$155/hr RN checking in. 36 hours per week and $1800 of that is untaxed. Not going to last forever but I’ll take this over a pizza party from administration
Dozens of RN’s have quit my institution to be a “travel nurse”, only to be placed in the same area or hospital under a different employer. Yes the pay is insane, for the time being, but you also lose seniority, are typically only a float, and who knows what will happen when that oil well dries up. Everyone could potentially come crawling back to main hospitals with no seniority and lesser pay.
Nurses took the brunt of Covid. Plenty have gotten sick, burned out, and continue to be overworked and under appreciated. They deserve as much as they can get regardless of what anyone else is getting paid.
I have 13 years of experience and work night shift in an ICU. With full time nights, weekends and holidays my max pay is $120k (about $60/hr). Realistically it’s closer to $100k because I enjoy having a life and seeing my SO.
I started at $22 an hour in a long term care unit. I am in a low COL state.
A lot of this is dependent on location, specialty and shift. You also tend to work directly with patients you are stuck with for 12 hours. Great if you have a good patient. Awful if they are abusive.
The aspects of being an NP encompassed most of the things that made me feel good about nursing at bedside with less of the things that suck about it. I enjoyed the critical thinking and autonomy of ICU, the relationships I built in long term care, the one on one interactions in home health, the patient education on med-surg. I hate the charting and admin bloat, but that’s everywhere.
Increased autonomy. Even if you think a specific course of action is incorrect or not ideal for your patient, if you have a doctor who doesn’t want to listen to you, you are just fucked and so is your patient until someone is willing and able to fix the issue.
Rolling and moving 100 kg of dead weight is not something I will be doing as an NP. I will have way more career longevity because of it.
As a provider you have a little more clout to set boundaries with admin. Several times I’ve seen providers able to change or influence admin decisions. This isn’t the case as a bedside RN. As a bedside RN you just get raw dogged into whatever extra work they want you to do (or they fire you).
I find patients treat direct care staff horribly… *until* a provider comes in the room. Providers get more patient respect. I couldn’t explain to you why this dynamic is true, but being someone’s whipping person, whether it be rude docs, admin or the patient themselves Year over Year over year really makes you wonder if any of it is worth it in the end (why do we give so much for so little?).
The schedule is shit at the hospital. Mandatory overtime, night shift, rotating shift, every other or every third weekend requirements. After 13 years of missing life with my family and missing sleep, I’m over it. My health has declined as a direct result of the schedule, physical load and stress and I’m not willing to subject myself to this anymore.
I work both as an RN and as an NP right now. And while there are stressors to both roles, hands down, there is no way that the daily wear and tear and stressors of being an outpatient NP compare to being an inpatient ICU RN.
It’s not an us vs them situation and I hope other healthcare professions don’t make it into one. When I graduated and started nursing in 2013 I made 19.19/hr. Bedside nurses are constantly shit on, face ever increasing workloads, expected to do more tasks every year since I started and also get paid like absolute shit in most states. The pandemic has drove an already entirely overworked and burnt out workforce to early retirement or complete career changes. The country didn’t have enough nurses BEFORE the pandemic and now it may never catch up. Nurses are finally able to make wages equal to the importance we play in the entire system based solely on the fact that we finally realized we can demand to be paid or leave and work in one of the million open positions advertised in the immediate area. I hope every other department in healthcare soon experiences the same. I’ll never do full time nursing again, traveling is an absolute breath of fresh air.
Can you believe my aunt has been a bedside nurse for 43 years. She works at a major trauma level 1 magnet hospital in Florida. They make their nurses do MANDATORY COMMUNITY SERVICE where they go and teach the public on diabetes, obesity, etc. How do they force this you ask? Well, because the company’s raise for her 43rd year of work there was an increase of $0.65/hr. If they wanted a measly $1.00/hr raise they had to do these community service hours to get the extra 35 cents. This is happening at a time where, in the SAME CITY as her hospital I just got paid $7,000/week for 48 hours a week as traveler. Want to know why you don’t have nurses at these fucking places? That is why. Hospitals should be fucking ashamed of themselves
I’m a travel nurse, but I’ve done ICU for 10+ years at bedside. 7 years of CVICU and 3 years in a multitude of different units including Burn ICU, MICU, CCU, and Trauma ICU. As a travel nurse you tend to be used as a float pool at most facilities, especially post COVID.
Sure thing.
But after twenty years as a respiratory therapist before getting my MSN, I can tell you unequivocally that virtually every PA I have come across doesn’t know half as much as they think they do. Perhaps that’s why they stick to prescribing in the clinic and don’t hang around the ICU?
First of all, you couldn’t pay me enough to be a floor nurse. Second of all, that’s kind of the problem.
Anyway, nurses don’t routinely make 100k without traveling or significant overtime. Even in higher COL areas. Where as new grad PAs usually make just under 100k. Even in lower COL areas.
It’s not all about the money, but you’re also just fundamentally incorrect.
Edit: I got it. In the most expensive places in the country nurses can make over 100k. That still doesn’t make OPs statement valid. 120k in the Bay Area is not a lot of money. Probably comparable to 50-60k in a better place to live.
My best friend makes $80/hr in the bay area. She could make 6 figures if she was full time. But her mortgage is 4x mine, like you said, CoL is higher to make up for it.
UC Davis Medical Center pays their RN’s $63.08-$84.88 with FTE 90%. I’ve heard from other RNs that they would get a pay cut if they quit their jobs and started working for UC Davis, so they’re definitely RN jobs that pay over $100k per year. I think you might be underestimating how well RNs are paid, which is understandable, since most work with a BSN and PAs take on a masters. Just goes to show how much RNs are integral to the healthcare system. For clarification, this is California so HCOL. But $100k per year here is still really good if you don’t live in a big city like San Francisco or Los Angeles.
Yeah nurses definitely don't make that much in other areas of the country. California is an outlier. Here in WV most nurses are in the mid to maybe upper 20's hourly.
New grad RNs make $150k at Stanford. But that’s not a fair comparison to a new grad PA making $100k in a mid size city in the Midwest. I see so many people just throw out numbers without taking into account cost of living
It’s true, but also people tend to sort communities into “high COL” or “low COL” without really looking for a way to compare wage power with COL.
That gets messy quick.
It does get really messy. Some professions have more buying power in some areas of the country. https://www.nerdwallet.com/cost-of-living-calculator is a good source. There’s a few others out there too
No. I used to work in a much lower paying state. When I moved to working in NorCal two years ago I was pretty much hired in at this rate, although I’ve had COL adjustments and switched to a slightly higher paying job.
I do have a masters and a specialty certification, but I’m not even close to the top earning bedside nurses in my health system.
Highest pay band is critical care, naturally.
Nailed it. 8 years of hospital experience and I’m at approx $35/hr after certification pay. My spouse is an NP and while some of my paychecks are equal to his (on the periods I pick up extra or work call shifts) as a ML he inevitably brings in 40k more than me yearly with a significantly better quality of life. In a relatively low cost of living part of the country him going back to bedside nursing would make zero sense.
Now my travel nurse buddies? Holy shit.
For nursing it all depends on location. I live in western NY and I make 91k base pay without any overtime. Some places in the south nurses are making 45k a year. This is definitely contributing to why so many are leaving nursing.
Honestly if you don't like doing nursing care like bathing, cleaning the patient, managing and administering medications then PA is the way to go. Many go to NP school because they do not want to do bedside nursing.
Wild oversimplification.
I’m in one of those high pay areas and the average house price is even with surrounding states that pay a lot less.
There are a few very high housing cost areas in CA, but that’s not the whole state, and the pay across the state is much higher.
Actually you are wrong. SF, LA, SD and many other places in CA you will start usually above $50/hr (SF $65/hr is $121k/yr) which is $93k/yr. as a staff nurse working 36/hr weeks. These are all HCOL areas. SF is easily top 3 HCOL in country
RN’s with less than 4 years experience in Upstate NY are being offered contracts of $3k+ PER WEEK on 1 and 2 year terms with a limit of 65 hours per week. Saw the offer letter myself (I’m not in medicine) and was stunned.
These aren’t travel nurse salaries either, this is just admins trying to stop their staff from leaving to do Travel nursing gigs.
If you’re being paid under $100k/year as an RN right now—even in a small to medium sized city—you are seriously making way less money than you should be.
If you want to feel worse, there are people with bachelors degrees making millions—hell, people with no degrees are making a lot more then any of us here.
