how old were you when you realized you weren't going to make real money as a nurse

allnurses Guide · Jul 6, 2010

QUOTE=carolmaccas66;4397953]I for one, would certainly not be emptying trash cans/garbege, because some fat beaurocrat who has sat behind a desk for 10 years and has nil current clinical experience thinks nurses can do a bit more. All these extra duties and extra paperwork is enough. What would happen if you were emptying garbage and some poor patient had an allergic reaction to a drug, or needed help with something? I would absolutely refuse as a professional to do duties outside the scope of nursing practice. Also consider the legal ramifications - if you work outside your boundaries, you leave yourself open for litigation. If a nurse manager - or any manager - asked us to empty garbage, etc I would refuse & I would give my reasons why there and then.

Historically, nurses have done many of the things now done by housekeeping, respiratory, dietary, central supply and the laundry department. Although you can argue that patient acuity has increased requiring more singular focus by the nurse, emptying the trash, disinfecting the bassinets in NICU, wrapping and auto-claving surgical instruments, folding linens and making tapioca pudding are not out of the scope of nursing practice.

The valid issue as you point out, is that these lower priority concerns may prevent you from doing the higher priority concerns, and if that were the case, I would refuse to accept it as well. Hospitals apparently aren't giving a lot of thought to the legal jeopardy they create by continuing to pile the unskilled tasks on nurses.

mfrancisco · Jul 6, 2010

Oh, don't go there. Stay in CA. At least your off days you can go to the beach. Me, I get to go to Pirates games all summer.

It's chilly in San Francisco, but yes, I can go to the beach and dream!! :cool:

Argo · Jul 7, 2010

Just spent a couple nights in San Fran. Beautiful town. Did a road trip all the way up through Seattle. My wife and I are now making plans to Take a travel assignment up in that area next summer after our oldest graduates. We Will likely be homeschooling our son.

jxRN · Jul 7, 2010

I'm a new grad who recently found a job in the bay area, and i'm not gonna lie, the $ is sooo good. Nurses can easily make over 90-100K here.

I'm in acute pscyh/ adolescent psych and the job is soooo stressful. The nurses I work with are pulling double time, over time, 16 hour shifts if they want to. Starting with $49 on weekends, and going double if you pull double shift. Right now, some of the nurses are literally sit watching the pts as they go to bed and sleep during noc, getting paid double time. I worked on july 4th, and the pay was almost 70 an hour.

the problem is, hospitals aren't willing to train now. So they are putting this high salary in front of me, with limited orientation, and telling me, you either can take it or someone else will. My hospital gave me a 5 day orientation and pushed me out on the floor as a new grad. I have pts who are highly psychotic/ highly sucidial. They are banging on the nurses station crying/screaming/yelling for mercy, coming to you, telling you they just accidentally cut their wrist open with a blade, while you have another psychotic fighting with another psychotic pt. while I have paperwork backed up like a mountain. Good? i don't think soo. They're leaving me to sink or swim. My cost of living here is very low b/c i got smart and found a cheap and nice place to live.

So is the money worth it? you tell me.

carolmaccas66, BSN, RN · Jul 7, 2010

Historically, nurses have done many of the things now done by housekeeping, respiratory, dietary, central supply and the laundry department. Although you can argue that patient acuity has increased requiring more singular focus by the nurse, emptying the trash, disinfecting the bassinets in NICU, wrapping and auto-claving surgical instruments, folding linens and making tapioca pudding are not out of the scope of nursing practice.
The valid issue as you point out, is that these lower priority concerns may prevent you from doing the higher priority concerns, and if that were the case, I would refuse to accept it as well. Hospitals apparently aren't giving a lot of thought to the legal jeopardy they create by continuing to pile the unskilled tasks on nurses.

I attended a nursing reunion once (20 odd years ago), and some really old nurses there (they have died now), told me how they used to put straw on the floors, collect/sweep it up when it had soaked up all the blood, had to work out the meals ie: for diabetics etc, mop/clean floors, wash windows, and they had no help, PCAs, etc. I wish I had written it all down and published a book. I know nurses do many duties that aren't really nursing, but I was saying I wouldn't be doing anything else if my patient needed intensive care or more nursing care. You know how it is, you have 4-6 patients and one of them always needs more care, and is more demanding. I still however would refuse to do anything that is not related to my job - I just don't think it is worth my license to be frank, and I always imagine myself being hauled up in court to answer about what I did on my shift. For example last night I refused to give a simple medication because the doctor had not written it up in the med chart - other nurses were giving this medication, but as I told the shift coordinator I didn't feel comfortable doing that and the legal ramifications are enormous. Imagine if I gave the patient this medication, he had a bad allergic reaction for instance, and nothing was charted! I would be in so much trouble; I would probably lose my license.

