LPN making 70,000 a year

Nurses LPN/LVN

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I almost have my RN and have been an LPN for 33 years. I have been doing case management for the last 7 years and now am accepting a position as a director of nursing in a personal care facility. I also hold a BA degree. I make 70,000 a year with bonuses. If your an LPN do not think your experience is insignificant to a degree.... Rns have deeper education but bedside nursing experience translates into huge assessment skills, LPNs take first merit in this arena... I have advanced knowledge in A and P and micro B from my RN classes but the core nursing stuff I already know for the most part. LPNs, DO Not be afraid to go back to school ! I am 50 and an honors student ! Being a nurse is what I do with the knowledge I have been given and how well I can assess and nursing diagnose my patients... I am a medical detective. I search for the clues and i find a way to solve the medical riddles.

Taking Pathophysiology and advanced Pharmacolgy really does help me see things better.. The care plans are in my head from diagnosis to interventions to outcomes.... LPNs are diploma RNs now without the title.... Im blessed to have come this far after 33 years of many nursing experiences.. ICU to home care... Ive done it all... Its been an honor to serve the sick. Now Ive been given a place of leadership and only hope I can take all that I have learned and direct it towards building a great team of nurses which will allow patients to receive the best care possible...

TRULY, I am a very blessed LPN... almost RN, but always an LPN in my heart !

Where in the H did you find an LPN job that pays $70K a year????

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Where in the H did you find an LPN job that pays $70K a year????

I could make 70k a year if I chose to pick up OT. I choose not to. Where I live, a new LPN can expect to make $50-60k a year. And I don't live in a very high-pay, high-cost-of-living part of the country, either. I think we're about at the national average.

I find there's a misconception about how much LPNs make. I have noticed that among RNs who don't work in environments that utilize LPNs, there is this belief that we make only a little above PCT or MA level wages. Not true.

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I could make 70k a year if I chose to pick up OT. I choose not to. Where I live, a new LPN can expect to make $50-60k a year. And I don't live in a very high-pay, high-cost-of-living part of the country, either. I think we're about at the national average.

I find there's a misconception about how much LPNs make. I have noticed that among RNs who don't work in environments that utilize LPNs, there is this belief that we make only a little above PCT or MA level wages. Not true.

Seriously, where are you guys working. I'm only going to be making right under 40k that as a new RN with night diff., and there isn't much variance in the 3 hospitals in my area. One of the hospitals just capped their RN pay at $25/hr! I need to get away from here to an area that values their nurses.

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Seriously, where are you guys working. I'm only going to be making right under 40k that as a new RN with night diff., and there isn't much variance in the 3 hospitals in my area. One of the hospitals just capped their RN pay at $25/hr! I need to get away from here to an area that values their nurses.

I work in a medium-sized city in Michigan.

I'm going to guess you live in the south? Or perhaps the rural great plains? From what I gather, those are the lowest paying regions on average for nurses. I hear Florida is pretty bad, too.

Not to go off on a tangent, but finding that perfect balance between cost of living and regional wages is almost an art. One of the advantages of living in the so-called blighted, Rust-Belt cities is that the wages are well above those of the south, but stuff like housing and grocceries are very cheap. Unemployment is rampant, but those of us who CAN find decent jobs live pretty well due to the depressed housing market.

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You are correct. Oklahoma. I have started looking because I know I'm going to have to relocate to find a decent wage.

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Where I live, an LVN needs to worry about even having a job before they worry about how much they are going to be paid. And I have seen instances where CNA's are paid near, at, or even more than LVNs. One tactic that employers (who post their wage rates) like to use is to say in the ad that new grad LVNs, or RN students, are sought and that the $15 an hour is the "training wage". I once read an elaborately written ad that clearly indicated that $14 an hour was the top of the offered scale, for "experience". It would be nice to come across those employers that pay their LVNs 50, 60, or 70 thousand a year without the use of overtime.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
You are correct. Oklahoma. I have started looking because I know I'm going to have to relocate to find a decent wage.
I attended nursing school in Oklahoma City. I was laughing when a recruiter from OU Medical Center visited the school and told our class about the 'competitive' new grad RN pay rate of $18.65 per hour (this was in 2009). At the time, I was an LVN who had been earning $26 hourly in Texas.