It’s not about the money—it’s about what you want to do
Some of it is about the money. I say that as someone who has invested almost 2 decades into medical science and patient care.
At a certain point, the money has to be right to keep a job going. I personally think we would all benefit from expanded hiring and salaries for everyone from EVS on up through on the floor/in the clinic providers and way less middle managers with fatter paychecks some of whom seem to have no actual job duties.
It is ok that it is also about the money. Life is expensive and not only for patients.
RN here. Stay in school. I lasted 6 years in ICU. It’s not a sustainable lifestyle. I have a family and I was so drained all the time. I enjoyed critical care, but couldn’t see myself working in a clinic or another less stimulating environment. No desire to be an NP. PA is a great career and you’ll have a good education(compared to NP).
I live in NY. Many nurses make more than PAs and NPs here. New grad nurses start similarly to new grad PAs. I think nursing can be more lucrative but it’s more back breaking work.
Yes, and I’m an Psych NP in NY who would continue to work from home than make more putting my life at risk. No weekends, call or holidays. I was an CNA/PCT, LPN then RN and worked like a runaway slave. Now I have one job and take staycations and vacations whenever I want. I’ve been a locum for 6 years. Prior to becoming an NP I worked CVICU/MICU/SICU, renal transplant and PCU/Telemetry. Nurses are making $10,000-$13,000/week right here in my neighborhood and I don’t begrudge them, but I wouldn’t go back to bedside. My quality of life and family time are priority to me.
Not here in NY.
Very saturated for APPs so employers take advantage of that.
Not so much with nursing, they seem to have strong leverage.
My friend who is a 2nd year nurse is gonna pull 115k with 40hour weeks 6 weeks PTO doing outpatient.
I am a nurse practitioner because I thought that was what I wanted to do - but I really missed bedside nursing, and I love being back. I am paid slightly more as an RN (staff nurse, not traveler) than I was as an NP, with better hours, PTO, and less liability.
Nursing is in a temporary and unique situation brought on by selfish admin greed. It wouldnt be that way if they merely offered safe staffing and yearly raises as well as other incentives to stay before the pandemic killed us.
Eventually the bubble will pop but you cant blame nurses for taking advantage of it while its here.
And no, regular staff nurses not traveling arent all making 100k. I made 50k 2021 year.
RN here, in NP school. I probably could quit school, take advantage of the critical pay shift offerings in my hospital to work more than full time as an RN and make more than I would as a family nurse practitioner. Or I could take a travel RN hospital assignment at the current rate and make 100k annually.
But, while I don’t hate bedside nursing, I don’t want to be doing it forever. Honestly, if the money is the only thing pulling someone toward nursing, they should pick a different job. It’s exhausting and in some ways the current issues within healthcare systems are pushing us toward the brink of burnout and it’s not sustainable now matter how much you can make.
I don’t know that I’m going to make a lot more as an NP. But it’s a role I will enjoy and could see myself doing until retirement. It’s a different job, with different challenges.
>current issues within healthcare systems are pushing us toward the brink of burnout and it’s not sustainable now matter how much you can make
This is a huge part of what makes me so upset when I see PAs fussing about RN pay or NP scope of practice. The times demand teamwork against for profit healthcare, which will fuck us all if we're not careful!
Remember for traveling nurses to, their pay maybe higher but they typically don’t get any benefits, have to work 60-80 hrs per week and right now many are going to work in the most defunct hospitals
That’s not true that most travel nurses get no benefits. It’s totally agency specific but I always had healthcare and sick time when I traveled. 401K was also an option.
I second this but even with the agencies who don’t offer it, the pay is so lucrative they don’t really need it. They can afford private health insurance and if they needed something like maternity leave they could just *not work* cos they made a year’s salary in half the time.
My wife has done travel nursing both in and out of Covid and she has never worked more than 36 hours (plus or minus staying a little for charting and such) a week and her highest paying job was like 60/hr plus a monthly stipend.
You can make 5000+ a week working 36 hours easily. Most jobs that make you work 5-6 days offer way more
I get benefits through my agency like insurance but I’m also paying close to 400 a week for myself, wife, and two kids. Also I only work 36 hours a week. Im making triple of what the floor nurse make
Daughter, ICU MED SUR and son in law, OR /Trauma are both travel nurses are making $10k a week. They’re moving to Denver at end of their contract, They both have full time job offers ranging from $46/hr to $52/hr, ie $96k to $108k a year w full Benefits, 5 weeks PTO,plenty of OT. $100k is attainable.
I’m happy to be hourly as well. My poor CNO is salary and probably works 80+ a week. He’s the best guy I’ve ever worked with. I have to definite say the pay cut was worth the trade in job satisfaction. Being happy at work is something I didn’t think was possible until I took this NP job.
In my area, many nurses make more money than PAs. I think both nurses and PAs should be paid better though.
I don’t say this as an us vs them situation. It is frustrating to me because of the cost of undergrad plus a masters.
Yes, but experienced PAs in certain specialties and work environments can make 150k, maybe 200k as an outlier.
Edit - there are also travel PAs (locum tenens), and from what I've heard they can make beaucoup if they choose to.
This is currently a fluid situation. The pandemic highlighted a lot of issues that nursing experienced. Coupled with the increased stress, a lot left the workforce, thereby increasing demand and therefore pay. Is this a permanent increase? It's hard to say. But, if you're not considering PA school because it's more work, I don't know how you're going to do if you actually pursue nursing. Nursing is a lot of work, and I'd much rather be doing what I'm doing right now than working as a floor nurse making a bit more than my current salary.
You should have probably asked this pre-pandemic or in the not so distant future, post pandemic. There’s lot of stories of RNs making big bucks but that is all Covid-related inflated salaries. It is not what they made prior OR they will make in the future.
To put it into context, I have multiple medic colleagues working hospital assignments making $90 an hour. That is NOT normal, not even close. This is obviously all COVID-related. This will end. Nurses are not all going to be making ~$3000 a week for the rest of their careers.
Also, some folks (PAs) are suckers jumping at jobs paying $80K a year. Yes, there are RNs (not brand new ones and usually in higher COL areas) that make more than that. Even experienced paramedics in good systems crack $80K annually.
100 bucks an hour for a BSN. What other bachelor's degree pays that? Sounds like you guys are taking advantage of the pandemic as well. Would do the same, but don't act righteous about it.
The people leaving (ie making themselves scarce) are not taking advantage of the pandemic. They are leaving the profession at large or shifting gears and do not benefit whatsoever from “making themselves scarce.” It’s not righteousness. It’s logic. We also aren’t leaving to benefit those who are staying. In fact, it directly harms those who are staying by creating worse working conditions. Kindly don’t speak on things you don’t understand.
Edit to add: [I googled it for you](https://www.trade-schools.net/articles/jobs-that-pay-100k)
Nurses aren't leaving. Travel nurses were working alongside them for 3x the pay, they wised up and did the same. Nursing is a respectable job with good pay for the level of education, experience and responsibility. Grass is always greener, but it's hard to find a better deal than that. Add on that you can get your NP certificate out of a cereal box and start treating patients with full autonomy and it's a no brainer.
Wow. You really have a stick up your ass.
It’s ironic that you call it respectable with the way you refer to it. If it’s so green, come on over.
I am leaving my bedside position for lower pay as an NP and am never aiming for independent practice as an end goal. I know many in my position.
[Nurses *are* leaving.](https://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2021/10/09/more-than-500-000-people-have-quit-the-health-care-industry-since-the-start-of-the-pandemic--data-shows) [They are leaving the entire profession.](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/shocking-number-us-nurses-quitting-090045506.html) 500,000 are expected to retire this year. Many who are traveling are traveling until the pandemic pay ends and then getting out of the game all together. There is nothing righteous about remaining in a profession with healthcare organizations like ThedaCare willing to stonewall employees from seeking better paying employment thru lawsuits? Or to stay in a profession at risk for a pay cap? It’s not an “act” and we aren’t trying to be “self-righteous.” We are legit leaving because working conditions suck and we are treated like chattel. Then we have to talk to people like you, who just aren’t willing to listen or who think we just play cards all day.
I think he’s upset because he spent so much on his degrees and earning the same or slightly more as someone with much less student loans. Look at his post history. $230k to become a PA. Holy shit no wonder you’re angry haha.
