mercedes7

Ok, I have to get my 2 cents in. Have lived in Fresno all my life. I disagree with the comment that the only safe areas are North of Herndon. Did everyone forget about Old Fig or Van Ness Extension. I happen to live in the 93711 zip and live in a wonderful neighborhood and feel relatively safe. However, having said that...I am well aware that there are some neighborhoods out there that even the police will not go in at night - at least not without a lot of back-up. I was a hospice nurse for 4 years and have been all over this town (day and night) - and honestly have never ran into a problem, but am aware that Fresno can be quite dangerous. Now the other issues - weather stinks... terribly hot in the summer and cold and foggy in the winter. Air quality is 2nd or 3rd worst in the NATION. We are known as the "asthma capital" due to the large percentage of the population that develop it. Really still a "hick town" with that sort of mentality. I'll be moving to San Diego the first part of December where crime may be bad in areas, but the weather is primo, the ocean is visible out my front window, the sky is actually blue instead of the gray/brown color of the central valley, and there is so much to do and see. For me it will be so refreshing to get out of Fresno! Good luck.

Thanks Sharon, that is very helpful. The commute is longer than I thought, but as I said, if it is only 3 days a week, then I can tolerate it. You mentioned the public transit - I have no problem with taking public transportation especially since I get the impression that you have to pay for parking at Grady. Is that true. How long would it take on Marta from Stone Mountain? Also, you said you work in Stone Mountain...is there potential work there? Do you also live in Stone Mountain? If you do, is it a nice place to live and work? Anything you have to share would be most helpful. I kinda like what I see when I look at real estate in Stone Mountain and it seems like a quaint little town. I have no problem with working at a county hospital as long as I feel safe. I am most concerned about finding a "safe" place to live especially since my older parents are going to be living with me and I want them to feel comfortable and safe.

Kimtab, Sounds like you don't recommend Grady??? Am I right? I realize it is a county hospital and therefore will be treating the poorest of the poor. Is that what I am hearing? Is it unsafe to work in the area? Is the commute from Say Stone Mountain or that general area (the east side) doable. It is so hard to get a feel from mapquest because the travel times seem reasonable. I would really like to hear the good and the bad. I will be taking a trip soon, so that I can get a better feel for the area, but I won't have a tremendous amt. of time, so I am trying to get an idea of where I want to focus before I go. If you aren't comfortable posting, maybe you could pm me. Thanks so much!

Hi Sharon, Thanks for responding to my post. I was actually thinking about working in the Grady system which I know is downtown. I was hoping that Stone Mountain or Douglasville wasn't too far of a commute especially if I am traveling at 6am or so.??? Am I wrong? I don't mind say a 30 - 40 minute commute especially if it is only 3 times/wk. Do you know anything about the Grady system??? Thanks in advance for any info.

Thanks Kimtab for your reply. That helps a lot. I have actually spent a lot of time with a map looking at the area. THANKS for the links to the hospitals - that really helps. My thought is to probably rent (temporarily)close to downtown and work there - I like the pediatric hospital there. I used mapquest to see how far some of the houses were. They said between 12-18 miles. Should I plan on 30 minutes travel time for that? The other thought I had was working in the wellstar system and living in Marrieta or the surrounding area. Do you know anything about Wellstar and is the traffic still pretty bad in those cities as well? Any thoughts would be appreciated...and thanks again for the resources!

Just wondering what the job market is for RN's in Atlanta. It looks like there are a lot of opportunities, but don't know where to start. Are there any Atlanta nurses out there who would be so kind as to pm me or post some info. I am specifically wondering about cost of living, nursing salaries, where to live and work, commute times, weather etc... I am from California so the cost of housing looks to be a dream compared to what I am used to, but often things are comparable. Are there a lot of opportunities to work say 3/4 time somewhere to obtain benefits, then work per diem or registry elsewhere? My areas of interest and experience are: General med/surg, pediatrics, home health and hospice case manager, and some management. I have also done some research. I would really appreciate any suggestions/comments. Thanks