Although it is now 2014, OU Medical Center is still paying new grad RNs less than $20/hr.

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Specializes in Clinical Documentation Specialist, LTC.

I'm in MS. which is one of the poorest states in the country and LPNs can and do make up to $55,000-$60,000 per year here, but those jobs are very hard to secure. When a LPN does land a job making that amount of money they do not leave. My highest yearly salary has been $45,000 and I have more than 18 years experience. I currently work in a large family medical clinic and make $35,000 per year, which is decent for a clinic nurse here. I gave up the higher salary for the perks of working in a clinic such as 10 holidays per year, 30 paid days off per year and medical benefits out the yin yang.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, Case Management, Administrat.

When I said LPNs have "the bedside nursing arena" what I was defining was the training emphasis. LPNs receive more of a Practical Nursing emphasis ..than what an RN may obtain. I would in no way devalue anyone in our profession. I did not receive an honor to become a Director of Nursing by not understanding the value that each and every member of the healthcare team has. Being an RN or an LPN does not determine the measure of a fabulous and caring nurse. I also am not saying that RN's have less bedside training. I just desired to clarify what my heart intended.

Personally, I do feel that LPNs are Diploma RN's in their FUNCTION. Diploma RNs are hospital nurses trained in programs with until recently had little or NO general education requirements. Older practicing nurses can probably understand what I am trying to communicate. I realize RNs are RNs and LPNs are LPN s. Educational emphasis however has evolved into LPNs receiving more of a diploma style foundation.

I am going to work with an advocate for reforms in nursing on an educational front. I believe in my heart that every nurse should hold an RN title but levels of education will remain different and nurses will function at different levels in healthcare delivery. I do not believe that Bachelor level education in nursing is the only way to progress as a nurse after an Associate level RN. Functionally, any RN can gain experience and training equivalent to an advanced degree in some areas of nursing.. I did not say ALL. smiles.

LPN training should be turned into Diploma RN programs. RN AS or AA into associate and BSN and Masters and Doctorate at higher levels. This is my opinion. LPNs do the same job as most RNs. I did not say ALL..lol... I am not knocking either title. I have been in nursing 33 years and have learned everything I need to know to be a nurse. I did need the advanced sciences which I took and passed with honors. Nurses are on waiting lists to get the training and education they need. It is time for reform and for more nurse educators at hospitals to work in conjunction with institutions of higher learning to generate RNs trained to administer healthcare at different levels until they can be experienced to assume higher roles or choose advanced coursework.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, Case Management, Administrat.

Please see my new post under the same header... smiles. I in no way would devalue any nurse ! We are all a team.. I meant training emphasis! smiles. Being in nurse leadership does and should not bring less value upon anyone. LPNs recieve mainly bedside training , thus... thier ARENA. RNs get both advanced knowledge and bedside... This is what I meant. Just wanted to clarify... smiles...

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I really dislike people who think using the word "smiles" makes everything good.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.
Please see my new post under the same header... smiles. I in no way would devalue any nurse ! We are all a team.. I meant training emphasis! smiles. Being in nurse leadership does and should not bring less value upon anyone. LPNs recieve mainly bedside training , thus... thier ARENA. RNs get both advanced knowledge and bedside... This is what I meant. Just wanted to clarify... smiles...

As a former LPN, I didn't "just" get "bedside training"...care plans and thinking like a nurse were part of the educational piece, even patient teaching.

My "arena" has been policy making, education, as well as QA as a LPN, so my "arena" has rivaled RNs, and my foundation has made me a better RN-a choice I decided to make-it was basically a lateral transfer with an (slight due to my state's practice act) increase in scope. :yes:

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