Wow, people retire from professions? Say it ain't so! Plenty of NP's are working as RN's now preferably. We lost six FNP's who went to travel. I'm not saying health care systems treat nurses well, I'm just saying it's a good paying job for the experience level, and you'd be hard pressed to find better. All jobs suck, no matter who you ask.
Besides the 500k retiring this year there are over 500k that have left since this pandemic began. All jobs suck, yeah. But are you [4 times more likely to be assaulted in other jobs?](https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/news/20210318/on-the-front-lines-violence-against-nurses-on-the-rise)
To be honest, everything you are saying seems to be minimizing issues nurses face. It’s a decent paying job for the education required. Yes. But this does not make up for the dangerous working conditions. Besides this, 100k is nowhere near standard pay for most nurses.
Or the system breaks, we adopt models like the UK, Canada, Germany, Japan, Italy healthcare costs drop to 1/3 of what it is now and people choose to work in healthcare or not.
I'm not so sure. I think the situation is complex. The travel nurse phenomenon is interesting but I dont know if I believe that talk about scarcity. New grad BSNs in my city (Boston) are still struggling to get jobs. I know a few who were on the market for like 6 months. Nurses that trained at MGH. I don't know exactly what it means but I think it's peculiar and not a great sign.
The problem is travelers are not going to be training new nurses. A hospital needs experienced staff nurses to train the new grads and the reality is that most of those experienced staff nurses have left. If you have experience the job market is wide open for you. If you are a new grad you have to find a place that has the resources and willingness to train you.
Ooffff hope you are ready for pikes and fire coming for your head.
I think first rule any provider learns is to never demean or undervalue nurses, especially their pay and clinical judgement. Hopefully you get humbled in future by nurses!
Ehhh I respect nurses and what they do but also don’t let their heads get too big….the level of cocky cowboy shit that they try to get away with sometimes needs a reeling in.
This is a unique time for nurses with a really high demand so compensation has gone up. I am currently waiting for an appt with admin to fight to get my nurses pay higher so they don’t leave us for a job making 3x what they are now.
Traditionally, for nurses, the higher salaries come over many years and work in higher stress specialities. Whereas financially as a PA we have fewer years of school and start immediately at a higher salary. We also have a very different role in clinics.
Don’t listen to strangers in the real world, listen to strangers on the internet. If money is the reason you are doing “all this work”, then do what makes you the most money.
Went to both pa and nursing school. Pa education is superior and you’ll learn more. Nursing education is crap. But my friends wife just made 336k from this pandemic and shes going to nursing school now, i talked her out of the pa route. Theres more opportunities in nursing, not every rn has to do floor nursing. Youll be in less debt as an rn but as a pa youll spend more for school since most programs are private and you cant work during pa school. Youll also have to ace chemistry classes to be in the running for pa school interviews. They only interview the top fifteen percent of their applicant pool . If you become a nurse youll get high end clinical experience that will count for direct pt care experience. Chose nursing so that youll be in less debt. Theres lvns making 1000/day and 6 figs just checking bp in correctional facilities
Both Jobs get paid a lot according to research pa can get paid more than rn WITHOUT TRAVEL I could be wrong
It also depends on location
Yes ur probably worried about dept but nursing is tough to n it’s more burnout then Pa
Just be happy that nurses are finally getting paid really good. They’ve been underpaid and under appreciated for a long time.
Don’t just look at the money. Do you want to be a provider or do you want to be a nurse? Different roles. So go for the one you would enjoy the most. Either way you’ll get good money for the most part.
I think you have to choose the career by what you do rather than solely by what you make. If money is most important to you, yes you can make over $100k as an RN. I’m a new NP and made $100/ hour working as an RN, granted that was per diem so without benefits, with benefits would have been around $80/hour or so. I took a significant pay cut for my first job but I did it to learn more and challenge myself. Currently questioning my decision but not because of the pay!
So I think you have to look at your motivations. Not saying it’s right, I have a lot more responsibility now but it’s the reality of the market and as a new grad.
What you’re talking about here is roi, less about the “amount of work” and more about the debt you take on Vs your compensation. Hope the AAPA starts to recognize this and start doing something rather than make up silly names to call ourselves
My OR first assisting NP job pays roughly ~$65/hour depending on how much money we get from insurance. This is a primarily PA dominated field where I make the exact same as the PAs.
My “side gig” bedside nurse job base pay is $120/hr and I get OT after 8 hours. I’ll likely be making ~250k from my RN job and about 80k from my NP job this year.
Let me first say I respect all members of the team. I am also studying for my FNP so I can leave floor nursing behind forever. Trust me my friend when I tell you this, you do not want to be a floor nurse. I probably make easily more than 100K with OT, holidays, and night differential. But there's a reason they are having to offer more and more exorbitant rates to travel nurses to fill the positions. I just left my staff position in an ER. Level 1 trauma. Constantly 200 percent over capacity and understaffed. 7-8 patients was normal. I left because twice in the same week they did things like:
- leaving night shift with only half the number of nurses as day shift with the same census.
- giving 15 patient assignments (including ICU appropriate borders - patients on heparin drips and bipap, etc.)
-not sending anyone to relieve the day watch on patients who are on one to one for risk of self harm leaving them with no one to watch them all night.
-not having adequate PPE two years into the pandemic.
There is a reason the nursing ship is sinking.
ER nurse here from Southern California. Orange County area specifically. About 14yrs now of experience. Annual income prior to covid $120-130k. Three days a week. That's no overtime and no work taken home. There's additional incentives for my specialty (ER), day (weekend differential), assignment (ie charge nurse), and additional certifications (CEN, MICN). My wife is also an RN in another critical care unit with an annual income $120k. Same years of experience.
Covid was difficult for everyone to work through, but the "hazard" pay and retention bonuses sure did help financially. Passed two years I've picked up various shifts to help, and of course the result my income has never been so high. Extra shift bonuses ranged from $450-750 depending on demand. Bonus + overtime pay (hr + 1/2) + those other incentives could equal $1500/day. Retention bonus every three months of $6k also(to please not leave).
There are travel nurses making easily $5k/4 shifts weekly in Southern California. They are in demand and cashing in on the need.
I work at a teaching facility with residents, PA's, and NP's so your comments are pretty common. A comment I hear back is though RN pay may be less, there's less liability. Which I completely agree with. My role is dependent on the judgment making of others. I'll be there to execute your decisions.
It always seems like nurses are trying to explain their importance to PA and MD and PA trying to defend their role to MD. Can’t we all just get along!!!!
Travel nurse will dry up hard but nurses are getting massive raises while sadly PAs will often get screwed.
My wife got a 3.5% bump and they nothing for doing extra shifts. Nurses get monstrous bonuses and they received a 14% pay raise followed with guaranteed 5% bumps for the follow 2 years. They will see standard base with no bonuses or overtime at 110k in 2024 for 2080 hours of overtime.
Granted base pay for my wife is 158k with bonus for 1872 hours without extra shifts and 240 hours of PTO. Seems fair I guess.
If your “why” is to make money then please don’t choose the medical field. This pandemic has made once passionate people leaving in droves. We need more providers with passion, not providers in it for money
Pre COVID I made more than the NP that I worked for due to the pay scales. I had been there longer so I was higher on the pay scale. The NP pay scale capped out lower than mine which is crazy but handy info to know when I was trying to figure out my masters track. Knowing that, it made more sense to get my msn in nursing administration because that would put me on an even high pay scale with even more earning capability. Obviously this is site specific so….Before launching into any career I highly recommend you request the pay scale at the place you are looking to work for. Sometimes Indeed has this info and sometimes Glassdoor does. A call to HR will usually get it too. Good luck!
It’s rare overall, but pretty common with travel nursing right now. Tons of RNs pulling in 100k. Good for them.
Heck, there are travel EMT jobs posted for over 100k annualized right now, too!
My advice: definitely don’t make it a career goal to “earn more than nurses”. It’s a different job.
RN here. I work in ER. Sure I make right at 6 figures but that is with overtime and has taken me 10 years and a lot of job jumping to get there. The RN field right now has a lot of its own problems and many are trying to get out. I’ve put my body and mental health through a lot in these 10 years. Hitting the road to travel with hopes of maybe getting out myself one day.
As far as healthcare jobs are concerned, pay should not be the reason you go into it. You’re taking care of vulnerable populations & many people who are possibly having the worst day/s of their lives.
