Okay, so I've been reading some threads with nurses complaining about the pay, and how they are underpaid. When I looked up nursing salaries online, it seemed pretty good to me, but I never considered the pay after taxes. Seeing how much you actually take home was kind of discouraging, BUT I want to be a nurse so that won't stop me. And I understand experience, overtime, night shifts diff. etc, all play a part in it. So my question is, even if you do feel like you are underpaid (if you do) would you change it all? Do you wish you would've pursued something else instead? and why or why not specifically? Like I said, I desire to be a nurse (NICU), so it won't make me change my mind, im just curious. :)
Knowning what I now know, would I change it? My Nursing profession is my passion in life besides being a mother. My goal in life was to be a labor and delivery RN, but ED hired me instead :) if I could be part of a mother delivering her baby...wow, it would make everything
I'm discouraged not so much about the pay as I'm frugal and can get by, but more over the weekends and holidays and by the time I retire a lot of my family will be dead and holidays will be lonelier. Here when they are alive, I'm working all these weekends and holidays and missing out! I've been working for many years and it doesn't count toward having more time off!
Also you really don't have any control over your working conditions and staffing ratios, unless you have a union and even then it is a struggle. Also the risk of injury especially related to the heavy patients, violent, demented patients and lack of safe lifting equipment because it seems like it will take a federal law for hospitals to provide adequate lift equipment for staff.
Yes for what we do and the responsibility we have and difficult working conditions we should be paid more, but good luck with that! The hospitals and nursing homes are under more financial pressure between medicare, medicaid cutbacks and more uninsured patients so don't expect pay to improve in the future!
I wouldn't exactly encourage people to go into nursing because I think it leaves the majority of nurses anxious, depressed and stressed out and many living in chronic back and neck pain. For the unfortunate few who end up injured and disabled its even bleaker.
So for those going into nursing, get your own disability policy (own occupation) when you're young and healthy to protect yourself! Keep your expenses low, pay your student loans off as fast as you can, and have a back up plan if you can't or don't want to continue in nursing. Lets face it jobs paying a living wage seem to be in short supply in America and benefits (health insurance, retirement) keep getting worse.
About pay, I think a lot of people in general know very little about personal finance and they end up being taken advantage of in financial dealings and getting less than the best in retirement plans, car price and loans, mortgages, student loans, etc.
You really need to educate yourself on personal finance to help the money last. I know so many coworkers who are in bad mortgages, car loans, and don't get me started on time share rip offs! Who thinks its a good idea to prepay for a vacation whether the traditional timeshare week or two at a particular spot or the newfangled you can go anywhere you want. It's crazy! One of the biggest rip offs out there. Not only are you stuck paying for the timeshare itself, you also have increasing maintenance fees!
So coworkers are stuck wasting money instead of saving for retirement or taking care of practical things like property tax, utilities and home maintenance!
Nowadays there are so many options for vacations, from hotels, condo's, extended stays, even homes are being rented on and many good vacation packages with air included and you can go where you want when you want and pay only if you are going somewhere. Do yourself a favor and stay away from timeshares!
Nowadays you need financial flexibility! Choose credit unions they tend to offer the best rates on mortgages and loans. So many people losing their homes because they got screwed by a predatory loan from a bank or broker they trusted!
Some good books on personal finance include Personal Finance for Dummies, Deal with your debt by Liz Weston and another by Elizabeth Warren All Your Worth The Ultimate Lifetime Money Plan that offers a workable budget that a person can live on without totally depriving yourself.
I doubt I'd change it. Even if you don't enjoy what you're doing with experience you have options. I never really wanted to be a nurse, I just needed something with job security. But I can't think of too many professions that are as versatile as nursing. You can be talking to 5 nurses who have 5 different kinds of jobs. I always thought that alone made the profession worth it.
emmanewgrad
214 Posts
Knowning what I now know, would I change it? My Nursing profession is my passion in life besides being a mother. My goal in life was to be a labor and delivery RN, but ED hired me instead :) if I could be part of a mother delivering her baby...wow, it would make everything
So complete :)