Hey so young nurses, are we really making "that much"?

[tarotale]

I ponder about this all the time. If you are a RN now by this point, you know you don't make that much, but still most of us admit that "well, still among our friends, I make decent money." Are we?

I have been a nurse now about year and half, and I really wonder if people at my age group make as much as or more than I do; I live at Dallas, 1yr and half exp making $25/hr + $4 for nights ($29), and $34 for weekend nights. I think it comes to about $3100-3600 a month after taxes , and I don't know about you, but to me, that doesn't feel very much. I have friends who are teachers, architects, interior designers, and etc, and seeing the way they spend, I doubt that I make more than they do. If I even increase the times I eat out by little bit, I can clearly see my budget affected by it, and it seems like everyone and their grandmother eats out everyday and they still have money to buy other stuff.

Or maybe they are broke and living by paycheck to paycheck because they are not saving up any monies? Ah... I really wish I made enough not to really care whether I eat out today or not. And by the way, I am single and childless... well, I forcefully support millions of lazy freeloaders with my sweat-stained money, so I guess I have lots of children. So, what do you think?

[Stephalump]

I'm in the Houston area, so cost of living is low and I'm making $30/hr base pay doing psych as a new grad.

I think whether or not that's a lot of money is relative to where you come from. My husband (a welder) brings home quite a bit more money than I do, so I don't feel like I make all that much after taxes. If he lost his job it would be impossible to maintain the standard of living that we had when I was a stay at home mom, much less with two incomes.

So when people say, wow, you make good money, I think...I guess. It's a lot to someone who's working their ass off for half that, I guess. It is a GREAT second income, though!

[Stephalump]

Also, you never know how much money people make based on their spending. For most people, a BMW just means they aren't afraid of debt - that could be because they're in great financial shape, or terrible shape.

Most of my friends spend way more (publically) than we do, and we're at the same income level or higher. We have a small house because we wanted a 15 year note and drive older paid off cars and don't use credit cards, so I'm sure we look broke. But I don't care, because I have money in the bank!

[tarotale]

Hey Tarotale: First of all, there is never, never enough money!!!! Most people live paycheck to paycheck and then wonder where all their money went!! Frankly, I was raised by depression era parents so we were taught to be thrifty. We recycled before recycle was a common thing. It all depends on how you want to live. If you want to live paycheck to paycheck it is very easy to do by spending. If you want a more quality of life you watch what you spend and save what you can. Materialism is not all it seems to be. People are more important, surround yourself by those who are important and meaningful to you. Your friends may be living beyond their means, credit is an easy way to obtain things!!! And look like you have $ when really you are going further in debt!!! Are nurses paid enough, it depends. I remember when there were hiring bonuses, specialty bonuses, weekend bonuses, etc. With all the cost cutting, nursing being one of the biggest costs(staffing) is usually the first to feel the pinch. I made my highest rate $50.00/hr when I worked agency, that was in my early 30's and believe me, it has been straight downhill since. If you want more $ you are going to have to work more, either part-time at another facility or agency type work. Get your priorities straight and then go for what you want. I don't think for all the years of nursing I have really been paid enough, but I have been able to contribute to my families well-being and that has meant a lot to me. I succeeded further than anyone else in my family or high school friends, but some of it was done at a sacrifice. You need to decide what you want and go for it!!!! There are only a few ways to make more money, one by improving your job status, the other by spending less. I will warn you that moving up in nursing is not always associated with a pay increase, sometimes managerial positions do not make as much as clinical settings.

first, thanks for the words of wisdom. i guess you pretty much nailed it; I/we will feel money is not enough no matter how much we earn (because with dose of reality, you and I know that none of us will make enough like millionaires to not worry about mundane expenditures)... I guess at my age I just want to see myself work, sleep and wake up and instead of feeling disappointed looking at the bank acct wondering why money saves up so slow, I would rather like to be surprised that money is stacking at least with some consistency and significance. Not saying I am going for NP strictly for money, but higher pay is one of very important goals. Instead of seeing $1600-$1800 every other Thursday and see little increments on my bank, I wish I could make $7000-$8000/month after taxes which is definite possibility as a NP. I know in later life with kids, mortgage and all, the money is even harder to come by!

I know people around me is what matters and all, but I do have few people next to me in life that make close to 6 figs at young age (my 28y/o brother being one), and it bugs the hell out of me that I'm not. But eventually like you implicate, when I make that much money, I'm sure I will find another problem

[tarotale]

LTACH = Long Term Acute Care Hospital

LTAC is acute care, but the patients are kept in the facility anywhere from a few weeks to several months. They're still sick enough to be in an acute care hospital setting, but there's nothing more that can be done for them at places like Baylor, HEB, UT Southwestern, etc. Basically, the major hospital is losing money by keeping a patient who won't improve, so they're discharged to LTAC to continue the acute care.

LTACHs have ICUs, pulmonary units complete with vents, med/surg floors, telemetry units, renal floors with hemodialysis, and so forth. Patients typically have complicated wounds, trachs, vents, central lines, multidrug resistant infections, and other interesting things going on.

