USFguy

Thanks so much for all the helpful info. I think your right about it not being worth it. I might as well take upon two jobs over in BC then take the time to work in washington. I don't like the prospect of picking up extra hours because it is risky if you want a reliable amount of income every month, which two regular jobs would give you. I am big on security... Thanks.

Well, according to salary.com the pay for a staff RN in Bellingham, WA is between $ 55, 475 to $ 66, 089 USD. That would come out to $ 63, 757 to $ 75, 965 CAD. That would be alot more money compared to the pay for a general duty registered nurse in British Columbia, according to the CFNU Collective Bargaining Agreement of 2006 which lists salary at $ 47,900 to $ 62,878 CAD, which is $ 41, 672 to $ 54, 716 USD. It would seem working in the US would be advantagous if you weren't required to pay double taxes. The exchange rate helps alot. Am I wrong? Also, I wanted to know if you are allowed to work at more than one hospital at a time in Canada? I know it sounds like a dumb question, but I figure they may have restrictions due to their rationed healthcare system dollars. Like i in the US, I could work 36 hours at one place and 24 to 36 hours at another, which I have done. ??? Thanks.

If you are US citizen and live in Canada as a Canadian Permanent Resident, but work across the border in the US, do you pay taxes on your US income to the US and Canada? I pose the question because it may be a possibility for me in the near future. My partner is foreign and I cannot sponsor him here in the US, so I may be applying to immigrate to Canada for permanent residence as an RN (I have my BSN) and sponsoring my partner in Canada as my spouse, where we can legally marry. I would work in Canada, of course, for a while, but I would certainly miss the higher US salaries. If there any way to maintain employment in the US and still live in Canada without getting hit up twice for taxes (because if I pay double, there is no benefit). The scenario would be me living in say abbotsford, BC and working in bellingham, WA or something like that. I would be an American citizen so there would be no problem with crossing the border everyday or getting a social security number, etc. I just wonder about taxes. Any takers? Thanks.

Well, thanks for being real. I guess all the people I've been talking to have been straight so I am glad to hear the perspective of a gay texan. Looks like I get the best "bang for my buck" as a nurse in Houston. Again, thanks for the insight.

That's sad to hear. I have live in America's gay capital and I still get looks and stares if I show public affection for my partner. Granted I might not be as likley to be beaten for it (although San Francisco bay area has had several such incidents....GWEN ARRAJO for example) as I might in Houston or Dallas. My partner and I aren't very showy and don't ususally hold hands anyway unless we were on some romantic vacation or something. I too don't give a flying crap what people think or believe as long as they don't bother me. I think if I did care so much than we would really limit where we could live in this country because the truth is most people don't like us and our so-called "lifestyle." I grew up in a upper middleclass/affluent suburb about 45 min. outside of los angeles and gay people were invisible there. So were black people and any hispanics you saw were maids and or janitors. I guess that is just typical of any American suburb anywhere. I don't expect houston to be any different. Unless you stay in the inner city, there aren't too many havens for gays and minorities. I am looking at austin too and heard nice things. I hear the pay is lower however and the housing pricier--the opposite of houston?

I love USF. I did my pre-reqs at Laney college. I went here because I didn't have any degree and wanted a university experience and to get a BSN and MSN. The MEO program does not grant you a BSN, only the MSN in Healthcare Systems Leadership or any of the combined degrees (MSN/MBA, MSN/MSIS, MSN/MPA in Healthcare Administration). It is a non-advanced practice degree so you won't be an NP, CRNA, CNM, CNS. You would be fit for unit management, infection control, case management, informatics, patient education with the MEO degree. You would be an RN, MSN. That is what I want as I am not really too interested in becoming an advanced practitioner. Your focus really changes when your an NP, CRNA, CNM, CNS. You aren't a normal nurse anymore but more like a doctor. Now, if you want your BSN before you get your MSN (alot of people have expressed concern with not having a BSN before their MSN as employers in some states look down on it---I disagree, but whatever) I would choose the Accelerated BSN program at Samuel Merritt and then going on to USF for the traditonal MSN or UCSF/Samuel Merritt if you decide you want to be a NP, CRNA, CNM, CNS. If you don't care about the BSN and just want your RN, MSN and don't want to be an advanced practice nurse, then USF is the place. The MSN in healthcare systems leadership is unique and I haven't seen any other programs in the area that compare, even at UCSF. Oh, by the way, our MSN program ranked 50 in the nation. UCSF is, of course, near the very top. I don't know about Samuel Merritt but I do know their CRNA program is highly ranked. You can email for more info: [email protected] Thanks for the info on texas y'all. :) I look forward to visiting the state and checking it all out for myself.

