Travel assignments in Washington State?

NedRN · Oct 7, 2013

WA is mostly union so the pay will be better on staff.

melissa8321 · Oct 7, 2013

I am currently on assignment in Renton, Wa and have been here since July. Renton is about 10 miles south of Seattle and has a light rail that goes to downtown which is pretty cool. If you like to spend time in the city the light rail will definitely save you a ton of money parking downtown is crazy $30-$40 a day, the lightrail costs $2.75 each way :) I don't feel that the cost of living is that bad for the most part. Washington puts a pretty heavy tax on cigarettes and alcohol so if you're not big on either of those you shouldn't notice much of a difference, also the sales tax here is 9.5% because they do not have state income tax here. Housing is expensive if you are looking to buy a home but if you are renting the prices are pretty fair compared to most places I've been. As far as wages go, expect lower $30's/hr. As Ned as satated above most of the staff jobs here are union and they make on average more money. The hospital I am at now the staff makes mid $30's/hr and they do not pay anything for the benefits. There area is gorgeous especially in the summer....lots to do especially if you are into the outdoors. It does rain a lot the rest of the year and it is very cloudy and gloomy...don't let anyone tell you different lol it's Seattle and it rains lol. As far as the Seattle area goes....what I have noticed is that the more north you go the nicer the areas are and the further south you go the less nice the areas are especially in King County, other local cities that are super nice are: Federal Way, Puyallup, and Bellevue to name a few. I'm in Renton which is Boeing headquaters so it's kind of an airport town and lots of industry not a whole lot to do locally but like I said the light rail is close by so it's fairly cheap and easy to get downtown and nicer boardering cities are only abpout 20 minutes away. Hope this helps you out. Good Luck :)

neurogirl77 · Oct 7, 2013

Thanks for the reply! So housing isnt too bad then? Do you k now anything about the Tacoma area? I have heard that Puyallup is a great area. Im having such a hard time deciding between traveling at first or just trying to get a staff job and then find somewhere to live. Decisions..decisions :) Do you think that you will stay there even longer?

thenursemandy · Oct 7, 2013

Silverdale/Poulsbo area is beautiful, clean, very friendly people, somewhat expensive though.

Tacoma has cheaper housing, but I wouldn't go there. I've been through it many times and hated the traffic, rude people and the overall looks.

jks_05 · Oct 7, 2013

I've been in Tacoma since July on contract, and I'd recommend it if you're looking to just get to the area to start out with. I work at St. Joe's and the people there are literally the friendliest, most laid back group of people I have ever worked with. I was in the MS float pool, so I experienced every med-surg floor and I don't have anything bad to say about any of them.

At first I had a pretty bleak outlook of Tacoma because there's not as much to do here as Seattle, and the downtown and south of Tacoma areas are pretty rundown. However, I've since moved up to the North End and it's beautiful here. Safe, family neighborhoods, Point Defiance Park, Ruston Way, etc. The traffic is nonexistent, especially compared to Seattle. The only rudeness I've experienced has been with driving!

If you're definitely going to settle in the area, staff nursing would probably be better. Their union contracts are awesome! The pay is about the same either way.

I'm actually really sad about leaving here next month! I love this area!

CARCAM75 · Oct 7, 2013

Hi,

Are you at Valley Medical Center? I did an assignment there on LD in 2009. It is still my favorite assignment to date!! I stayed there 9mos, I loved Renton!

aandersonrn · Oct 8, 2013

I worked at two hospitals Centralia WA, it was just too small for my preferences my family and I took the provided housing the company put us in Olympia 20 minutes away. After that I went to Virginia Mason and loved it stayed 10 months. The state is great. My husband and son did not care for Seattle, just too crowded.

V-Neck T-Shirt · Oct 9, 2013

I lived and worked in Seattle for 9 months total. If you think you might want to live there, a travel assignment might be a way to check out the area with your housing paid for. Harborview Medical Center was a wonderful place to work as a traveler, and I loved living in Seattle!

melissa8321 · Oct 9, 2013

Hi,
Are you at Valley Medical Center? I did an assignment there on LD in 2009. It is still my favorite assignment to date!! I stayed there 9mos, I loved Renton!

I am at Valley Medical Center. It's been a great assignment, the staff has been awesome!!! I'm heading to Phoenix for the winter, but only because I hate rain lol. If it wasn't for the 8-9 months of rain I would never leave :)

neurogirl77 · Oct 9, 2013

I think that I am going to do it. Take the travel assignment to check out the area. I think that's honestly the best way to do it. However, isnt there some sort of policy that says that you can't take a staff position at a hospital that you traveled at? I heard this from another traveler. Is this true everywhere?

aandersonrn · Oct 9, 2013

I asked my recruiter about that she said that it depended on the company but that I was free to apply as long as I completed the assignment first. I had already worked for the company for over a year and that hospital for 10 months though.