Snyder524

I just went pool (what I think some of you guys are calling flex). Big pay bump to help save up money for the move next year. Anybody want to share how hard it is to pick up extra shifts. Thinking about doing pool when I move. As long as it's not too hard to get my shifts, it'd be to get to pick my shifts and have longer periods off to have fun in the great outdoors. Still trying to decide b\w doing a pool job when I first move out there or trying to get a pool or staff job to start.

What hospital if you don't mind me asking?

That's nice, thanks for the heads up. Wouldn't be interested in OR, but interesting nonetheless. Does anybody have a good general idea of what an ICU RN with a couple of years of experience would expect to make? Also how easy is it for you guys to pick up extra shifts if you want to?

Centura and UCH are the two I'd most like to try out. I've never heard of a "regional float" position before. So essentially you would work at one of three different facilities? How'd you like it? Seems like amazing pay but the constant facility change could get annoying/old real quick.

Yah I'm going to be taking advantage of the public service loan forgiveness program so the facility will need to be non for profit. I work for the parent company of Centura here in Ark and like it a lot. I've heard UCH is tough to get into and that it's a great place to work. I'm weighing the option of trying some hospitals out as a traveler before becoming staff at one of them. What hourly rate in your opinion is a bad rate? I'm currently a night shifter and was hoping to switch to days, but the more I research the more I think I'll have to stick to nights b\c of the increased cost of living in Denver. Like Ark, but can't pass up the opportunity to have the Rockies that close to me on my days off.

My hospital calls it LBO, limited benefits option. If you don't take the hospital insurance, you have to show that you have coverage elsewhere. When you do that, you can get a 20% bump off your base rate.

Thanks for the reply. I work for a CHI facility here and love it, it's a great place to work. I just want to change the surrounding area, as Denver suits me a little better than Little Rock. You laugh at the signing bonus to some hospitals around here offer them to nurses with experience. At one point my hospital offered roughly 10-15K (before taxes) for experienced RN's. My facility does $3.50 for nights, $1.75 for weekends. The 20% bonus for not taking the hospital insurance is very nice. It worries me a little if other facilities don't do this. Insuring me is cheap, and I def like having the extra cash. Cost of living is obviously going to be more in Denver than Little Rock.

Hey guys I'm an RN in Little Rock, AR who's moving to Denver next year (2014). I've got a year of Telemetry experience and (when I move) a year of CVICU experience. I'm looking for advice on the following and would very much appreciate whatever you guys can help me with. 1. General reputations of the metro area hospitals. I'm looking to continue ICU, specifically CVICU, and want to know what units/hospitals have good and bad reps. 2. Pay? What would an RN with my experience level be looking to make? Do your area hospitals to signing bonuses? What's the night and weekend shift diff for you guys? 3. Benefits? The current hospital (owned by Catholic Health Initiatives) pays it's employees a 20% bonus on their base rate if they pay their own insurance. I do it now as I'm a single male with no kids, it's a nice pay bump for me. Do hospitals in Denver do this? 4. Areas of the city to live? Reasonable rent? Utilities? As I said I'm a single guy, 29, and obviously I'm curious about fun parts of Denver and good places to live. The times I've been up there, I've loved the 16th street mall, Cap Hill, Lodo, etc. Any tips on rent, good/safe areas, and utilities would be a big help. I'm a plan ahead kind of person and the uncertainty of all this is bothering me. 5. Any tips you guys have on stuff I'm not asking. Again thanks for those who reply, definitely want to say thanks for any help you can provide. Excited for the move, but wanting to get a handle on what expect in relation to the above questions. Thanks again guys.

Thanks for all the responses. If I decide to do this it'll likely be when I move to Denver, just want to get as much info and advice together as I can to make a good decision on this. I've gotten in contact with all three branches (Army, Navy, AF) and am working on setting up sit downs with medical recruiters for all of them. Army and Navy should be easy but I'm having a little trouble finding an AF medical recruiter in Arkansas.

The loan repayment is a big incentive for me so the trouble you've seen with it is disconcerting. I've never really considered Air Force, but I'll look into the and the Navy for that matter.

Hey new member to the forum but always read old posts when I was thinking about doing becoming an RN/while I was in school. Love this site, lots of great info. Anyways I had a few questions for those who know about being a reserve RN. I'll be meeting with a recruiter soon but wanted to throw some questions out there to you guys to hear it from another side of the discussion. I'll throw a bunch out there, any answers would be appreciated. I'm on the fence about this at the moment. I'm 28 and have been an RN for a little over a year. First year I was a cardiac telemetry nurse but now I've moved over to CVICU. I've got a previous Bach in business and am working on transitioning my ASN to a BSN (done this Dec). Deployment wouldn't be ideal for me but if I join I do so knowing that it could happen and I'll be ok with that if I decided to join up. Can't reap all the benefits and perks without being willing to pay for them via active duty service. I know it's all relative and local but any info would be appreciated, TIA and I'll probably keep posting question in here as I go along this process. I've thought about joining the military at different points in my life. A combo of that and the loan repayment are the things attracting me to this move. 1. What's the real difference b\w Guard RN and Army Reserve RN? 2. For those who've used the loan repayment program, how does it work and what's your opinion of it? 3. What's your typical drill like? What about your annual training? 4. How easy is moving when in the Reserves? I'm planning on moving to Denver in the next year or two and any commitment to the military would have to be ok with that. 5. When you have deployed, where did you go and what was it like? 6. How are reserves and RN's in general viewed/treated within the military? 7. Any things I should ask a recruiter when meeting with them? Things to watch out for?