Why Does Everyone Hate Florida So Much??

lpnflorida, LPN · Dec 12, 2008

Our differentials are $3.oo /hr for anything between 3pm -7pm the nightshift gets $6.oo/hr differential.

New grad Rn start out around $22.oo I believe most salaries starting out in florida are negotiable for seasoned nurses.

Lstcats · Dec 12, 2008

I miss Flordia!! Raised in Philadelphia. Lived all over the country. Moved 50 times. I graduated from nursing school in Clearwater. Lived in Largo, Bellaire, Tarpon Springs (great Greek food), New Port Richey, Gainesville, Destin, Santa Rosa Beach. I did not work in Destin as the pay for an RN was $12 hr, same as CNA in Clearwater. I liked that I could go outside everyday, instead of spending winter indoors. Love the beaches, the fresh seafood. The only mean people I met were at my first job in a nursing home (Mean Nurses). I still email my Florida friends. Hope to move back to Florida in the future. Anne

:up:FINALLY...someone who does like ALL of FL. Wow, did you live in a lot of places. I have been to all of the above places in FL except for Destin, Gainesville and Santa Rosa. Largo was disappointing. I thought that I would move there but seems somewhat poverty stricken. When was the RN pay $12. That is obsurd unless you are talking about 15 years ago.

Yes, right now it is terriblee here in MA. Staying in doors tonight. A state of emergency has been declared from this morning d/t winter rain storm that brought down trees on homes and 1/2 million people w/out electricity. it is about 34 degrees right now and you sure don't want to be outside. It has rained for two days w/ flooded streets and really horrible weather. Might well as just had a hurricane.

As for friends in FL, I have already made some friends. I met a nurse that graduated from USF and she met me(didn't know me except from email...we belong to the same nsg. organization) picked me up at McDonald's and took me to see the school. I met a lot of students. I went to PHCC in NewPort Richey and met w/ some faculty who aagain did not know me except from emails and let me see the nursing division. She spent about an hour talking to me and showing me around. Again, another nice nurse. Then, I went to Advance for Nurses conference @ Tampa Conv. Center and wow were people so incredibly nice. I even had a recrutier call me to tell me about a teaching job at another facility that I may be good for and NOT her facility. Also, one of the speakers at the conference gave me the phone # of another nurse who lives in the area to collaborate. I have also stayed in touch w/ the speaker via email. So, I don't understand why people in FL think that people are not nice. I have never ever found that. FYI, what I just said about the Advance for Nurses job fair in FL would never go in MA. It is hard enough to even get the recruters to even call you for 'their' jobs. This has been my experience.

Lstcats · Dec 12, 2008

Our differentials are $3.oo /hr for anything between 3pm -7pm the nightshift gets $6.oo/hr differential.
New grad Rn start out around $22.oo I believe most salaries starting out in florida are negotiable for seasoned nurses.

Well, this is definitely encouraging as i keep hearing about the horrible low wages in FL. Where are you because I know that Ft. Lauderdale area pays the highest? And, travelers do very well. Do you know any other salaries except for hospital?

Lstcats · Dec 12, 2008

First off- Palmetto bugs are way bigger than regular cockroaches AND they fly. Secondly, we have a humidity problem ALL YEAR LONG, not just for 3 months. and the mosquitos, they are around as long as it's 60 and over which is pretty much all year-round.

Funny story! I was at Madeira Beach at a hotel and went swimming in the pool. When i got out I saw a cockroach in the pool. :eek:It was massive but I have been to Mexico and seen the same so it didn't bother me. I told the pool guy and he came over and picked it up and threw it in the rubbish. He said it was a "palmetto" bug. And, yes it had flown in the pool. Somehow, it didn't bother me. My aunt even had a cockroach problem in her kitchen and they were so tiny but that didn't bother me too much...just a little but I got used to it. Yes, the heat factor is an issue for me. I think I could get used to it. I loved it when I was there and it was 100% humidity but it was about 80-85 degrees. My skin and hair really loved the humidity. But, I am sure it is tough to take after awhile.

kmrmom42 · Dec 12, 2008

Put me in the category of people who like living in Florida. I only moved back to the Northeast after my kids had babies that I would have missed too much being so far away. I had an awesome job, wonderful friends, a beautiful home (that I could not have afforded up here) and SUNSHINE, BEACHES and MORE SUNSHINE!!

