Certainly, I'm not the only one who gets irked whenever I hear this, am I? It's true that if we were to look at figures alone, we get paid a decent amount compared to other professions and that we enjoy benefits that are not available in other jobs. I'm just surprised a lot of people believe nurses are huge $$$ maker. My family and several of my patients think we earn a lot, but do we really?
Don't get me wrong, I'm very grateful to have this career and that I'm earning money, but is it unreasonable if I think nurses in general are actually underpaid? That our compensation barely matches the responsibility, stress, workload, and other things we put up with work (i.e. under-staffing, workplace politics, etc)?
I wish I can say that each and every time I'm told I make so much money or that I must be living comfortably because I'm a nurse. I wish I am, but no. Nurses may earn a little more than some, but we have to really work our butts off day in and day out for every paycheck we get.