may be an option. You may be able to find a rental near a commuter lot so you can walk or bike to the lot then bus in.

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Parking in a remote lot and riding the shuttle bus is the best alternative. That's what I do and it only costs about $20 per month. Apartments downtown are going to cost $100-200 more per month than ones that are 10-15 minutes away from the medical center. You also usually get more square footage in these "further out" apartments. The average cost for a one bedroom downtown is about $1,500/month. None of the nurses on my unit live downtown. Only our nurse manager does, it that offers any perspective on cost. ?

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