Good points you made though, it made me think we do a lot of extra duties don't we!

tntrn, ASN, RN · Jul 7, 2010

We clean our own pt. beds after a delivery; we take out the trash from our patient rooms; we have to put in our orders because sometimes we don't have a secretary; more and more, we are being asked to do things that are definitely NOT nursing duties, except that they make them part of the job.

Then they complain because we don't have enough patient contact time documented.

redbeads · Jul 7, 2010

I have a job. With benefits. And Dental insurance. Been a nurse for 16 years and took a pay cut in '97 with a pay freeze for 3 years. No regrets for me. When I started, I made 12.50/hr, now I make 31.00/hr. I'm in it for the long haul. Where else could I do what I love and get paid for it? Four years of college was well worth it.

annacat · Jul 7, 2010

This is an great discussion topic! For those of you who don't think that nurses get paid enough. how much is enough? This is not a sarcastic question.

annacat · Jul 7, 2010

love the quote!!!!

kcochrane · Jul 7, 2010

Starting pay in upstate NY (in the city area) is about 20-21/hr. I make more with LPN experience. Can't lie. I like working less hours while still making more than I did as a LPN. Although I think nurses these days get paid pretty well, I don't think they get paid enough for the responsibility they have and the work they do.

I can pay my bills, pick up overtime when needed and I love being a nurse (most days ).

eriksoln, BSN, RN · Jul 7, 2010

This is an great discussion topic! For those of you who don't think that nurses get paid enough. how much is enough? This is not a sarcastic question.

I make mid 20s in PA, near the Pittsburgh area. I'm fine with that. Things I'd like:

1. Better retirement benefits. Lets face it, the nurse who starts nursing young and does it all the way to retirement age is not as common as in other career paths. Retirement benefits that allow a nurse who is physically/emotionally unable to continue in the field to retire when the time is right, rather than stick around for financial reasons, would benefit nurse and patient.

2. Better work conditions: Lets put a stop to getting rid of hospital staff and placing their duties on the nurse. Nurses are not the wild card laborer. When will hospitals get it..............more time doing trash pick up and paperwork means less time with the patient. Period. No policy or motivational technique can change it. Less time with pt = worse PG scores and less reimbursement. It also means compromised pt. outcomes (possible lawsuits, meaning money AND loss of reputation, since the $ is all they seem to understand, outcomes otherwise are heresay to them). Isn't allowing a few extra aids and housekeepers worth that?

3. Lets get back to the days where paper reduction was a priority. Remember when "double charting" was taboo rather than expected? Refer to #2 for the pros to this. Same thing.

allnurses Guide · Jul 7, 2010

I attended a nursing reunion once (20 odd years ago), and some really old nurses there (they have died now), told me how they used to put straw on the floors, collect/sweep it up when it had soaked up all the blood, had to work out the meals ie: for diabetics etc, mop/clean floors, wash windows, and they had no help, PCAs, etc. I wish I had written it all down and published a book. I know nurses do many duties that aren't really nursing, but I was saying I wouldn't be doing anything else if my patient needed intensive care or more nursing care. You know how it is, you have 4-6 patients and one of them always needs more care, and is more demanding. I still however would refuse to do anything that is not related to my job - I just don't think it is worth my license to be frank, and I always imagine myself being hauled up in court to answer about what I did on my shift. For example last night I refused to give a simple medication because the doctor had not written it up in the med chart - other nurses were giving this medication, but as I told the shift coordinator I didn't feel comfortable doing that and the legal ramifications are enormous. Imagine if I gave the patient this medication, he had a bad allergic reaction for instance, and nothing was charted! I would be in so much trouble; I would probably lose my license.
Good points you made though, it made me think we do a lot of extra duties don't we!

I know exactly what you're talking about! Luckily for me, jobs I've had where we had to sterilize instruments, etc., the patient load was less or the environment was less acute.

Up until recently I felt that wages and benefits for nurses were very good, and we always got cost-of -living raises every year, and a merit raise given even if you were a passably good employee, not a stellar employee. I don't feel that way anymore about most employers, especially the large corporations. I've watched inflation pick away at my real wages, less choice and higher contribution in health insurance premiums, etc.

Sometimes people ask "if you had to do it all over again, would you?" For most of my life that would've been a resounding "yes!" Now, it's probably still a yes, but I'm not so sure anymore. I just really hope that those here, especially the new grads, see the economy improve enough to get things on the upswing again, but having lived through previous recessions that barely touched the nursing job market, I have serious doubts.