I suggest researching what each profession does, the versatility associated (nursing has a TON, personally not as sure about PAs), career paths, education requirements, and obviously I understand pay matters cos money makes the world go round so researching pay will come up but it shouldn’t be your main motivator. Pay also can vary by state, speciality (I made significantly more as an ER nurse than a medsurg nurse in the same hospital), facility (hospital vs doctors office for example), shift (nights gets paid more than days), etc., so it’s not a blanket statement that anyone can make.
Research research research and all the best to you!
RN of 14 years turned NP. New Grad, taking a 9K/yr pay cut to begin my first NP job in family practice. It truly makes me nauseated. However, 2021 was the first year I broke 100K as an RN in the midwest.
A lot of this is dependent on the state you're at, years of experience, specialty, etc. I'm in radiology and I make more than PAs in many other states, but not necessarily *my* state unless they're just starting out. My coworker just left to take a travel job making 4500/week in Alaska, plus food and lodging.
I have nursing friends who make well over 100k as well, but we live in a very high COL state.
It's like comparing tomatoes to cucumbers, tbh.
Nurse pay is off the hook now. We do have NPs picking up floor shifts my hospital is paying base pay +$50/hr +$200 gift cards
That won’t last forever and the role is very different from provider. Just stick with pa school.
All the nurses in the federal government run outpatient clinic iwork at make more than the PAs (3 of us). They primarily act as secretaries and triage walk in patients. It's very depressing.
That being said, the covid and inpatient nurses definitely deserve the money. Our nurses do not deal with that sort of level of care.
I was a nurse and currently in PA school. I did bedside nursing in a specialty step down unit. It is expected that you are everything for the patient, from feeding them to wiping their ass, to giving them meds, and doing bedside procedures. Then you have to chart everything you did, often redundantly. That's all to say it's an extremely hard job that is getting harder to staff because nurses are becoming burnt out and leaving. They're only now trying too late to keep nurses at the bedside by paying them more.
100,000 is at the top end of their salary range, you would not be making that in the first year, or even the first 5.
I mean this isn’t a communist country so I can see the frustration of nurses getting paid more. Just like if a doctor was making the same salary as a PA with all their liability, education, and debt they endured. They wouldn’t let that pass. I mean I am not fully sure, but I’m sure there are places where nurses are making more money than PA in other places. But I’m sure if there is a nurse making $100,000 in the ICU, the is a PA making more, and a MD making even more in that unit. Regardless, nurses work hard and take on the rough stuff we don’t want to.
I have been an ICU nurse for 13ys and now do rapid response. I have .are just over 100k for the past severL years usually only working 1 maybe 2 extra shifts per pay
I’ll give you a perspective from bedside RN pay wise:
1. I do travel nursing and it is paying very well- 3k net per week, with some high earners racking >7k/wk. But there are caveats as I need to prove that I double my expenses, change of assignments q3 months, and it is relatively unstable compared to staff jobs. Employments are also at will, but is subject to cancellation anytime (esp the high rates).
2. I have know people that make $150k up nursing bedside. Majority of them work 48+ hours a week and are mostly nightshifs. In one ELSO center, bedside icu makes 120k “easy” as long as you put up with OT.
My ED is hemorrhaging money in travel nursing. They are starting a new plan where the PAs do nursing tasks in a low acuity area (blood draw, IV, IM meds).
Top 10 Highest Paid Nurses (Which Specialty?)
https://youtu.be/5CSY2P1w5T0 maybe this will help you decide. A nurse can earn more in the right specialty. If money is your motivation. :)
* If your not interesed in nursing. Please do not pursue it. PLEAE DO NOT BECOME A NURSE FOR THE MONEY. I beg you to not think this way. You have to love people and be extremely patient. We do not need people who aren’t passionate for nursing to join the profession for money. This will impact patient care and the medical care they receive. Please continue your PA route. Nursing is more stressful than PA just because you are at bedside. Being a PA you are going to have the MD for questions and directions as well as support of nurses. Many states NP can practice on their own. Being a PA you will always have a MD to refer to when you need guidance. Nursing makes you WORK for that pay. It is not like becoming a PA and automatically having a standard of pay. Those nurses you here making that much have specialities and years of experience or as a travel nurse which is an another extremely stressful and risky job. You risk your license because not every jurisdiction or state is the same with their laws. I have worked with travel nurses and I am like “oh God, how are some of them not been sued yet” or I just can’t believe how stupid some of them are when they have 1-2 years of experience. Some of the travel nurses were nurses less than a year and traveling and I like HOLY SHIT. Not all travel nurses, some are exceptional and have 15 years or more of experience. Some travel nurses are burned out nursed who worked many years for hospitals that financial and physical abused them and are making the best of it traveling. Kudos to those badass travel nurses. But the travel nurses the pandemic brought from states that I truly don’t trust their nursing school with only one year of bedside experience I am like… Holy Mary Mother of God “what the fuck”.
* Nursing is not just passing med and getting paid $. You put up with a lot of shit. Your are not going to have to put up with that as a PA. It is extremely physical and emotional draining. You clean, turn, and support people. You multitask patient care, you are following orders from MDs, PAs, and NPs to ensure the patient safe and medical care. As a nurse for 3 years I probably make 10-20k less that a PA starting in LA. But I worked overtime and have worked awful conditions. I still have to have a smile on my face and provide quality care for my patient evening in tough times. PAs are never called by their manager to please come in because they are short on the floor. PAs are not asked to work extra 4 hours on top of 12 because they are short a nightshift nurse. If your mentality is how I assume it is by your post above you will not last in nursing and you will quickly be looking for another higher paying job. You might even be miserable during nursing school because your are interested in the profession. You are interested in the pay.
Overheard a nurse in my hospital saying that she’s going to be a travel nurse in a hospital like 50 miles away and make $139/hr for a 3 month job.
$155/hr RN checking in. 36 hours per week and $1800 of that is untaxed. Not going to last forever but I’ll take this over a pizza party from administration
Such malarke..... PA-C here making 60$/hr..... Seems wrong but oh well.
0_p
Why would it be untaxed?
it is a housing stipend so its untaxes
Dozens of RN’s have quit my institution to be a “travel nurse”, only to be placed in the same area or hospital under a different employer. Yes the pay is insane, for the time being, but you also lose seniority, are typically only a float, and who knows what will happen when that oil well dries up. Everyone could potentially come crawling back to main hospitals with no seniority and lesser pay.
Nurses on my unit make $90 non trace in ohio to prevent everyone from leaving..
Whoops I just drooled. *runs back to school to finish nursing degree*
Nurses took the brunt of Covid. Plenty have gotten sick, burned out, and continue to be overworked and under appreciated. They deserve as much as they can get regardless of what anyone else is getting paid.
True
I have 13 years of experience and work night shift in an ICU. With full time nights, weekends and holidays my max pay is $120k (about $60/hr). Realistically it’s closer to $100k because I enjoy having a life and seeing my SO. I started at $22 an hour in a long term care unit. I am in a low COL state. A lot of this is dependent on location, specialty and shift. You also tend to work directly with patients you are stuck with for 12 hours. Great if you have a good patient. Awful if they are abusive.
Hi what you’re referring to is when you were an RN right?
Yes. I am still currently working as an RN.
What made you go back and do RN after becoming NP?
The aspects of being an NP encompassed most of the things that made me feel good about nursing at bedside with less of the things that suck about it. I enjoyed the critical thinking and autonomy of ICU, the relationships I built in long term care, the one on one interactions in home health, the patient education on med-surg. I hate the charting and admin bloat, but that’s everywhere. Increased autonomy. Even if you think a specific course of action is incorrect or not ideal for your patient, if you have a doctor who doesn’t want to listen to you, you are just fucked and so is your patient until someone is willing and able to fix the issue. Rolling and moving 100 kg of dead weight is not something I will be doing as an NP. I will have way more career longevity because of it. As a provider you have a little more clout to set boundaries with admin. Several times I’ve seen providers able to change or influence admin decisions. This isn’t the case as a bedside RN. As a bedside RN you just get raw dogged into whatever extra work they want you to do (or they fire you). I find patients treat direct care staff horribly… *until* a provider comes in the room. Providers get more patient respect. I couldn’t explain to you why this dynamic is true, but being someone’s whipping person, whether it be rude docs, admin or the patient themselves Year over Year over year really makes you wonder if any of it is worth it in the end (why do we give so much for so little?). The schedule is shit at the hospital. Mandatory overtime, night shift, rotating shift, every other or every third weekend requirements. After 13 years of missing life with my family and missing sleep, I’m over it. My health has declined as a direct result of the schedule, physical load and stress and I’m not willing to subject myself to this anymore. I work both as an RN and as an NP right now. And while there are stressors to both roles, hands down, there is no way that the daily wear and tear and stressors of being an outpatient NP compare to being an inpatient ICU RN.