I would still be living there if I could have talked my kids into moving there!

neonatal3 · Dec 12, 2008

Hello all,

How very cool to read this mix of your comments about living and working as a nurse in Florida! I have long been wondering how it might be to relocate in Florida! In past years I have been on many wonderful family vacations to coastal cities in Florida. Long ago my husband and I seriously considered moving to Daytona Beach,Florida. And this past January I was seriously considering a pre-retirement plan of moving from my current location in Tennessee to Panama City Beach,Florida. Florida seems to "call to me". I even persuaded a fellow retirement aged nurse to ride in my car with me for a weekend "scouting" trip to explore living options and employment options in the Pananma City Beach area in January.

Hats off to those of you who are true explorers and have relocated to different cities! After my "scouting trip" to Panama City Beach, I realized that I cannot make myself move a long way from my current city where my dear son and his family are located. Good luck in all your nursing work adventures in Florida Land!

SunshineBaby · Dec 12, 2008

I will shout it from the rooftops that I extremely dislike FL. I can only speak on the area in which I live, Northwest Florida. I have lived many different places (military brat) and this has been my least favorite besides Wyoming.

First off I'll start with the pros:

Beaches

There, I'm done :chuckle

The cons are many. Something no one has mentioned, you cannot throw a rock without hitting a church in my area. Now that maybe a pro to some but not me. I find the people very judgmental and unaccepting of those with differing views. Just to give you an example, many churches here have their members stand on the street corners screaming Bible verses at you in a very aggressive manner. One day I was driving home from work and there was a church group with a sign that read "God HATES Gays." I cannot stand this close minded type of mentality!!

The area I live in is very poor and dilapidated. There is still alot of damage from Hurricane Ivan. Housing is expensive and the wages are low. I have a BSN. I worked at the major women and children's hospital here in town and I can tell you it was horrible. Nurses have to actually hide IV poles if they want one for their patients. You are not allowed to self schedule and will work every other weekend and EVERY holiday the first 2 years you work there PERIOD. 12 hour shifts would turn into 16 hours because you were so short staffed that you would have to leave all your charting and fluid changes till the end of shift. All this for the grand price of $17 an hour day shift. Oh and you get .60 extra for BSN. Really negligible when you look at how much your BSN cost.

I am now working as a school nurse. I :heartbeat my job but the pay still stinks. I work in a Title 1 school and you would not believe the poverty and abuse I am witness to. I can you tell I call DCF more than you can believe.

Food is expensive. $5 for a gallon of milk. Yet, I am paid less than 30K a year. There is not much room for advancement either. Gas right now is $1.58 gallon (YAY!). My electric bill runs around $200-260. Now, I am hot blooded and I find the FL heat intolerable so this would depend on your comfort. I have naturally curly hair and feel like every day is a bad hair day due to the humidity. God forbid, I straighten my hair one day :icon_roll

There is crime here despite what people like to tell you. Especially in certain parts of town. Such as where my school resides. Drugs are a problem and when I worked in the NICU, I had at least one drug baby a week:sniff:

All that being said, you may like FL. It's not for me and I will be moving as soon as my hubby graduates nursing school. Not sure where yet

Nurse Lulu · Dec 13, 2008

First off- Palmetto bugs are way bigger than regular cockroaches AND they fly. Secondly, we have a humidity problem ALL YEAR LONG, not just for 3 months. and the mosquitos, they are around as long as it's 60 and over which is pretty much all year-round.

