Pros/Cons Driving/Parking Situations

[momandnurse]

I just moved to Canton. I am looking to work part time and have found some opportunities for contract work at Henry Ford or working at St. Joes. I am not completely happy with the way scheduling is done at St. Joes so I am not sure that I am going to work there. I am also considering U of M. Does anyone have an experience with driving from the suburbs to Henry Ford? What is the parking situation there? What about U of M parking? St. Joe's?

I am leaning towards contract work because I would rather try it out to see how it works before wasting their time and money with orientation.

Just seeking honest advice about what others would do if in my situation. (I am a little leary of driving so far to work because I have two young children, but it is only two days/week)

TIA

[momandnurse]

I am used to self scheduling and wonder if that is not a common practice here. I realize it may vary from unit to unit. I found that at St. Joe's (Ann Arbor) they don't self schedule in the NICU.

[utahliz]

.....

[momandnurse]

I just finished my BSN at U of M, and several years ago I lived in Canton. The parking situation at U of M is not great, to put it mildly. I paid for a student pass at a lot fairly close to the hospital and rode the shuttle bus. There are lots of shuttles, you shouldn't ever have to wait more than 5 mins. I don't know what the fees are for employees. You might try a drive out there just to check it out. I parked on the north side of Fuller across from the soccer fields, just to the east of the hospital. There's a pricier lot on the south side of Fuller, and then there's the parking garage.

You don't say what area you're interested in or what your experience is, but I can tell you that you see really interesting cases at U of M that you tend not to see at other places.

I can't speak to the self-scheduling issue, as I just finished school last week. :) I happened to like the atmosphere at St. Joe's and it's a pretty convenient drive from Canton. From Canton, you might also find Oakwood and St. Mary's in Livonia a reasonable drive. I can't comment on the environment at either.

Good luck to you!

Congratulations to you and thanks for the reply. My specialty is NICU and I am sure both NICUs are nice in Ann Arbor. I am just trying to figure out if parking is going to tie up just as much time as driving all the way to Henry Ford. KWIM?

Thanks for the info.

[annarborGUYRN]

Parking at UM is not bad at all for off shifts. Costs about $20 per month and is fairly close to the units. HFH was harder to park!

[UMichSCN07]

Another benefit to UM parking is the Blue level parking pass, which is a bit pricier than some of the other parking options, but you can park in ANY UM Blue lot in Ann Arbor, which can come in handy if you're coming into AA for shopping/business/dinner/etc., as there are Blue lots all over AA. A handy little tip I picked up from a friend who worked at UM as a cardiac cath tech.

Mike in Michigan