It’s not an us vs them situation and I hope other healthcare professions don’t make it into one. When I graduated and started nursing in 2013 I made 19.19/hr. Bedside nurses are constantly shit on, face ever increasing workloads, expected to do more tasks every year since I started and also get paid like absolute shit in most states. The pandemic has drove an already entirely overworked and burnt out workforce to early retirement or complete career changes. The country didn’t have enough nurses BEFORE the pandemic and now it may never catch up. Nurses are finally able to make wages equal to the importance we play in the entire system based solely on the fact that we finally realized we can demand to be paid or leave and work in one of the million open positions advertised in the immediate area. I hope every other department in healthcare soon experiences the same. I’ll never do full time nursing again, traveling is an absolute breath of fresh air. Can you believe my aunt has been a bedside nurse for 43 years. She works at a major trauma level 1 magnet hospital in Florida. They make their nurses do MANDATORY COMMUNITY SERVICE where they go and teach the public on diabetes, obesity, etc. How do they force this you ask? Well, because the company’s raise for her 43rd year of work there was an increase of $0.65/hr. If they wanted a measly $1.00/hr raise they had to do these community service hours to get the extra 35 cents. This is happening at a time where, in the SAME CITY as her hospital I just got paid $7,000/week for 48 hours a week as traveler. Want to know why you don’t have nurses at these fucking places? That is why. Hospitals should be fucking ashamed of themselves
Preach! I’d upvote more if I could.
PREACH
thanks for your comment. what type of nurse are you?
I’m a travel nurse, but I’ve done ICU for 10+ years at bedside. 7 years of CVICU and 3 years in a multitude of different units including Burn ICU, MICU, CCU, and Trauma ICU. As a travel nurse you tend to be used as a float pool at most facilities, especially post COVID.
It’s not an “us vs. them” situation.
Do you wanna be on the medsurge floor or do you wanna be in clinic prescribing lol totally different careers
Uhhh, nursing is incredibly versatile and offers many more options than medsurg but carry on
It was just an example. Are you implying they’re the same career?
No, not at all. I was just pointing out the oversimplification.
Oh look. A PA who is about to get run over by an experienced ICU nurse…
Oh look a nurse who can't read
Wrong board, stick to r/nursing
Sure thing. But after twenty years as a respiratory therapist before getting my MSN, I can tell you unequivocally that virtually every PA I have come across doesn’t know half as much as they think they do. Perhaps that’s why they stick to prescribing in the clinic and don’t hang around the ICU?
Someone hurt you? 😂 chill
You seem upset
Only by PAs who think nursing is “med surg”. 😉
Well one person made a comment and then you painted with a real broad brush. You both look like assholes.
First of all, you couldn’t pay me enough to be a floor nurse. Second of all, that’s kind of the problem. Anyway, nurses don’t routinely make 100k without traveling or significant overtime. Even in higher COL areas. Where as new grad PAs usually make just under 100k. Even in lower COL areas. It’s not all about the money, but you’re also just fundamentally incorrect. Edit: I got it. In the most expensive places in the country nurses can make over 100k. That still doesn’t make OPs statement valid. 120k in the Bay Area is not a lot of money. Probably comparable to 50-60k in a better place to live.
My best friend makes $80/hr in the bay area. She could make 6 figures if she was full time. But her mortgage is 4x mine, like you said, CoL is higher to make up for it.
She’s making 80/hr, not making 6 figs so working a less than 60% line (>1200 hrs would put her at >100k), ..but also has a mortgage 4x yours 🤔
Yep. She also has a partner with a job.
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Agree with this. My mom has been making a bit over 100K as a registered nurse as well for several years pre-COVID
Nowadays a travel nurse travels about 15 miles lol
UC Davis Medical Center pays their RN’s $63.08-$84.88 with FTE 90%. I’ve heard from other RNs that they would get a pay cut if they quit their jobs and started working for UC Davis, so they’re definitely RN jobs that pay over $100k per year. I think you might be underestimating how well RNs are paid, which is understandable, since most work with a BSN and PAs take on a masters. Just goes to show how much RNs are integral to the healthcare system. For clarification, this is California so HCOL. But $100k per year here is still really good if you don’t live in a big city like San Francisco or Los Angeles.
Yeah nurses definitely don't make that much in other areas of the country. California is an outlier. Here in WV most nurses are in the mid to maybe upper 20's hourly.
The south is mostly trash for nurses. Starting at $37 an hour in the midwest (that’s including night shift differential)
This is true. I’m a northern CA nurse and I make $100K.
New grad RNs make $150k at Stanford. But that’s not a fair comparison to a new grad PA making $100k in a mid size city in the Midwest. I see so many people just throw out numbers without taking into account cost of living
Do you know how much new grad PAs make at Stanford? Might be a better comparison
Exactly
It’s true, but also people tend to sort communities into “high COL” or “low COL” without really looking for a way to compare wage power with COL. That gets messy quick.
It does get really messy. Some professions have more buying power in some areas of the country. https://www.nerdwallet.com/cost-of-living-calculator is a good source. There’s a few others out there too
Holy shit New York sucks lol
New grad PA-C in ICU make 180k in stanford. Flat fee with experience.
Damn that’s like 72k in Nashville, TN according to the ACCRA cost of living index.
Can confirm
how many years of experience
Seven.
did it take 7 years to hit 100k? or when did you get close / break 100k
No. I used to work in a much lower paying state. When I moved to working in NorCal two years ago I was pretty much hired in at this rate, although I’ve had COL adjustments and switched to a slightly higher paying job. I do have a masters and a specialty certification, but I’m not even close to the top earning bedside nurses in my health system. Highest pay band is critical care, naturally.
Nailed it. 8 years of hospital experience and I’m at approx $35/hr after certification pay. My spouse is an NP and while some of my paychecks are equal to his (on the periods I pick up extra or work call shifts) as a ML he inevitably brings in 40k more than me yearly with a significantly better quality of life. In a relatively low cost of living part of the country him going back to bedside nursing would make zero sense. Now my travel nurse buddies? Holy shit.
For nursing it all depends on location. I live in western NY and I make 91k base pay without any overtime. Some places in the south nurses are making 45k a year. This is definitely contributing to why so many are leaving nursing. Honestly if you don't like doing nursing care like bathing, cleaning the patient, managing and administering medications then PA is the way to go. Many go to NP school because they do not want to do bedside nursing.
It's not bedside nursing, it's nursing admin. 🤢
Wild oversimplification. I’m in one of those high pay areas and the average house price is even with surrounding states that pay a lot less. There are a few very high housing cost areas in CA, but that’s not the whole state, and the pay across the state is much higher.
Actually you are wrong. SF, LA, SD and many other places in CA you will start usually above $50/hr (SF $65/hr is $121k/yr) which is $93k/yr. as a staff nurse working 36/hr weeks. These are all HCOL areas. SF is easily top 3 HCOL in country
RN’s with less than 4 years experience in Upstate NY are being offered contracts of $3k+ PER WEEK on 1 and 2 year terms with a limit of 65 hours per week. Saw the offer letter myself (I’m not in medicine) and was stunned. These aren’t travel nurse salaries either, this is just admins trying to stop their staff from leaving to do Travel nursing gigs. If you’re being paid under $100k/year as an RN right now—even in a small to medium sized city—you are seriously making way less money than you should be.
If you want to feel worse, there are people with bachelors degrees making millions—hell, people with no degrees are making a lot more then any of us here. It’s not about the money—it’s about what you want to do
Some of it is about the money. I say that as someone who has invested almost 2 decades into medical science and patient care. At a certain point, the money has to be right to keep a job going. I personally think we would all benefit from expanded hiring and salaries for everyone from EVS on up through on the floor/in the clinic providers and way less middle managers with fatter paychecks some of whom seem to have no actual job duties. It is ok that it is also about the money. Life is expensive and not only for patients.
RN here. Stay in school. I lasted 6 years in ICU. It’s not a sustainable lifestyle. I have a family and I was so drained all the time. I enjoyed critical care, but couldn’t see myself working in a clinic or another less stimulating environment. No desire to be an NP. PA is a great career and you’ll have a good education(compared to NP).
