working as a nurse in Knoxville area? (Maryville, Farragut: 2009, house)

[nicholecvrn]

We are planning a move to the Knoxville area in the Summer 2009. I am an intensive care nurse currently working in a CVICU. I prefer a weekender schedule. Are there any recommendations for a smaller hospital where the staff members are relatively happy with their job? Any recommendations of where NOT to work? Thanks

[knoxmomma]

Knoxville has no shortage of openings in the healthcare field. I think all the hospitals are great. The only one that would give me pause is St. Mary's downtown (ie Broadway) as it is schedule to close in a few years once all of Mercy's mergers/construction are/is complete.

[knoxgarden]

The nurses I've met while getting treatment have all been wonderful and seem very happy with their jobs. There is a shortage in the area and hospitals are doing everything they can to keep them.
There are two major medical "factions" in Knoxville: Baptist/St. Mary's which merged recently and formed Mercy, and Covenant, which runs Parkwest and Ft. Sanders hospitals.
There is also UT Medical Center which is a Level 1 Trauma unit and a teaching hospital and a Children's Hospital.
St. Mary's and Baptist have older facilities near downtown but both have recently built state of the art hospital campuses. St. Mary's north of Knoxville in Powell and Baptist on the West side near Farragut.
You'll find on-line information for all the hospitals and info on hiring and jobs.
Nursing Opportunities
Covenant Health Employment Services - For Your Career
UT Medical Center - Nursing
As a patient, I'd put the care I've gotten in Knoxville at the top.

[TedTAce]

Originally Posted by nicholecvrn

We are planning a move to the Knoxville area in the Summer 2009. I am an intensive care nurse currently working in a CVICU. I prefer a weekender schedule. Are there any recommendations for a smaller hospital where the staff members are relatively happy with their job? Any recommendations of where NOT to work? Thanks

I hear good things about this one: Blount Memorial Hospital, Maryville, TN

Though I do have to say that the care I have received @ UT-MC was AMAZING.

[mjb62676]

Originally Posted by knoxmomma

Knoxville has no shortage of openings in the healthcare field. I think all the hospitals are great. The only one that would give me pause is St. Mary's downtown (ie Broadway) as it is schedule to close in a few years once all of Mercy's mergers/construction are/is complete.

True, however, they plan to replace that facility with the new one, so I wouldn't be overly concerned about job security.

To the OP, some smaller hospitals I've heard good things about are St. Mary's North, Blount Mem., Sevierville, etc...

If you got to either St. Mary's or Covenant's websites, they can lead you to some of their smaller hospitals in the region. Fort Sanders, ParkWest, St. Mary's DT, etc...are all fairly large as is UTKMC.

East TN is a place where the nurses seem very happy.

I'll be doing rotations at ETCH and within the St. Mary's system in the coming year and I'm really looking forward to it.

My wife is a nurse...nursing jobs and especially nights and weekends are NOT hard to come by.

[Beretta]

Originally Posted by nicholecvrn

We are planning a move to the Knoxville area in the Summer 2009. I am an intensive care nurse currently working in a CVICU. I prefer a weekender schedule. Are there any recommendations for a smaller hospital where the staff members are relatively happy with their job? Any recommendations of where NOT to work? Thanks

Do you want to stay in the CVICU setting?

[Knoxer]

The salary scale here in Knoxville is significantly lower than in major metropolitan areas. I think we are only higher than salaries in the deep south such as rural Mississippi, Georgia and Alabama. I moved here from Houston and am in Quality Improvement in nursing admin and the salary was about $10- 15,000 less per year. The cost of living is also less so it is all relevant.

I currently work at UTMCK and they are building a new heart hospital attached to the existing hospital, which I think will house a brand new CVICU area. Their "Heart, Lung, Vascular Institute" is top notch. They receive patients from all the rural areas in TN and surrounding states for CABG's and other procedures.

[relocatingnursingstudent]

Thanks for posting this! I'll be graduating in May and have been watching for info about nursing jobs at the Knox area hospitals.

Great responses everyone!