All true. Thanks everyone for weighing in. I really do have to think this thing through more. Maybe Texas is not the best thing to jump into. Perhaps I'd be better off in a semi-rural area like you. My mother has suggested that too since the home prices will almost certainly rise higher here in CA than TX. But TX is not my only option. I could stay here in CA like you suggest and live out in a semi-rural area or I could also look at other states. Ohio has come to interest and so has Florida and Arizona. But all of those places don't have as much job cushioning as CA. Maybe I am struggling with the "grass is greener on the other side" syndrome. I don't know. I guess I need to keep researching. You brought up some really important factors to consider. Thanks. :uhoh21:

Thanks for the advice. I will definitely visit a few times before I decide on the move to houston. I am also considering other locales such as ohio, florida, arizona, and oregon. Houston is coming out winner in terms of affordability, but like you said, it's a loser in other areas, such as nursing practice laws when compared to places like "california." I do read the texas nurses board and see their complaints. I correspond with a couple of RNs from houston aswell. There are bad work environments in texas as there are good. That's why we have "Magnet-certified" healthcare institutions so us nurses can find nurse-friendly medical facilities (there are more than a few in houston, tx). Either way, it is really a trade off that I am ready to endure if it means securing a nice retirement and home for my family down the line. I love california as I was born and raised here. It is beautiful in many respects and the "let-live" attitude is hard to match anywhere else, but it no longer offers me the opportunities I hoped it would. Good luck to you on your move.

Thanks for the info. I am really scared of moving but at the same time excited about living somewhere new. The housing there seems incredible. I was looking at some homes online and I can't believe what you get for the prices. You could literally buy a 3500 sq. ft. home for $200,000 to $250,000! I can't even find condos going for that here in the bay area. I love CA but I need to be able to purchase something now while I am young to build some equity and save for retirement and college for kids. I will email you with some additional questions. Thanks.

I will graduating soon from USF (University of San Francisco) and I am really considering relocating to Houston mainly out of affordability. Plus I here Houston is pretty liberal (not as much as San Francisco, but reasonably) and has all the major amenities of any major metropolitan city, plus affordable homes and sustainable wages. I don't think I will ever be able to afford a home in california, even with supplemental income from my partner. I was thinking of working 2 years after graduation first to save for a nice down payment, then make the plunge. We are a gay couple (together for 7 years now--since highschool) and see children down the line. Do you think Houston is friendly to people like us?

Supply and demand? Yeah, that's part of it, but so is inflation and speculation. Just because something is priced high doesn't mean you are getting high quality. I'm sure the dress at Ross is just as good as the one in the department store, but it is the brand that people get sucked into. I'm no longer getting sucked into the "california" brand. Flourish mentally? You should no as a research coordinator that the schools here are ranked 48 in the nation. They won't have to play football or be a cheerleader to benefit from the school's budget because the school's have no money. And talk about close-minded people...you will encounter huge amounts of radical liberals here that believe all republicans are fascists and that support tax-funded sex change operations (LA and SF both do this) and S&M parades in the city of San Francisco (Folsom Sreet Fair). I am liberal, but to a point of sanity. And, oh yes, you have your christian right-wingers too in orange county and beyond that think we should live in a theocracy and elect Pat Robertson as president. I wish I had, but my partner was in school at the time. Now I can and I will. Most of this affordability stuff doesn't even apply to you anyhow since your hubby's a Doctor. I have lived here my whole life and I know what I giving up, nothing more than what you are in texas.

My point exactly.

I here ya. I really am fed up with CA. It's the fakeness and sugar-coating (no one is for real--more so in LA), the constant rat-race, the traffic, and most, the enormous cost of living. I guess I might stay if I was a doctor or someone who made alot more money, but I just can't cut it here as a nurse. Many people are leaving the state, but it seems (you as an example) are coming in to fill the empty spots. Many of my family have moved out of the state to places like New Mexico, Arizona, and Florida. They got tired of the never ending struggle to save and live comfortably at the same time. You will have fun here as you are young right now and probably detached. But as you get older, your priorities will shift and you will see how important it is to be able to save for retirement, buy a home, and send your kids to college and private schools (without doing OT--that also counts toward quality of life). Maybe I think a little to highly of houston, but believe me, CA is no better. Like you said, nowhere is perfect. I guess you just choose your battles. You can have my 2 bedroom 2nd floor Edwardian flat in the nice Grand Lake neighborhood of Oakland, which is 12 miles from San Francisco, but takes an hour to get to every morning because of traffic. Oh, by the way, the rent is $1275 a month with street parking that you must fight for daily. I'm taking my $1275 and I'm going to put it towards a house.

