Are you satisfied with your current employment situation as a nurse?

Nurses General Nursing

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Please feel free to share your thoughts on your current employment situation as a nurse. Are you happy, if so why? Unhappy, if s why?

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Brian Short

WORLDWIDE NURSE: The Internet's Nursing Directory

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MaxNurse-

You raised some interesting issues! Hard to believe that LPNs make little more than a CNA! With all the responsibilty that a nurse has- I find the lack of adequate wages insulting. The starting wages at my facility (day shift, acute care)is as follows: Nurse's aid-$10./hr, LPN- $15/hr, RN-$22./hr. Add on shift diff & experience. As for the difference between RN & LPN- sometimes you couldn't tell, if the name tags didn't say so!

According to my state nursing practice act, the difference between LPN and RN is that LPNs are considered "skilled nurses" and their patient assessment is considered "data collection." The RN is considered the "professional nurse." According to the practice act, the RN is the one responsible for synthesizing assessment data & analyzing/formulating a care plan and interventions.

The state law indicates that RNs have more knowledge,theory,skills,and depth of education to make advanced decisions.By law the RN has to assess & directly observe each patient that the LVN cares for.Therefore, RNs receive the higher pay for the increased responsibility of assessment and care decisions.That's supposed to be the difference between LPN & RN- in answer to your question.

I know LPN/LVN scope of practice varies from state to state (which makes the whole LPN/RN distinction more blurry).Have you looked at other employers in your area to see if they pay more appropriately? Maybe worth a look.Good luck in your studies & in finding a "light" at the end of the road...

kona2 smile.gif

Seems your facility has a better wage gap, than where I work. Basically it's the same overall in the area I live. For instance, i have a friend that works in a local nursing home, she's an LPN making $7.25, the CNAs make $6.35 and the RNs make $12.00. They too complain about the small gap between the LPNs and CNAs. Most LPNs find it insulting. Recently the CNAs got a raise (they were making minimum wage!) which i feel was well deserved, CNA work is back breaking! But this raise left the LPNs at that facility feeling unappreciated and insulted. I understand and appreciate the fact that RNs go to school longer, go more indepth in disease process and management. I have no problem with their wages, I feel they deserve it. Yet it is dishearting to the LPNs in my area that we don't make more. The wages in your area seem very fair for all involved. I wish it were more like that here. I will probably return to college for a RN degree. Not just because of the increase in money, but for the opportunity of advancement it holds. Also I've notice that most of the specialties require a RN degree. I've an associate degree in correctional science and would like to specialize in that area, perhaps forensic nursing. smile.gif

Specializes in Hospice and Palliative Care, Family NP.

I graduated in 1997 with my ADN. At 30 -something, this was a big challenge for me to go back to school to get this degree!! I had a two year old and three pre-teen sons at the time. It took me EIGHT years to get this degree. Many obstacles stood in my way, my husband and I lost our fathers during this time to cancer, etc. After starting to work, I realized nursing was not what I had hoped it would be. I still enjoy nursing...at times...most of the time it is frustrating, not because of the pay, but because we nurses are FORCED to do what I call "Flyby-nursing" doing only the minimal care because we have so many other tasks to be done. There are the rare moments when I can give the all around care to a patient and on those days, I go home feeling very satisfied, but these days have become farther and farther between.

A year ago, I decided to make a change. I became MY OWN BOSS and now own a preventative health/ alternative medicine business. It has allowed me to help many others realize their dreams of good health and a good income. Also, I have gone to PRN nursing. PRN nursing is great! I dont' have to get all wrapped up in the "politics" at the facilities I work in making the time I spend there more enjoyable.

There are many options out there for nurses. If you find yourself totally frustrated and disillusioned, check out your options. It sure made a difference in my life, and the lives of other nurses I have helped along the way.

