Moving to Texas is not a good deal for nurse

jspacegirl · Feb 11, 2008

High Patient ratio. 1:8 or more. It is like work 20% extra hard not getting paid.
1.5-2% extra on housing tax would make you lose even there is no state tax there. Save 2000 dollar on state tax. But you pay about 3000 dollar more on housing tax if you have a house worth more than $200,000 .
Electricity bill is 13c/kwh. This is another 100-200 dollar extra loss financially.
John

I'm not sure where you get your information from, but I can say that that the nurse patient ratios have not been anywhere near that high at any hospital I have been at! On med/surg floors in major hospitals in Dallas, the most I have EVER seen is 1:5. The average seems to be 1:4 to 1:5.

I do pay 13.8 cents per kw/h, but that is for a small apartment (if you use more energy, you can get discounts on kw/hr) and for WIND ENERGY, which I gladly pay more for.

You didn't mention any salaries, but I know that a major hospital in Dallas pays $23/hr for new nurse interns, which doesn't include shift differentials.

Once again, I don't know why people feel the need to come to Texas boards and bash us. When I graduate from nursing school, I will be happy to work here!

John123 · Feb 11, 2008

More electricity you use, the higher rate should be. Do a specific search. Don't make assumption.

Tell me in specific, which hospitals have 1:5 ratio? prove it.

gchelak · Feb 11, 2008

High Patient ratio. 1:8 or more. It is like work 20% extra hard not getting paid.
1.5-2% extra on housing tax would make you lose even there is no state tax there. Save 2000 dollar on state tax. But you pay about 3000 dollar more on housing tax if you have a house worth more than $200,000 .
Electricity bill is 13c/kwh. This is another 100-200 dollar extra loss financially.
John

Try working in Canada where you pay an average of $70 a month for parking (surface lots in the freezing cold where they cycle the plugs so if your car starts in the -25C it is barely starting) and $70 a month for union dues, not to mention NO reimbursement for tuition, PALS, etc. Sure the pay may SEEM higher (starting out of school is $29/hr) but take away the high income tax rates, the HIGH housing costs (average condo prices in Calgary are $325K), high food prices (cheap chicken is $2.50/lb, cereal is on sale for $3-$4 a box), and the high fees from everything from cars, gas, car licenses, auto repairs, etc. to books, furniture, household items...you have nothing left!

I am moving BACK to TX as fast as I can!

John123 · Feb 11, 2008

Try working in Canada where you pay an average of $70 a month for parking (surface lots in the freezing cold where they cycle the plugs so if your car starts in the -25C it is barely starting) and $70 a month for union dues, not to mention NO reimbursement for tuition, PALS, etc. Sure the pay may SEEM higher (starting out of school is $29/hr) but take away the high income tax rates, the HIGH housing costs (average condo prices in Calgary are $325K), high food prices (cheap chicken is $2.50/lb, cereal is on sale for $3-$4 a box), and the high fees from everything from cars, gas, car licenses, auto repairs, etc. to books, furniture, household items...you have nothing left!
I am moving BACK to TX as fast as I can!
[/quote
Hey: We are not comparing nursing salary in Texas with Canada or South Pole ! We are comparing with other states. Be logic.

John123 · Feb 11, 2008

Tell me how much I can make in a acute hospital in DFW area. I have three and half years experiences in Tele and Med/Surg. Let's compare. Thanks.

gchelak · Feb 11, 2008

Tell me how much I can make in a acute hospital in DFW area. I have three and half years experiences in Tele and Med/Surg. Let's compare. Thanks.

Hey, just giving you some perspective....grass isn't always greener.

Why would you want to know the salary for DFW anyway, you said yourself what the patient ratio was from your experience and that the electricity is expensive...there are a lot more states you can look at that might meet your criteria.

Isn't California unionized? I believe their ratio can not be more than 6:1, but that is just what I heard. Don't know how the pay differs. Sorry not to be any more help.

jspacegirl · Feb 11, 2008

More electricity you use, the higher rate should be. Do a specific search. Don't make assumption.
Tell me in specific, which hospitals have 1:5 ratio? prove it.

Why don't YOU tell me which hospitals have a 1:8 patient ratio? I'm going by what I have personally SEEN. I have no reason to lie about this. I think you assume that nurses in Texas are idiots. Personally, I would never work under those conditions, and fortunately, I don't have to.

And yes, I have done my research on electricity rates and have done SPECIFIC searches, because I had to move last summer. For most companies, at least in Texas, where electric service is deregulated, you are eligible for a discounted rate if you use at least a certain number of kilowatt hours. And the place where I lived before billed me on the electricity company's behalf, since they got a discounted sub-commercial rate based on the charges for the whole property. More electricity usage = discounted rates. It's called economies of scale.

John123 · Feb 11, 2008

Hey, just giving you some perspective....grass isn't always greener.
Why would you want to know the salary for DFW anyway, you said yourself what the patient ratio was from your experience and that the electricity is expensive...there are a lot more states you can look at that might meet your criteria.
Isn't California unionized? I believe their ratio can not be more than 6:1, but that is just what I heard. Don't know how the pay differs. Sorry not to be any more help.

For family reason, I may have to move to Texas.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Feb 11, 2008

Don't make assumption.

You're telling the other members on these forums to not make assumptions, which is exactly what you appear to be doing right now. You have made negative assumptions based on exaggerated and somewhat erroneous information.

In other words, practice what you preach.

crb613, BSN, RN · Feb 11, 2008

I'm not sure where you get your information from, but I can say that that the nurse patient ratios have not been anywhere near that high at any hospital I have been at! On med/surg floors in major hospitals in Dallas, the most I have EVER seen is 1:5. The average seems to be 1:4 to 1:5.
I do pay 13.8 cents per kw/h, but that is for a small apartment (if you use more energy, you can get discounts on kw/hr) and for WIND ENERGY, which I gladly pay more for.
You didn't mention any salaries, but I know that a major hospital in Dallas pays $23/hr for new nurse interns, which doesn't include shift differentials.
Once again, I don't know why people feel the need to come to Texas boards and bash us. When I graduate from nursing school, I will be happy to work here!

I agree with you! My daughter worked in west Texas, & now works in Dennison/Sherman area. Never has she had more than 1:5 usually 1:4. She has a couple of years exp. so she makes a lot more. I can't comment on the electric, but housing is wayyy cheaper there in comparison to where I live.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Feb 11, 2008

Plus, your wage is $5-10 less, depends where you are from.

Keep in mind that I'm an LVN, not an RN.

With only 2 years of experience, I earn $23 hourly here in Texas. $23 hourly is excellent pay for an LVN, in my humble opinion, because many RNs in other low C.O.L. states do not even earn that kind of money. The working conditions have been reasonable, too. When I completed the LVN program in my home state of California in 2005, I could not find an LVN position that paid that much. The average offers were coming in at $19 to $21 hourly, yet the cost of living was expensive enough to make one's nose bleed.

I live in an 1,800 square foot newer construction home in a nice neighborhood that only cost around $100,000. My electric bill for a house this size usually runs around $60 monthly, even in the hot summers. I definitely do not pay $3,000 yearly in property taxes. There's no state tax in Texas.

Living and working in Texas might seem like a bad deal to you. However, this state has sure as hell been wonderful to me. :wink2: