Questions for San Francisco-area Nurses!

MyAimIsTrue, BSN · Oct 26, 2016

I'm not a nurse yet, but I've lived in the Bay Area for 30 years, 17 of those in SF. As you know living in SF is pretty much unaffordable unless you have roommates. Oakland is awesome, but I would hate commuting to any hospital in SF from Oakland (none are on the BART line). But there are lots of great hospitals in the East Bay: Alta Bates/Summit (two campuses), several Kaisers, John Muir in Walnut Creek, and Children's in Oakland (which is now part of UCSF). I've heard Kaiser pays the best.

As I said, I'm not a nurse yet, but I think with 1-2 years of experience you would be marketable. It's the new grads who struggle to find a first job.

And union, yes, definitely. Why do you think Bay Area nurses have the highest pay in the nation (outside of Manhattan anyway)?

Good luck with your move--it's a fantastic place to live!

Pharaiah · Oct 27, 2016

Thanks for the wealth of information! I've got to check out those hospital recommendations and how the whole union thing works haha. I suppose I should consider going there through a travel agency initially and get a feel for the Bay before making the big move. I'm so excited haha

Wolf at the Door, BSN · Oct 30, 2016

2000 a month for 1/1 in San Fran? Like let me burst your bubble. Try 3400-3700. I won't even take a travel assignment in San Fran.

sarrahsparks · Oct 31, 2016

$2000 a month in the city of San Francisco is very unlikely unless you share a room with someone. However, the pay for nurses in SF is very high. You can also live nearby in places like Berkeley or Oakland and have a room for about $2000. Oakland is getting more expensive especially in certain areas, like Lake Merritt, prices here will be similar to SF. Pay varies but I have heard starting from $45-60 depending on the hospital, department, and experience. Experienced nurses vary but I have heard up to $75 from some specialties.

I would definitely get a job before moving, or if you can, try travel nursing. They make great money and then you do not need to pay housing. It is a great experience and you will be able to see what hospitals you like, what areas to live in, etc. Rent is too expensive to afford to move here and then find a job.

There are so many options for work. It sounds like you are asking specifically for SF but remember there is also south bay, east bay, and north bay. All options have many hospitals and all pay similarly.

As a nursing student in the area I don't really have any recommendations on hospitals. Pretty much every nurse I talk to has reasons for there being at their hospital. Many love Kaiser benefits and pay but many nurses I talked to at Kaiser will work an additional job so that they can do something they love as well. Kaiser benefits kick in if you work 3 8 hour shifts a week. I also know some nurses who prefer the county hospitals as they still pay well and have benefits but they feel as they take care of more people who need the services they provide.

Just FYI most hospitals in the bay do 8 hour shifts. Although this may not bother some people this is a serious negative for me as I strongly prefer 12s. This depends on hospital and department.

I can't say much about unions. I believe some places they are required. I haven't really heard any negatives for unions in nursing in the area. If there are negatives, they weren't big enough for the nurses to complain about it when I was there.

It sounds feasible that you can move here. It is mostly hard for new grads in the area. But I would definitely recommend getting a job first or doing travel nursing first to explore the area. As someone not originally from the area, I would definitely recommend scouting neighborhoods to live in (I was not able to do this before I moved).

MatthewSPeake · Nov 1, 2016

I guess I've arrived just a bit late to the rescue, sorry. San Francisco is home to a little bit of everything. Whether you're a first time visitor or a long-time local. This is the place to find out about all things San Francisco from tripadvisor or sftravel.com good Luck

Pharaiah · Nov 3, 2016

Thank you for the very in-depth answer you gave me! I have done extensive research and I think the best path is for me to go there through travel nursing. Good luck in school! It's well worth the work!

Pharaiah · Nov 3, 2016

I guess I've arrived just a bit late to the rescue, sorry. San Francisco is home to a little bit of everything. Whether you're a first time visitor or a long-time local. This is the place to find out about all things San Francisco from tripadvisor or sftravel.com good Luck

You're not late at all! I appreciate the advice! I will check those out as well.

BeenThere2012, ASN, RN · Dec 13, 2016

Thanks for the wealth of information! I've got to check out those hospital recommendations and how the whole union thing works haha. I suppose I should consider going there through a travel agency initially and get a feel for the Bay before making the big move. I'm so excited haha

Working as a travel nurse is a great opportunity to "job shop". If you own a car, you can easily enough commute to work from Oakland/Berkeley to SF and other locations in the East or South Bay. The North Bay is very expensive aka Marin County. And, if you end up working in SF or South of SF, the commute would be horrible because of the Golden Gate bridge which is very expensive and traffic is horrible...especially on the weekends with tourists. The problem comes in with parking while at work in SF. Surrounding areas to live shouldn't be that difficult to maintain a car, but in the city, it is difficult.

However, if you have a chance to live in SF proper, and are willing to pay the very high rent, UCSF is a great hospital and it is easy enough to get around the city without a car. I worked there for several years and those who currently work there, love it also. You will work hard, high acuity patients, and many rare conditions as people come from all over the world in some cases, to get treatment not available in other places. The neighborhood's surrounding UCSF are very expensive and parking is a nightmare all over the city. You have to love it to tolerate the high prices and congestion, but for many, they wouldn't want to live anywhere else. CPMC has decent hospitals as well. And there is always, Kaiser. Not the best experience for many travelers. The pay is great, and possibly as a permanent employee it may be better, but they are tough on Travel nurses.

As a travel nurse, your housing would be provided, as you know, and it is a great way to get a foot in the door and to meet others. The surrounding cities and towns are generally more reasonable. Having said that, Stanford would also be a great place to work. There are areas in the South Bay that are more relatively reasonable to afford also. You would only be about 30-45 minutes away from SF.

Good luck. I hope you have a great experience.

**NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN** · Dec 13, 2016

Expect to keep 60% of your check. If your married with kids you get to keep a little more. Traveling may be a little different because some isn't taxed.

Depending on where you work you usually don't want to love more than 15 miles away. All that depends on your shift and where you are traveling. My mom lives 17 miles from her job but her commute one way is 60 to 90 minutes. Many nursing jobs are only 8 hour shifts in that region.

dont move without a job already lined up and traveling is def the way to go.

BeenThere2012, ASN, RN · Dec 15, 2016

Expect to keep 60% of your check. If your married with kids you get to keep a little more. Traveling may be a little different because some isn't taxed.
Depending on where you work you usually don't want to love more than 15 miles away. All that depends on your shift and where you are traveling. My mom lives 17 miles from her job but her commute one way is 60 to 90 minutes. Many nursing jobs are only 8 hour shifts in that region.
dont move without a job already lined up and traveling is def the way to go.

As a traveler, a big portion of your pay is not

taxed. You are paid with housing, and salary. Or, you can take a stipend instead of the housing and your housing equivalent will be paid.

Last year as an experienced nurse, I was paid roughly $74 per hour, as I found my own housing. Also, since a lot of positions are 8 hr shifts, but as a traveler you will work 12 hr sifts, you get paid time and a half for the last 4 hours of each shift.

You need to crunch the numbers depending on the offers you receive. Some companies offer better pay or "extras". The longer you work with a particular company, the more they kick

in as bennefits and incentives for you. Upgraded furniture, not having to share a place, car rental stipend, bonus money, higher per diam rates etc...There are a variety of contract agreements. A good recruiter will explain this for you in an easy to understand manner. There are differences between the companies in terms of what is offered or not and all this can be translated into dollars. If an "extra" is offered that you don't need, sometimes you can bargain for cash equivalent instead.

Pharaiah · Dec 15, 2016

This is very informative! Thank you. If you don't mind me asking, which travel agencies would you recommend for a first timer?