Can't say I'm exactly thrilled with my position. I work in a cardiac hospital (all open-hearts, caths, stents, CHF exacerbations, etc.). I started on the regular telemetry floor, 12 hr. shifts, where the ratio was 1 RN to 10-11 patients, both days and nights. Day shifts got 1 nurse extender and 1 comfort care provider. Night shifts got 1/2 NE and 1/2 CCP (you shared your ancillary staff with another RN). That's the model, however, we routinely worked short of ancillary, many times with 1 CCP and 1 NE for 42 beds. We would routinely get patients transferred from other hospital's ICUs/CCUs and they would get put on our regular floors (patients considered critical at other hospitals are not considered critical at ours). We also took care of CABGs 12-18 hrs. out. The stress level and workload were quite intense. After 1 1/2 years, I transferred to CCU hoping for better staffing, however, the hospital is now routinely assigning us 3 patients as opposed to the 2:1 that they used to. It is not unusual for you to have 3 vented, unstable, total care, swanned patients per night. With no aids to help you turning and bathing patients. I am new to the CCU (only 3 months) but for the last 2 they have been assigning me 3:1 and they are complex, heavy cases. Ancillary staff is nonexistant. RN's are responsible for all care, drawing labs, etc. I personally feel that I do not have the experience level to handle 3:1 and am terrified every time I have to go to work. I am currently considering leaving the hospital setting and pursuing VNS. Are any of your experiences similar to mine? Am interested in hearing thoughts.

Here in Minnesota in Minneapolis as a topped out nurse I make $26.71. Agency nurses and roster nurses make much more. I work in a newborn ICU and our average assignment is 1 vented patient and one non-vented patient. If we have all unvented patients we will have up to 4. If we have an health care assitant assigned to us we may have up to 6 patients. I love working with the babies and I think we really make a difference. I get fed up with nurses who are topped out like I am, have an assignment like mine and complain because they are "overworked". Maybe I'll print up some of your work loads and pay scales and take them to work.

Here is my suggestion:

RN's should make at least $50.00/hr

Have FULL benefits- Indeminty medical without a lifetime max, full vision and indemnity dental. Full tuition reimbursement and paid membership to health club. On site daycare....

Here in Pittsburgh Nurses max out around $20 or $21/hr. I know MANY nurses here all with at least 10 years experience various specialties who can't make more that $21/hr. I have friends that have more than 10 years as flight(helicopter nurses) and they only make $25/hr. I don't know of any nurses in this area that have a traditional Fee for Service medical plan (indemnity coverage) yet, so many of the patients I have seen do have Indemnity coverage.

Isn't it ironic that many of the patients have better insurance than the people providing the care....?

Here is another thought. The hospital where I worked last only has a cheap HMO for its nurses and other healthcare employees; However, the doctors and hospital administrators all have an indemnity plan! Talk about respect.

Another funny story? See www.upmc.edu

UPMC is a group of hospitals here in Pittsburgh. If you are a Nurse at one of their hospitals then most likely your insurance plan is "UPMC Healthcare"....UPMC not only owns all the hospitals and employs all the nurses, it also owns UPMC Healthcare. SO....The point I am making is that as nurse in Pittsburgh the pay is lame and your employer also determines what is paid for by your insurance(because the employers owns the insurance company) AND your PCP works for your employer(the HMO/Hospital)>>>> So, when you as a nurse go to your doctor/PCP just who's best interest does he have in mind? Who does he really respect? Who does he work for? Who pays his capitated fees? Who pays his bonuses for keeping utlized healthcare dollars down?(The answer is: The HMO, also known as The nurses employer.)

Nurses in Pittsburgh are at best "EXPENDABLE".

Take a look at my posting "Nursing is pathetic" under "would you recommend nursing as a career?" For more heated debate.

Why can't RN's in Pittsburgh(experienced professionals) pay their bills?

I can't believe that some of the nurses here believe that most nurses are well-paid for their work. That is ridiculous! When companies put out the stats on nurses pay they twist the facts. They will include Nurse Practictioners to Staff RNs in that report. Do you think that they use the mean, median, or mode when they report??!!! They're definitely not going to use the mode, which means the most frequently occurring score! SHEESH!!! Take for instance, you have 20 nurses making $14.50 pr hr, 10 nurses making $20.00 pr hr and two nurses making a $100.00 pr hr. DO THE MATH! THE AVERAGE WAGE REPORTED WILL BE $21.56 PR HR!! The average nurse in the mode is not reported. When I first starting working as an RN, in a major hospital, I started out at $12.50 pr hr. People who work at factories and the post office can make that much with a 7th grade education.