You may not have to do OT to pay your RENT(notice you say rent and not mortgage) but I wonder how much you actually have left over every month to put away for retirement and a home. Unless you are single, with no children and don't mind being a lifetime renter, then california isn't for you. I'm telling you, it is a hard state to live in for families.

Talk about pollution--have you ever visited L.A.! The smog is horrible. The roads are cracked and filled with potholes in both SF and LA because no state money goes in to infrastructure. The public schools here are the worst in the nation!! Yes, living comfortably isn't just about material items, but I need to support a family and plan for retirement. Weather and open-minded people are all fine, but who cares about that when you can't afford to send your children to college, save for retirement, take vacations, etc. I was just making the point that for $260,000, you get a hell of a lot more in houston then SF or LA. You can go ahead and think that all the nice things about california will satisfy you, but in the end it comes down to being able to buy descent home for your family to live in and sending your kids to descent public schools. That's where my priorities lie. I'd like to welcome you to California. Hope your coming with some money to put down on your $600,000 2 bedroom cottage in Van Nuys or Oakland. I'm sure you'll have fun in the slopes up in Big Bear when your off (oh no, you have to do OT to pay mortgage this month or rent--if you didn't come with your down payment). Maybe you could go to the beach instead and enjoy the 40 degree polluted water. Or you can go hiking in Yosemite and pay $20 bucks to get in--there goes lunch! It is too freakin expensive here!! It's not worth it!!

I was born and raised in california and lived on both ends of the state (SF bay area and LA metro area). The pay out here is high and you can make it if renting is fine with you. I remember some statistic by the California Realty Association that said only 16% of californians could afford a home and only 8% in the SF bay area. Buying a home in this state is hard. Even homes out in "once thought to be" remote areas like Stockton in the northern half and Palmdale in the southern half, cost $300,000 and upwards. You have to add long commutes onto that, high taxes (property taxes sometimes can cost the amount of rent for a small studio--seriously), transportation costs (car registration is expensive, so is the cost to ride BART in SF or MetroLink in LA). Having lived here my whole life, I'm ready to give up the diversity, weather, liberal people for somewhere I can live a bit more comfortably. I mean, in Houston, I could pay $260,000 for a 5 bedroom house in a master-planned community that would cost 3 times that much in CA. That is just too huge of a difference for me. CA's just not worth $500,000 more. That's really what it comes down to. Why would I pay $300,000 to live in Palmdale, with at least a 1 hour commute, with many uneducated people when I could pay less and live in Houston, with a 20 min. commute with many educated people. I always wonder why people struggle so much to live in CA. Maybe it's the image and luster. I don't know but I am getting a reality check and moving to a place in the country that I can really afford.

I'm a BSN student at USF and have plans to become a critical care nurse. My program allows me to go directly from the BSN in to a MSN in Healthcare Systems Leadership for one more year (this is done by taking a few of my graduate courses my senior year). I eventually want to be a patient care director. Should I go on to get a post-master's in acute care nurse practitioner (being in line with my interest in critical care patients) for another year later on or should I be fine with the MSN? If I do the extra year for the NP post-master's certificate and later on get the DNP degree, since all APNs need one by 2015, I would have achieved one of the highest levels of nursing education (along with PhDs in nursing, DNSc degrees, Post-doctoral fellowships, etc.) I wouldn't mind taking on the new NP role while performing as a CCRN aswell (I love ICU nursing too much to leave it entirely behind) but I question myself because my ultimate goal is in management and administration. I would always attempt to practice clinically on the side part-time to keep my skills, but I feel that adding the NP title to this complicates matters. I would relish the additional training and education but feel I would be wasting it since it wouldn't be put to much use. I would just want the additional training for personal enrichment and probably could come in handy when moving up into higher levels of management (DON, Hospital Executive Board, etc.) What do you think?

This is my letter to ABC and friends: Dear Ms. Rhimes, Mr. Gordon, Mr. Parriott, Ms. Beers, Dr. Klein, Ms. Tobin and Mr. Thompson: I am deeply disturbed and disheartened by the absence and abuse of nurses on your show, Grey's Anatomy. I am a Puerto Rican male completing a bachelor of science in nursing at the University of San Francisco. From what I take from the show, nurses are to be regarded as mere handmaidens that should be put in their respective places when questioning (what we call "advocating for our patient") the orders of a physician. Are you not aware that most, if not all of the vital work physicians perform for patients each day rides on the backs of nurses? There is a nursing shortage and your portrayal of nursing as a servant's job is sad and is a negative message to send out to the public. Just as you, Shonda Rhimes, feel that "the way people look at people on television is the way they perceive the world" and that "we can change the assumptions that people have simply by the images they see in the background of the show," as you pointedly explained on March 25, 2005, on an NPR broadcast, so too should you have concern over the public image of a health profession seriously on the decline due to perpetuated stereotypes about the value of work historically provided by females. Please paint nurses in a brighter light as we are also valuable members of the surgical team and the overall healthcare of this and every country in the world. Thank you. _________________________________________________________________ Go to The Center for Nursing Advocacy wesite to send one! :wink2:

Are talking about University of San Francisco (where I go) or University of South Florida? I get alot of people thinking USF stands for the latter. I think there is also a University of Saint Francis, which makes thing even more complicated. GO DONS!!