Do not be fooled. These are not nursing home residents. They are just as sick, if not sicker, than the patients you have dealt with on a typical med/surg floor. However, they're been sent to LTAC because they're in limbo. They're no longer profitable to the acute care hospital due to their diagnosis related groups (DRGs), but they're still too sick to go home, so they've gotta go somewhere.

Ratios in the D/FW area range from 1:6 to 1:10 for med/surg LTAC. ICU LTAC might be 1:2 to 1:3. Kindred Hospital pays very competitively but has a shady local reputation. Other area LTAC hospitals with better reputations include Lifecare Hospital, Vibra Specialty Hospital, Ethicus Hospital, and Regency Hospital.

Thanks for that! So if LTACs acuity are same if not worse than hospitals (ie ICU), how come they offer higher wage compared to acute hospitals? According to you, the acuity seems similar as well. There must be a downside because one thing I know for sure is that the hospital admin will not offer nice things or any goodies to employees even if their dead dogs will come back to life thanks to it

Oh and I remember your posts couple yrs back about best hospital systems to work for in DFW. I am pretty much set to live in Norther Dallas area (Addison, Carrolton, Coppell), but I would say that between THR, Baylor, Methodist, and HCA on the scale of good pay and good insurance, THR has the best balance; although I never worked there, that's what a friend suggested. Then Baylor has outstanding insurance, but really crappy pay (again, no personal exp). Methodist average on both and not too sure about HCA. I know you've been working as RN and also in DFW for long time, so what are your suggestions?

[klone, MSN, RN]

I/we will feel money is not enough no matter how much we earn (because with dose of reality, you and I know that none of us will make enough like millionaires to not worry about mundane expenditures

Not true. I urge you to read the book "The Millionaire Next Door" - just like not being able to tell that a person is dead broke because they have a 3000 square foot house and drive a BMW, you often cannot tell that a person is wealthy because they drive a 8-year-old Honda and live in a 1200 square foot bungalow built in 1960. Often they are wealthy BECAUSE of those choices they made to not spend beyond their means.

[pugmom79]

The commuter - what type of job do you have?

[Stephalump]

Not true. I urge you to read the book "The Millionaire Next Door" - just like not being able to tell that a person is dead broke because they have a 3000 square foot house and drive a BMW, you often cannot tell that a person is wealthy because they drive a 8-year-old Honda and live in a 1200 square foot bungalow built in 1960. Often they are wealthy BECAUSE of those choices they made to not spend beyond their means.

I love that book! It's my money inspiration!

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

The commuter - what type of job do you have?

I hold a charge nurse / nursing supervisor position at a small specialty hospital.

[libran1984, ASN, RN]

I feel RNs make quite a fair chunk of change. I def need to stop eating out tho.

[Despareux]

When I was offered my job at the hospital, my jaw dropped at how much my hourly wage was. In the two short years I've been an RN, I've already seen significant increases in our responsibilities on the floor. Now, two years later, I'm convinced nurses do not make wages matching our level of responsibilities. Our hospital is one of the highest paying hospitals in my state and I think my current wage teeters on acceptable and could not imagine making less per hour.

Anyway, to answer the OP's question, yes, in comparison, we make good money on paper. After taxes, insurance premiums, and 403b contributions, bring home pay isn't that great. My bring home is nearly equivalent to when I was making $13/hr less than what I'm making now.

[toomuchbaloney]

Not true. I urge you to read the book "The Millionaire Next Door" - just like not being able to tell that a person is dead broke because they have a 3000 square foot house and drive a BMW, you often cannot tell that a person is wealthy because they drive a 8-year-old Honda and live in a 1200 square foot bungalow built in 1960. Often they are wealthy BECAUSE of those choices they made to not spend beyond their means.

In fact, I would argue that this phenomenon is relatively common in AK. You might never know that the rough looking dude living in the small cabin with no plumbing and no telephone is actually worth a ton of $$, some of which he keeps in gold nugget somewhere on the homestead.

The media and social pressure to borrow, spend, and "keep up with the Jones'" is overwhelming for some folks.

American Household Credit Card Debt Statistics: 2014

The average US household credit card debt stands at $15,607, the result of a small number of deeply indebted households forcing up the numbers. Based on an analysis of Federal Reserve statistics and other government data, the average household owes $7,281 on their cards; looking only at indebted households, the average outstanding balance rises to $15,607.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

So if LTACs acuity are same if not worse than hospitals (ie ICU), how come they offer higher wage compared to acute hospitals? According to you, the acuity seems similar as well. There must be a downside

The downside is the the higher nurse/patient ratios. The nurse in LTAC critical care might receive three patients. The nurse in LTAC med/surg might receive anywhere from 6 to 10 patients.

On the other hand, general acute care hospital nurses at other area hospitals might receive one or two patients in the ICU or 5 to 7 patients in med/surg. The bare bones staffing is a major reason for the more competitive pay rates that can be found in LTAC.