I think that most of the people that are satisfied with their jobs are the managers and CCRNs (They get super respect for being a super nurse.) The one's out in the trenches aren't getting any respect or pay (for the amount of work that they do). The managers get paid to tell us that we're WHINING!!! They get paid WELL for that!! I have worked too many days without lunch or restroom breaks to want to listen to that crap.

Oh yeah, when they report nurse's wages, they'll use all of the various states. One state could be paying their nurses $20.00 to start (I doubt it.), and another could be paying $12.00 an hour. Don't be misled. Get the facts.

I've been an LPN for 5 years, and have often told my husband (a maintenance mechanic,) that he does half as much work as I do, for twice the pay! Nevertheless, I love nursing. I was 34 when I was first licensed and have been in the same place since then. Next month, I will graduate from an ADN program and go over to the hospital to work. I am somewhat anxious about it since at this point, I'm a big fish in a little pond, and that is about to change. In my job and through my clinical experiences, I've seen all the bad attitudes, apathy, poor treatment of students and new grads, etc. I always hear nurses complaining about their low pay. I don't feel that nursing is something you should do JUST for the money. Our rewards do not come to us in a pay envelope. I work hard to keep a positive attitude, establish and keep a good relationship with the physicians I come in contact with, do the very best I can for my patients and families, and to remember that I'm only as good as the team is as a whole. Bad attitudes are contagious and I don't have any desire to spend the better part of my life in a foul mood, so I do whatever I can to uplift my team and keep them focused on what we are there for.

After 22 yrs in nsg i can still say i love my job. i work in an acute care area pacu, the work is fast paced and challenging. i enjoy the high tech environment. i work nights and try to stay out of the politics. i'm maxed out at $25./hr +diff, this is considered excellent pay for the area.

This may be an unpopular view, but here goes. I make $27.12/hr plus an additional $2.31/hr night differential as a CCU Staff Nurse. Nurse/pt ratios at my facility in the critical care setting are 3:1. Last year I grossed $52,000 and change. This is considered a little on the low side for my geographic location. And, I would GLADLY take a cut in pay to have more manageable nurse/pt ratios (2:1) and a more manageable workload!!!! I did not get into nursing for the money, however, I also did not get into nursing to be overwhelmingly overworked to the point that it compromises patient care, safety, and my own health. Anyone else feel the same?

I've been a nurse 22 years and at this point in my career I can sit back and say nursing has been good to me. It's been hard, there's been days or nights when I felt like going out the back door in the middle of the shift and never looking back, but something held me there. I've been a single mom for 14 years and been able to support my children and make a nice living for myself and them. And can't we all agree that there's a certain amount of status and pride that goes with being a nurse. It's kinda cool to say "Yes I'm an RN". You, who are in certain very difficult and seeminly impossible situations, don't give up-you will get through it. The great thing about nursing is if you don't like what you are doing you can usaully find another area or another hosp. that suits you. I've done it all: ER, ICU, CCU, OB, NRSY, med-surg, OR, infection control, hospice, and now home health for the last 12 years which I love. I look at my nursing career now and can smile and even cry about some of the experiences I've had. But now it seems so rewarding to have gone through and I'm not through yet. One thing for sure you will build character! and will have hundreds of stories to tell your grandchildren. Thanks, Becky RN

I have not worked in 3 months. Am I happy? Yes! I left nursing because my mental state was deteriorating rapidly and I was having suicidal thoughts. I tried decreasing my hours to 3 shifts a week then 2 then 1 but it did not work. I found myself walking around my unit saying silently to myself,"I wish I was dead, I wish I was dead." I feared I had developed a depression from which I would not recover and I would have to go on medication. Since completely cutting all ties with my former employer and nursing I have begun to return to life. Now I can look at a sunset or a snowflake and feel joy. I am so relieve, it was not me it was the job.

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