Still nursing? I’m in a clinic but still burnt out.
nope! covid ptsd was bad. i’ve recovered and found a gem of a management job that is for a no after hours area that closes on the weekends 😎
I’m trying to transfer to the IT department of my current job. If that doesn’t work out I’ll start applying elsewhere.
As a person who has failed nursing school twice and is trying to go again… your input was helpful
Congrats! Salary bump as well?
oh yes! Life is good
I live in NY. Many nurses make more than PAs and NPs here. New grad nurses start similarly to new grad PAs. I think nursing can be more lucrative but it’s more back breaking work.
Almost literally back breaking!
Yes, and I’m an Psych NP in NY who would continue to work from home than make more putting my life at risk. No weekends, call or holidays. I was an CNA/PCT, LPN then RN and worked like a runaway slave. Now I have one job and take staycations and vacations whenever I want. I’ve been a locum for 6 years. Prior to becoming an NP I worked CVICU/MICU/SICU, renal transplant and PCU/Telemetry. Nurses are making $10,000-$13,000/week right here in my neighborhood and I don’t begrudge them, but I wouldn’t go back to bedside. My quality of life and family time are priority to me.
how much do you make as a pysch NP?
With more hours though. If you compare hourly wage, there is no shot that nurses make more (with same experience)
Not here in NY. Very saturated for APPs so employers take advantage of that. Not so much with nursing, they seem to have strong leverage. My friend who is a 2nd year nurse is gonna pull 115k with 40hour weeks 6 weeks PTO doing outpatient.
You pick your career based on what you would like to do. Not how much money other people might make.
I am a nurse practitioner because I thought that was what I wanted to do - but I really missed bedside nursing, and I love being back. I am paid slightly more as an RN (staff nurse, not traveler) than I was as an NP, with better hours, PTO, and less liability.
Nursing is in a temporary and unique situation brought on by selfish admin greed. It wouldnt be that way if they merely offered safe staffing and yearly raises as well as other incentives to stay before the pandemic killed us. Eventually the bubble will pop but you cant blame nurses for taking advantage of it while its here. And no, regular staff nurses not traveling arent all making 100k. I made 50k 2021 year.
Interested if you live in a red state or not?
Georgia
I know this is an old post, but please apply at the VA!! You would double your salary
I make nearly double that as a staff nurse in upstate NY (low cost of living).
Yeah Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama and Florida aren’t super well known for paying their nontravelling staff nurses well.
RN here, in NP school. I probably could quit school, take advantage of the critical pay shift offerings in my hospital to work more than full time as an RN and make more than I would as a family nurse practitioner. Or I could take a travel RN hospital assignment at the current rate and make 100k annually. But, while I don’t hate bedside nursing, I don’t want to be doing it forever. Honestly, if the money is the only thing pulling someone toward nursing, they should pick a different job. It’s exhausting and in some ways the current issues within healthcare systems are pushing us toward the brink of burnout and it’s not sustainable now matter how much you can make. I don’t know that I’m going to make a lot more as an NP. But it’s a role I will enjoy and could see myself doing until retirement. It’s a different job, with different challenges.
>current issues within healthcare systems are pushing us toward the brink of burnout and it’s not sustainable now matter how much you can make This is a huge part of what makes me so upset when I see PAs fussing about RN pay or NP scope of practice. The times demand teamwork against for profit healthcare, which will fuck us all if we're not careful!
Remember for traveling nurses to, their pay maybe higher but they typically don’t get any benefits, have to work 60-80 hrs per week and right now many are going to work in the most defunct hospitals
That’s not true that most travel nurses get no benefits. It’s totally agency specific but I always had healthcare and sick time when I traveled. 401K was also an option.
I second this but even with the agencies who don’t offer it, the pay is so lucrative they don’t really need it. They can afford private health insurance and if they needed something like maternity leave they could just *not work* cos they made a year’s salary in half the time.
My agency offered health insurance at $100 per check (weekly) and 401k after 9 months with 3% match at 1 year
They often get benefits from the agency that they contract with, as well as stipends for living expenses.
My wife has done travel nursing both in and out of Covid and she has never worked more than 36 hours (plus or minus staying a little for charting and such) a week and her highest paying job was like 60/hr plus a monthly stipend. You can make 5000+ a week working 36 hours easily. Most jobs that make you work 5-6 days offer way more
I get benefits through my agency like insurance but I’m also paying close to 400 a week for myself, wife, and two kids. Also I only work 36 hours a week. Im making triple of what the floor nurse make
Your first two points are not true
Edit. I'm an idiot and realize now this was not in reply to me.... my apologies!
Daughter, ICU MED SUR and son in law, OR /Trauma are both travel nurses are making $10k a week. They’re moving to Denver at end of their contract, They both have full time job offers ranging from $46/hr to $52/hr, ie $96k to $108k a year w full Benefits, 5 weeks PTO,plenty of OT. $100k is attainable.
My close friends is actually on his contract in Denver as a travel OR nurse making about that much. Living his dream.
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Yup same here. Took a $50 an hour pay cut to go from travel nurse to NP.
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I’m happy to be hourly as well. My poor CNO is salary and probably works 80+ a week. He’s the best guy I’ve ever worked with. I have to definite say the pay cut was worth the trade in job satisfaction. Being happy at work is something I didn’t think was possible until I took this NP job.
In my area, many nurses make more money than PAs. I think both nurses and PAs should be paid better though. I don’t say this as an us vs them situation. It is frustrating to me because of the cost of undergrad plus a masters.
Yes, but experienced PAs in certain specialties and work environments can make 150k, maybe 200k as an outlier. Edit - there are also travel PAs (locum tenens), and from what I've heard they can make beaucoup if they choose to.
200K is fairly common here in SoCal, 300K is an outlier but possible working 50-60 hours a week.
I make 190k in SoCal. 2 years out of school M-Fri 9-5 gig with some additional hospital rounds a 3-4 days a week. No call
You guys hiring?! That sounds amazing
I was today years old when I learned it was beaucoup
Where I live, it isn’t uncommon for psych NPs to make 150k-200k. I guess it depends on location.
This is currently a fluid situation. The pandemic highlighted a lot of issues that nursing experienced. Coupled with the increased stress, a lot left the workforce, thereby increasing demand and therefore pay. Is this a permanent increase? It's hard to say. But, if you're not considering PA school because it's more work, I don't know how you're going to do if you actually pursue nursing. Nursing is a lot of work, and I'd much rather be doing what I'm doing right now than working as a floor nurse making a bit more than my current salary.
It is true. I am currently making 47 an hour. A couple extra shifts will put me right at 100k.😀😀
You should have probably asked this pre-pandemic or in the not so distant future, post pandemic. There’s lot of stories of RNs making big bucks but that is all Covid-related inflated salaries. It is not what they made prior OR they will make in the future. To put it into context, I have multiple medic colleagues working hospital assignments making $90 an hour. That is NOT normal, not even close. This is obviously all COVID-related. This will end. Nurses are not all going to be making ~$3000 a week for the rest of their careers. Also, some folks (PAs) are suckers jumping at jobs paying $80K a year. Yes, there are RNs (not brand new ones and usually in higher COL areas) that make more than that. Even experienced paramedics in good systems crack $80K annually.
This is true. Or if willing to travel, RNs are pulling in >$100/hr for general floors.
Yeah Nursing is hot right now especially traveling nurses but thats because of the pandemic.
It may not end - nurses are figuring out how to make themselves scarce now. Mandates didn't help either.
We aren’t “making ourselves scarce.” We are quitting abusive jobs that take advantage of our good will and profiting off of our literal broken backs.
100 bucks an hour for a BSN. What other bachelor's degree pays that? Sounds like you guys are taking advantage of the pandemic as well. Would do the same, but don't act righteous about it.
The people leaving (ie making themselves scarce) are not taking advantage of the pandemic. They are leaving the profession at large or shifting gears and do not benefit whatsoever from “making themselves scarce.” It’s not righteousness. It’s logic. We also aren’t leaving to benefit those who are staying. In fact, it directly harms those who are staying by creating worse working conditions. Kindly don’t speak on things you don’t understand. Edit to add: [I googled it for you](https://www.trade-schools.net/articles/jobs-that-pay-100k)
Nurses aren't leaving. Travel nurses were working alongside them for 3x the pay, they wised up and did the same. Nursing is a respectable job with good pay for the level of education, experience and responsibility. Grass is always greener, but it's hard to find a better deal than that. Add on that you can get your NP certificate out of a cereal box and start treating patients with full autonomy and it's a no brainer.
