I have a several friends that are nurses at local reputable hospitals. They complaint to me all the time that they are not making nearly as much as they should be. Most of them have been working for 4yrs now and complaining that they should be making $30 or more.
I keep telling them that any other job out there does not pay their employees that much money starting out, so they should be happy the amount that they are getting. Are they just greedy or do you think they should deserve more?
My friends knew what they were getting into when they went to nursing school and were hired at hospitals. they were told by others that the increases per year are minimum, so why do they still bring it up?
If all you do is watch House MD, the docs draw labs, hang saline, blood, do diagnostic imaging like CTs, MRIs, as well as pathology, give meds, etc. I should say the SAME docs do all this.
Why do they even need us???
After all, we don't do much for our pts. The MD's just do all the care by themselves. lol
I disagree. They did not truly know what they were getting into. You do not realize the enormous responsibility shouldered by nurses until it's on YOUR shoulders. Maybe it's not entirely exhausting in the realm of physical work, but emotionally and intellectually it can be extremely draining. I love my job, I love my patients, and I appreciate the paycheck, but sometimes you just can't put a price on what a nurse does. Not that I condone the complaining that they don't make enough money, but like CrunchRN said, I don't think nurses are paid enough for WHAT THEY DO.
And for the record, I don't think CNAs are paid nearly enough either. It doesn't matter that an RN has more of an educational background, CNA jobs are physically demanding and worth a heck of a lot more than someone flipping burgers at Mickey D's.
...and the statement that "Any other job out there doesn't pay that much to start" is just silly. "Any other job" may or may not. We're not doing any other job. We are trained professionals with a degree doing a highly specialized job.
I do understand how annoying it can be listening to continual complaints about how much more people think they are "worth". You are "worth" however much someone is willing to pay you. It's as simple as that.
Bottom line is nursing is simply hard work in every sense of the word. Emotionally, physically, mentally. If you have never done it, you can't even begin to understand the breadth of what we do on a daily basis. If I felt like I was being way underpaid for that kind of commitment, I would probably move on if the job market in the area permitted.
Hold on to your hats..South FLorida...RNs are making around $25.00/hr and they can get away with it b/c the market is so tight.
I just ran into a recruiter from one of the biggest hospitals in the county and she threw out that number for an experienced case management position....that even shocked me....!
Just to think how much my plummer charges and I gladly fork it over because I cannot do his job of course. lol
They sound like greedy monsters who steal christmas presents from small children. I only complain that I make too much money and that I do not have enough patients assigned to me. I want to help as many people as possible.
OP.... I see what you are saying in that we are not in this position just for the money.... But I just graduated with my BSN and when you are looking at thousands of dollars in student loans and you are only making 18-22 dollars an hour it is frustrating. Then you add in the fact that you feel like you have a job that two people should share.... IMO nurses should get paid more... I think this should be based on evals, continuing edu, attendence, etc.
Go talk to a paramedic about their salaries and tell me a nurse is underpaid. No offense, I'm an RN as well, but RN's have it pretty good. I know some that work really hard and some that sit on their butts and do next to nothing all day for gobs of cash. Ironically, it seems the busier an EMS station is, the less they get paid. I worked 48 shifts and would run anywhere from 15-25 calls in that time (rural, each call is probably gonna take you an hour or so to complete) and I made 11.33 an hour and I had the same degree then as the one i have now as a nurse, so as much as I wish we got paid more as nurses, I think back to just very short time ago, the things I had to do, the things I had to see, the responsibilities i had, the dangers we faced, the horrible lifestyle, and the fact that it was just me and my partner out there for 11.33 an hour and I don't think my new nursing gig is such a bad deal.
RosesrReder, BSN, MSN, RN
8,498 Posts
After all, we don't do much for our pts. The MD's just do all the care by themselves. lol