YEAH BUT you still don't have near 6 months of winter some years, with temps and windchills in negative territory. I have been around several times where it snowed as late as may and as early as october. Gray skies 80% of the time, ice storms, and people who try to drive in ice/snow who definately shouldn't. We get the worst of both worlds. Hurricanes are horrible no doubt. The world doesn't shut down for ice storms and hail though and everyone still has to go to work. :crying2:

LPNWCC · Dec 13, 2008

I moved from Ohio to Florida about 12 years ago. (My husband's wishes to retire to Florida.) While he never knew it, I didn't want to leave my friends and family. However, I love living in Florida! Like any change, it took some getting used to, but it didn't take very long. If you are an outdoors person, Florida is wonderful. The overall atmosphere is much more laid back (nobody who lives here every wears panyhose unless you find a black tie event!) I do find that FLA is a love it or hate it state. I think people move to Florida and if they hate it, move back and complain. I have met VERY few native Floridians, most people being transplants (you'll get to recognize every accent). There are some annoyances (like every place you live) so be prepared. Snowbird season (about November to April) traffic can be trying (but nothing like big city traffic). The same goes for summer vacationing season. Qtip drivers can be scary. (Qtip driver's are the white haired little old ladies/men who all you can see when you follow them is there head barely above the sterring wheel.) Also, hopefully you like nursing the geriatric population. After all, Florida is "God's waiting room." Nursing salaries are MUCH less than the Northern states. When I started working in Florida, my salary was less than what I was making in Ohio THE DAY AFTER I GRADUATED NURSING SCHOOL. Now matter what people say, the cost of living is not any less than up north. The further south you live in Florida, the higher the population and the higher the salary; however, you need to be fluent in Spanish in order to work "down south" as the Latino population is far more prevelant than any other population - the announcements in Walmart are even made in Spanish vs. English! Car insurance is higher due to the vacationers. Keep in mind, even if you live "inland", check into how far "inland" you live as the closer you are to the ocean, the more impossible home owners insurance becomes. I live 90 minutes from the Gulf and 90 minutes from the Atlantic and my homeowners insurance is not bad at all. Those are the basic "cons" I have found. I hope this helped!

kmrmom42 · Dec 13, 2008

The world doesn't shut down for ice storms and hail though and everyone still has to go to work.

It is funny you say that. My first year in Florida there were four major hurricanes in a row. When the first one was starting to come into our area I was scheduled to work. As I was walking down the hall toward the nurses station I saw everyone's jaw start to drop. "What the heck are YOU doing here?" I said "I am scheduled to work" They were flabbergasted. It took me quite a while to understand that you don't go to work during a hurricane. The people who are there when it hits stay and the people who stay home come in afterward to let the ones who stayed go home.

Having driven through the most horrific of weather and driving conditions to get to work since I was 16 years old I did not understand that nurses were not expected to do that in FL! :chuckle

saarein · Dec 13, 2008

I have lived in Florida for 10 years and I still find it very hard to find redeeming virtues in this place called the Sunshine State!! I am a School Nurse and I can tell you that the school system here in central Florida leaves a lot to be desired. Don't get me wrong, the teachers that I have worked with are fantastic and they try very hard to teach these children, but the people you have spoken to who have lived here are very correct. I think I read in the paper the other day that Florida is 47th out of 50 in graduation percentage!!! When we first moved here our children were in college and wanted to come with us and they used to come home and tell us that the classes they were taking here were like review for them because they had learned this stuff in their high school. I live on the west coast and I have never seen so much poverty in my adult life. There are jobs here, but they do not pay very well and the cost of living is out of this world. It was like that before the economy went south. The summers are so unbearably hot and humid that you spend 90% of your time indoors and do not enjoy the beautiful sights that surround you. I'm originally from Indianapolis, IN and we used to come here every year for vacations and I had the same feeling you do; "oh, how I wish I lived here". Now I wish we could just move up to North Carolina or Tennessee so at least I could see some seasonal changes or at least experience climates that are other than "hot or hotter"!! But my husband loves it and has his business built up here and I know we will not be leaving, so I try not to think about it and go up north two to three times a year to get my fix of autumn and winter. :cool:

saarein · Dec 13, 2008

I think I can add one more thing to Sunshine Baby's Pro: Beaches & 5-6 months of cool weather. That still doesn't make up for the 6-7 months of sweltering heat and sweat constantly running down the back of your neck!