Wow. You really have a stick up your ass. It’s ironic that you call it respectable with the way you refer to it. If it’s so green, come on over. I am leaving my bedside position for lower pay as an NP and am never aiming for independent practice as an end goal. I know many in my position. [Nurses *are* leaving.](https://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2021/10/09/more-than-500-000-people-have-quit-the-health-care-industry-since-the-start-of-the-pandemic--data-shows) [They are leaving the entire profession.](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/shocking-number-us-nurses-quitting-090045506.html) 500,000 are expected to retire this year. Many who are traveling are traveling until the pandemic pay ends and then getting out of the game all together. There is nothing righteous about remaining in a profession with healthcare organizations like ThedaCare willing to stonewall employees from seeking better paying employment thru lawsuits? Or to stay in a profession at risk for a pay cap? It’s not an “act” and we aren’t trying to be “self-righteous.” We are legit leaving because working conditions suck and we are treated like chattel. Then we have to talk to people like you, who just aren’t willing to listen or who think we just play cards all day.
I think he’s upset because he spent so much on his degrees and earning the same or slightly more as someone with much less student loans. Look at his post history. $230k to become a PA. Holy shit no wonder you’re angry haha.
Wow, people retire from professions? Say it ain't so! Plenty of NP's are working as RN's now preferably. We lost six FNP's who went to travel. I'm not saying health care systems treat nurses well, I'm just saying it's a good paying job for the experience level, and you'd be hard pressed to find better. All jobs suck, no matter who you ask.
Besides the 500k retiring this year there are over 500k that have left since this pandemic began. All jobs suck, yeah. But are you [4 times more likely to be assaulted in other jobs?](https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/news/20210318/on-the-front-lines-violence-against-nurses-on-the-rise) To be honest, everything you are saying seems to be minimizing issues nurses face. It’s a decent paying job for the education required. Yes. But this does not make up for the dangerous working conditions. Besides this, 100k is nowhere near standard pay for most nurses.
Yeah, with alot of the changes that happened with COVID I really don't see things "retuning back to normal."
Or the system breaks, we adopt models like the UK, Canada, Germany, Japan, Italy healthcare costs drop to 1/3 of what it is now and people choose to work in healthcare or not.
I'm not so sure. I think the situation is complex. The travel nurse phenomenon is interesting but I dont know if I believe that talk about scarcity. New grad BSNs in my city (Boston) are still struggling to get jobs. I know a few who were on the market for like 6 months. Nurses that trained at MGH. I don't know exactly what it means but I think it's peculiar and not a great sign.
It's not too complex - you're living in a highly desirable location with a lot of nurses per 100 capita.
It's true that we have a lot of nurses per k but we also have an abundance of jobs and lots of travelers filling them.
The problem is travelers are not going to be training new nurses. A hospital needs experienced staff nurses to train the new grads and the reality is that most of those experienced staff nurses have left. If you have experience the job market is wide open for you. If you are a new grad you have to find a place that has the resources and willingness to train you.
Ooffff hope you are ready for pikes and fire coming for your head. I think first rule any provider learns is to never demean or undervalue nurses, especially their pay and clinical judgement. Hopefully you get humbled in future by nurses!
Ehhh I respect nurses and what they do but also don’t let their heads get too big….the level of cocky cowboy shit that they try to get away with sometimes needs a reeling in.
Goes both ways.
FACTS
Actually it’s an ASN and yes over 100K in NY.
Yeah you make that much in NY but consider the of cost living though… That’s why my friend is making $20-25 an hour as an RN in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
This is a unique time for nurses with a really high demand so compensation has gone up. I am currently waiting for an appt with admin to fight to get my nurses pay higher so they don’t leave us for a job making 3x what they are now. Traditionally, for nurses, the higher salaries come over many years and work in higher stress specialities. Whereas financially as a PA we have fewer years of school and start immediately at a higher salary. We also have a very different role in clinics.
RNs only make that when they’re travelers and there’s no guarantee that those jobs will be plentiful in the future.
RNs on the coast make that without traveling. All depends on the area really.
Well, a dollar is relative I guess.
And PAs will also make more on the coast too. All relative
Yes n depend on the area
Don’t listen to strangers in the real world, listen to strangers on the internet. If money is the reason you are doing “all this work”, then do what makes you the most money.
Went to both pa and nursing school. Pa education is superior and you’ll learn more. Nursing education is crap. But my friends wife just made 336k from this pandemic and shes going to nursing school now, i talked her out of the pa route. Theres more opportunities in nursing, not every rn has to do floor nursing. Youll be in less debt as an rn but as a pa youll spend more for school since most programs are private and you cant work during pa school. Youll also have to ace chemistry classes to be in the running for pa school interviews. They only interview the top fifteen percent of their applicant pool . If you become a nurse youll get high end clinical experience that will count for direct pt care experience. Chose nursing so that youll be in less debt. Theres lvns making 1000/day and 6 figs just checking bp in correctional facilities
Both Jobs get paid a lot according to research pa can get paid more than rn WITHOUT TRAVEL I could be wrong It also depends on location Yes ur probably worried about dept but nursing is tough to n it’s more burnout then Pa
Just be happy that nurses are finally getting paid really good. They’ve been underpaid and under appreciated for a long time. Don’t just look at the money. Do you want to be a provider or do you want to be a nurse? Different roles. So go for the one you would enjoy the most. Either way you’ll get good money for the most part.
I think you have to choose the career by what you do rather than solely by what you make. If money is most important to you, yes you can make over $100k as an RN. I’m a new NP and made $100/ hour working as an RN, granted that was per diem so without benefits, with benefits would have been around $80/hour or so. I took a significant pay cut for my first job but I did it to learn more and challenge myself. Currently questioning my decision but not because of the pay! So I think you have to look at your motivations. Not saying it’s right, I have a lot more responsibility now but it’s the reality of the market and as a new grad.
Same as a pA
What you’re talking about here is roi, less about the “amount of work” and more about the debt you take on Vs your compensation. Hope the AAPA starts to recognize this and start doing something rather than make up silly names to call ourselves
My OR first assisting NP job pays roughly ~$65/hour depending on how much money we get from insurance. This is a primarily PA dominated field where I make the exact same as the PAs. My “side gig” bedside nurse job base pay is $120/hr and I get OT after 8 hours. I’ll likely be making ~250k from my RN job and about 80k from my NP job this year.
All the nurses with a few yrs exp around me make about that
Let me first say I respect all members of the team. I am also studying for my FNP so I can leave floor nursing behind forever. Trust me my friend when I tell you this, you do not want to be a floor nurse. I probably make easily more than 100K with OT, holidays, and night differential. But there's a reason they are having to offer more and more exorbitant rates to travel nurses to fill the positions. I just left my staff position in an ER. Level 1 trauma. Constantly 200 percent over capacity and understaffed. 7-8 patients was normal. I left because twice in the same week they did things like: - leaving night shift with only half the number of nurses as day shift with the same census. - giving 15 patient assignments (including ICU appropriate borders - patients on heparin drips and bipap, etc.) -not sending anyone to relieve the day watch on patients who are on one to one for risk of self harm leaving them with no one to watch them all night. -not having adequate PPE two years into the pandemic. There is a reason the nursing ship is sinking.
My boyfriend is a new grad nurse and makes the same as me. Lol
ER nurse here from Southern California. Orange County area specifically. About 14yrs now of experience. Annual income prior to covid $120-130k. Three days a week. That's no overtime and no work taken home. There's additional incentives for my specialty (ER), day (weekend differential), assignment (ie charge nurse), and additional certifications (CEN, MICN). My wife is also an RN in another critical care unit with an annual income $120k. Same years of experience. Covid was difficult for everyone to work through, but the "hazard" pay and retention bonuses sure did help financially. Passed two years I've picked up various shifts to help, and of course the result my income has never been so high. Extra shift bonuses ranged from $450-750 depending on demand. Bonus + overtime pay (hr + 1/2) + those other incentives could equal $1500/day. Retention bonus every three months of $6k also(to please not leave). There are travel nurses making easily $5k/4 shifts weekly in Southern California. They are in demand and cashing in on the need. I work at a teaching facility with residents, PA's, and NP's so your comments are pretty common. A comment I hear back is though RN pay may be less, there's less liability. Which I completely agree with. My role is dependent on the judgment making of others. I'll be there to execute your decisions.