I have been looking into the osetopathic approach to medicine and I agree that it is more in line with the nursing model as opposed to the medical model. From what I have researched, it seems that D.O.'s are gaining in popularity which is pressuring M.D. programs to incorporate some of the osteopathic philosophies of care.

I just can't remain in an ancillary position for the rest of my life. As a nurse I will always an assistant in the healing process of the patient. I want to be leader of the pack. I understand advanced practice nurses have more autonomy, etc. but they will always, in reality, be mid-level practitioners. I want the power, responsibility, authority, education, and suffice to say--financial compensation of a physician. I don't just want to care and nurture, I want to cure. Nursing cannot offer me these things. When I am in my clinical laboratory, I find myself constantly wanted to know more about the disease process and I am consistently told by my professors "you won't need to know that." I want to know it! Nursing care is the backbone of healthcare, hands down. The caring and nurturing patients receive from professional nurses is by no doubt equally important to the care provided by the physician. I just feel that my deeper inquiries into the nature of disease and the physiological response to infirmity lie more within the realm of medicine than nursing.

I originally wanted to do the pre-med route while I was taking my pre-reqs for the BSN program I'm in now. I never saw myself as a nurse but I felt it was a great way to be involved in healthcare and was practical, since many who apply to med school don't get accepted and have nothing to fall back on but a Biology degree (I would never want to be a lab tech). I am still doing my pre-med on the side and will take the MCAT and apply about two or three years after graduation (that will give me time to pay off my school loans and take the rest of my pre-med courses at a easier pace). If I don't get in, oh well--at least I tried. I could still probably get into a D.O. (osteopathic doctor) school and become a doctor that way or do the CRNA (nurse anesthetist) thing. Doing your premed will give you more options. I recommend you do the pre-med, take the MCAT and see how you do. If the scores and grades are decent enough, apply. Aways keep your options open. Nothing wrong with being a nurse, but if that isn't truly what you want to do, then move on. There will always be people out their that are called to nursing. Don't feel like you have to stay with it just because there is a shortage, or because they need more men. You will get alot of crap from other nurses once they find out you want to leave the profession to go into medicine, the profession that they feel has perpetuated their low public status as female handmaidens, but you have to do what is right for you. I think nursing is a great stepping stone for med school, although it is also a career track in itself. I remember my community college counselor once asked me, " If you were independently wealthy and never had to work , what would you want to do for the rest of your life?" I didn't have an answer at the time. As I continue with my studies, and reflect on my own experiences and desire to always learn and be challenged, the more and more I find medicine fitting the bill. If there is a will, there is a way!

I really find it hard to believe nurses are fighting tooth and nail to keep their education at the Associate Degree level!! It is mind boggeling!! It's like your'e all proud to be on the bottom rung of health care, because that is truly where you/we will be and remain if your/our stubborn ignorance towards higher education continues, as it has for the past 30 some years. This is about the future of nursing. Don't short change yourselves! As I said earlier, the rest of the world understands that nurses need four years of education. Why doesn't America get it yet?! Education = Power.....PERIOD You want higher pay, more prestige and respect from your colleagues and the public, you want more men in nursing......the answer is simple, more education!!! Mandatory BSN for all nurses NOW!!!

Go to http://www.allnursingschools.com and click on the option for online RN to BSN. That will bring all the schools offering online degrees, many, offering Master's--and yes clinical master's like nurse practioner, nurse midwife, etc. Good luck.

I am a nursing student in a BSN program, so any advice I give herein take with a grain of salt. I think an online MSN degree in say Healthcare Administration Systems Leadership or Nursing Informatics--really anything non-clinical is fine and should be just as valid as a brick and mortar degree. I think a online clinical degree, like nurse practioner or clinical nurse specialist is suspect and I would think employers would look twice. However, there are some really reputable schools that have online degree programs like Stony Brook-State University of New York, Univ. of Maryland (I think), Univ. of Colorado, and a few others. These are actual brick and mortar schools, so an amployer would never know if you got your degree online or not. University of Phoenix is well known and famous for their online programs, so you could not get away with this with a degree from thier school, although they are brick and mortar too and have several campuses throughout the country. Hope this helps. Thats my two cents. :)