New Grad Programs/Which hospitals

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Hey everyone -

I will graduate with my BSN in May (this is a second degree), and my partner and I have decided now is the time to finally move to Hawaii. We've lived in both Singapore and Taiwan, so we know we love tropical islands, and after three years in Albuquerque I am sure tired of being land-locked!

I'm trying to figure out which hospital in/near Honolulu has the best program for new grads. Queens seems to have a good rep based on other threads I've read. What about Hawaii Pacific Health or St. Francis? Are there others I'm missing? I've been to Oahu before, so have an idea of the lay of the land, but it is still a bit intimidating trying to find employment from so far away. Does anyone have any idea what the patient/nurse ratios would be on a general Med/Surg floor? Does anyone here actually work on a M/S floor they'd recommend?

There is always the temptation to start on a ICU to get a longer orientation, but I think my career would be better served by starting on a general floor before specializing. I guess that is a debate for another thread though.

Anyway, I'd sure appreciate any and all advice. Thanks in advance!

Robb

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Specializes in Critical Care.
hey everyone -

i will graduate with my bsn in may (this is a second degree), and my partner and i have decided now is the time to finally move to hawaii. we've lived in both singapore and taiwan, so we know we love tropical islands, and after three years in albuquerque i am sure tired of being land-locked!

i'm trying to figure out which hospital in/near honolulu has the best program for new grads. queens seems to have a good rep based on other threads i've read. what about hawaii pacific health or st. francis? are there others i'm missing? i've been to oahu before, so have an idea of the lay of the land, but it is still a bit intimidating trying to find employment from so far away. does anyone have any idea what the patient/nurse ratios would be on a general med/surg floor? does anyone here actually work on a m/s floor they'd recommend?

there is always the temptation to start on a icu to get a longer orientation, but i think my career would be better served by starting on a general floor before specializing. i guess that is a debate for another thread though.

anyway, i'd sure appreciate any and all advice. thanks in advance!

robb

queens hires new grads. they will give you a $5000 relocation bonus (18-month commitment required) and provide one month's free rent. i am pretty certain that this applies even to new grads but check to make sure.

here's their website:

the queen's medical center - honolulu, hawaii

i would not recommend the st. francis hospitals---they are in a state of transition due to the recent acquisition of the hospitals by a group of doctors and a mainland corporation. their one-year union contract is just about up and i have heard talk of lay-offs and making the present staff re-apply for their positions.

hph? well, after their recent treatment of the striking nurses at one of their neighbor island hospitals (wilcox on kauai) i can say that i would never consider working for them.

good luck!

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Hey there, thanks for your thoughts. I had seen the Queens site, which offers a lot of info. I just didn't want to discount a potential good employer just because they weren't as tech savvy, because I haven't been able to find comparable info on any other hospitals in the area. And I didn't know that about St. Francis. But I'm still crossing my fingers someone who actually works on a Med/Surg floor will read this and share what they recommend.

What about Kailua? I seem to remember passing a hospital over there, but I don't remember the name. Is that worth looking at? Living over there might be more expensive, but with a bit of luck finding a place I could see it being worth it to get away from Waikiki.

Thanks!

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Specializes in Critical Care.

what about kailua? i seem to remember passing a hospital over there, but i don't remember the name. is that worth looking at? living over there might be more expensive, but with a bit of luck finding a place i could see it being worth it to get away from waikiki.

thanks!

castle medical center is in kailua.

castle medical center

they don't hire new grads.

i live in kailua. i know a few nurses who work in both queens and castle and all of them say that, if they had to choose, they would choose queens.

benefits, pay, job security are the reasons they give.

i haven't personally compared the two but i'll take their word for it.

it is not a bad ride at all from kailua to town, if you choose to live in kailua.

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As was mentioned... Castle doesn't take new grads, nor does Tripler. Kaiser might be a good place to start... IF it actually was hiring... but seldom they aren't.

Queens looks like your best bet... good reputation, good training program. Although, i'm not 100% sure that the ride over the Pali from Kailua is such a "breeze" if you don't come early... then again, if you're Noc shift, it won't be bad, and if you're day shift, you can just come early...

I, personally, work at Straub hospital... an aquired HPH hospital. I don't want to get into the whole Wilcox thing... cause... well... i've got mixed emotions there. But I will assure you that Straub has treated me wonderfully... =)

As for the Queens relocation bonus... sign-on bonus.. whatever, you need to check into that... because alot of times the new grads won't get that bonus... just a warning... the nursing shortage isn't so bad here, and new grads actually have a bit of a hard time getting a good job...

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Specializes in Critical Care.

Queens looks like your best bet... good reputation, good training program. Although, i'm not 100% sure that the ride over the Pali from Kailua is such a "breeze" if you don't come early... then again, if you're Noc shift, it won't be bad, and if you're day shift, you can just come early...

I'm 100% sure about the ride from Kailua. I live in Kailua. :D

The day-shift ride can be a bit rougher than the night-shift ride but still nowhere near as bad as the drive from the West Side or even, often, Hawaii Kai side.

He won't get day shift as a new hire. He'll do most of his orientation/new grad training on day shift, then go to either day/night rotation or night shift.

The big problem with Queens is PARKING!! No on-site parking on the day shift unless you have a parking pass and there is a waitlist of several years. Yes, I said YEARS.

There is free parking for the night shift at Queens.

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I was wondering if I'd have to start on nights. I'm not terribly keen on that, I am definitely a creature of the sun, but working nights has its perks too I guess, at least in the beginning. The hard part will be my partner will still be on day shift, and I'm sure that will get old fast. But there are worse things I suppose.

We would prefer to live in Kailua, but we are only bringing one car across, and it would be nice to be close enough to walk or even bus if I had to. I know there is a bus that goes across, although I feel like that would be a bummer to wait for after a 12 hour shift.

So no day parking at Queens huh? That sucks. Guess there are garages in the area? Bet that costs and arm and a leg.

Doubt I'm eligible for the sign on bonus. I got a federal scholarship for school so I already have a two year committment at a (any) hospital, and can't take any bonuses that require an additional time committment. Which sucks, cause it will be expensive to move to HI, but then again it was a great scholarship so I guess I can't complain.

Tell me more about Straub. You just started as a new grad, didn't you? How well is the transition going for you? Do you work with a preceptor?

And thanks again for taking the time to answer all my questions. You guys rock!

Robb

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Specializes in Critical Care.

i just saw an ad for castle in our local paper and it mentioned that positions were available for new grads.

might be worth it to give them a call:

castle medical center

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Same question, different island. Anyone with info on the Big Island?

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