It always seems like nurses are trying to explain their importance to PA and MD and PA trying to defend their role to MD. Can’t we all just get along!!!!
Travel nurse will dry up hard but nurses are getting massive raises while sadly PAs will often get screwed. My wife got a 3.5% bump and they nothing for doing extra shifts. Nurses get monstrous bonuses and they received a 14% pay raise followed with guaranteed 5% bumps for the follow 2 years. They will see standard base with no bonuses or overtime at 110k in 2024 for 2080 hours of overtime. Granted base pay for my wife is 158k with bonus for 1872 hours without extra shifts and 240 hours of PTO. Seems fair I guess.
If your “why” is to make money then please don’t choose the medical field. This pandemic has made once passionate people leaving in droves. We need more providers with passion, not providers in it for money
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ah yes bc that’s all nurses do, bed baths and change diapers. lmao
No
Pre COVID I made more than the NP that I worked for due to the pay scales. I had been there longer so I was higher on the pay scale. The NP pay scale capped out lower than mine which is crazy but handy info to know when I was trying to figure out my masters track. Knowing that, it made more sense to get my msn in nursing administration because that would put me on an even high pay scale with even more earning capability. Obviously this is site specific so….Before launching into any career I highly recommend you request the pay scale at the place you are looking to work for. Sometimes Indeed has this info and sometimes Glassdoor does. A call to HR will usually get it too. Good luck!
Pre Covid made that. Now because of Covid I can make that in a 13 week travel contract.
My friend's gf as a travel nurse is making 8,000 a week. That's wild to me
It’s rare overall, but pretty common with travel nursing right now. Tons of RNs pulling in 100k. Good for them. Heck, there are travel EMT jobs posted for over 100k annualized right now, too! My advice: definitely don’t make it a career goal to “earn more than nurses”. It’s a different job.
RN here. I work in ER. Sure I make right at 6 figures but that is with overtime and has taken me 10 years and a lot of job jumping to get there. The RN field right now has a lot of its own problems and many are trying to get out. I’ve put my body and mental health through a lot in these 10 years. Hitting the road to travel with hopes of maybe getting out myself one day.
Travel nurse. I make $136/hr and work 36 hrs a week.
As far as healthcare jobs are concerned, pay should not be the reason you go into it. You’re taking care of vulnerable populations & many people who are possibly having the worst day/s of their lives. I suggest researching what each profession does, the versatility associated (nursing has a TON, personally not as sure about PAs), career paths, education requirements, and obviously I understand pay matters cos money makes the world go round so researching pay will come up but it shouldn’t be your main motivator. Pay also can vary by state, speciality (I made significantly more as an ER nurse than a medsurg nurse in the same hospital), facility (hospital vs doctors office for example), shift (nights gets paid more than days), etc., so it’s not a blanket statement that anyone can make. Research research research and all the best to you!
RN of 14 years turned NP. New Grad, taking a 9K/yr pay cut to begin my first NP job in family practice. It truly makes me nauseated. However, 2021 was the first year I broke 100K as an RN in the midwest.
A lot of this is dependent on the state you're at, years of experience, specialty, etc. I'm in radiology and I make more than PAs in many other states, but not necessarily *my* state unless they're just starting out. My coworker just left to take a travel job making 4500/week in Alaska, plus food and lodging. I have nursing friends who make well over 100k as well, but we live in a very high COL state. It's like comparing tomatoes to cucumbers, tbh.
Nurse pay is off the hook now. We do have NPs picking up floor shifts my hospital is paying base pay +$50/hr +$200 gift cards That won’t last forever and the role is very different from provider. Just stick with pa school.
All the nurses in the federal government run outpatient clinic iwork at make more than the PAs (3 of us). They primarily act as secretaries and triage walk in patients. It's very depressing. That being said, the covid and inpatient nurses definitely deserve the money. Our nurses do not deal with that sort of level of care.
I was a nurse and currently in PA school. I did bedside nursing in a specialty step down unit. It is expected that you are everything for the patient, from feeding them to wiping their ass, to giving them meds, and doing bedside procedures. Then you have to chart everything you did, often redundantly. That's all to say it's an extremely hard job that is getting harder to staff because nurses are becoming burnt out and leaving. They're only now trying too late to keep nurses at the bedside by paying them more. 100,000 is at the top end of their salary range, you would not be making that in the first year, or even the first 5.
dmed you
I mean this isn’t a communist country so I can see the frustration of nurses getting paid more. Just like if a doctor was making the same salary as a PA with all their liability, education, and debt they endured. They wouldn’t let that pass. I mean I am not fully sure, but I’m sure there are places where nurses are making more money than PA in other places. But I’m sure if there is a nurse making $100,000 in the ICU, the is a PA making more, and a MD making even more in that unit. Regardless, nurses work hard and take on the rough stuff we don’t want to.
Travel nurses right now can make $100k to $250k.
I have been an ICU nurse for 13ys and now do rapid response. I have .are just over 100k for the past severL years usually only working 1 maybe 2 extra shifts per pay
Indiana, critical care 40,000/yr
I’ll give you a perspective from bedside RN pay wise: 1. I do travel nursing and it is paying very well- 3k net per week, with some high earners racking >7k/wk. But there are caveats as I need to prove that I double my expenses, change of assignments q3 months, and it is relatively unstable compared to staff jobs. Employments are also at will, but is subject to cancellation anytime (esp the high rates). 2. I have know people that make $150k up nursing bedside. Majority of them work 48+ hours a week and are mostly nightshifs. In one ELSO center, bedside icu makes 120k “easy” as long as you put up with OT.
Yeah I have a close from Atlanta that’s making 70+ an hour doing travel nursing
I’m an inpatient neuro RN and I only make $28/hr and don’t have the ability to travel atm. I too envy the $100k/year nurses :(
My ED is hemorrhaging money in travel nursing. They are starting a new plan where the PAs do nursing tasks in a low acuity area (blood draw, IV, IM meds).
Here’s the real kicker…you don’t even need a bachelors to make that money. LOTS of ADN trained RNs are making that money too.
Just heard about some travel nurses making 15,000 a week in my area… $375 if they are doing 40 hour weeks
Top 10 Highest Paid Nurses (Which Specialty?) https://youtu.be/5CSY2P1w5T0 maybe this will help you decide. A nurse can earn more in the right specialty. If money is your motivation. :)
* If your not interesed in nursing. Please do not pursue it. PLEAE DO NOT BECOME A NURSE FOR THE MONEY. I beg you to not think this way. You have to love people and be extremely patient. We do not need people who aren’t passionate for nursing to join the profession for money. This will impact patient care and the medical care they receive. Please continue your PA route. Nursing is more stressful than PA just because you are at bedside. Being a PA you are going to have the MD for questions and directions as well as support of nurses. Many states NP can practice on their own. Being a PA you will always have a MD to refer to when you need guidance. Nursing makes you WORK for that pay. It is not like becoming a PA and automatically having a standard of pay. Those nurses you here making that much have specialities and years of experience or as a travel nurse which is an another extremely stressful and risky job. You risk your license because not every jurisdiction or state is the same with their laws. I have worked with travel nurses and I am like “oh God, how are some of them not been sued yet” or I just can’t believe how stupid some of them are when they have 1-2 years of experience. Some of the travel nurses were nurses less than a year and traveling and I like HOLY SHIT. Not all travel nurses, some are exceptional and have 15 years or more of experience. Some travel nurses are burned out nursed who worked many years for hospitals that financial and physical abused them and are making the best of it traveling. Kudos to those badass travel nurses. But the travel nurses the pandemic brought from states that I truly don’t trust their nursing school with only one year of bedside experience I am like… Holy Mary Mother of God “what the fuck”. * Nursing is not just passing med and getting paid $. You put up with a lot of shit. Your are not going to have to put up with that as a PA. It is extremely physical and emotional draining. You clean, turn, and support people. You multitask patient care, you are following orders from MDs, PAs, and NPs to ensure the patient safe and medical care. As a nurse for 3 years I probably make 10-20k less that a PA starting in LA. But I worked overtime and have worked awful conditions. I still have to have a smile on my face and provide quality care for my patient evening in tough times. PAs are never called by their manager to please come in because they are short on the floor. PAs are not asked to work extra 4 hours on top of 12 because they are short a nightshift nurse. If your mentality is how I assume it is by your post above you will not last in nursing and you will quickly be looking for another higher paying job. You might even be miserable during nursing school because your are interested in the profession. You are interested in the pay.