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Are there higher-wage career opportunities for critical care nurse?
I am a san jose job corps student interested in nursing.
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Raquel’s Answer
I'm not sure what you mean by higher wage opportunities, but critical care nurses are often some of the higher paid nurses in the hospital. It also is based on experience and how long you've been with a particular organization. In San Jose, ICU nurses make anywhere between $74,000 and $250,000 depending on the specific job and years of experience. But aside from moving into a charge nurse position, administration, or getting a further degree to be a nurse practitioner, there aren't a lot of opportunities for 'higher wage opportunities.'
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John’s Answer
I have to agree that pay rates vary depending on location much more so than on specialty. That being said, there are paths like Nurse Anesthetist that pay very well (2-3 times RN rates) but that role requires additional education and usually a few years of critical care time. Travel nursing can be an option, but it has it's own issues with always being in a new facility and working with folks you don't know very well. It's hard to find the same sense of belonging and being a part of a community when you travel. Spend some time on Glassdoor or Indeed and research rates of pay. I'm still often shocked at the ranges that are out there.
The one thing that I wish more people understood and were comfortable with is negotiation. Hospitals are like any other business, and at the end of the day, the bottom line is what matters. They need to be able to keep their doors open, but you need to take care of yourself, so don't be afraid to ask for what you want in a rate of pay. Do your homework and have a good idea of what similar roles pay before you even apply. Be ready to offer good rationale & justification for the rate you want, but don't just accept what they want to offer. For the foreseeable future, nurses will be in short supply and you will have significant leverage in negotiating rates. It will take practice, but you can and should do it if you'd like to maximize your earning and get as much as you can for a job that's challenging and all too often, thankless.
The one thing that I wish more people understood and were comfortable with is negotiation. Hospitals are like any other business, and at the end of the day, the bottom line is what matters. They need to be able to keep their doors open, but you need to take care of yourself, so don't be afraid to ask for what you want in a rate of pay. Do your homework and have a good idea of what similar roles pay before you even apply. Be ready to offer good rationale & justification for the rate you want, but don't just accept what they want to offer. For the foreseeable future, nurses will be in short supply and you will have significant leverage in negotiating rates. It will take practice, but you can and should do it if you'd like to maximize your earning and get as much as you can for a job that's challenging and all too often, thankless.
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Patti’s Answer
From my experience there is no difference between ICU, ER, Med-Surg, or OR nursing in the hospital. It is more based on your years of experience. Often the highest paid nurses in the hospital are the float pool or flex pool nurses that are assigned a new unit daily depending on the hospitals need for nurses on each unit. They can make often $10 or more per hour than nurses that are not floating. But I've only worked in North Carolina.
Pay is also very different across the US ranging from $25/hour to $120/hour (west coast and NYC mainly), And $60-$150/hour for traveling, but also depending on the location of the facility and your years of experience.
If you are looking to become a RN, I'd do a salary research the city or state you plan to work in to get a better idea of your potential income, but not necessarily what part of the hospital or other facility type you end up working in. Plus, chances are you wouldn't stay an ICU nurse forever. Nurse often change specialties or facilities at lease once in their career. There is some difference between pay at hospitals , clinicals, surgical centers and home health agencies. I'm thinking plus or minus a few dollars an hour up to ten dollars.
Pay is also very different across the US ranging from $25/hour to $120/hour (west coast and NYC mainly), And $60-$150/hour for traveling, but also depending on the location of the facility and your years of experience.
If you are looking to become a RN, I'd do a salary research the city or state you plan to work in to get a better idea of your potential income, but not necessarily what part of the hospital or other facility type you end up working in. Plus, chances are you wouldn't stay an ICU nurse forever. Nurse often change specialties or facilities at lease once in their career. There is some difference between pay at hospitals , clinicals, surgical centers and home health agencies. I'm thinking plus or minus a few dollars an hour up to ten dollars.
Karla Green
I own a digital marketing agency and I'm also a nurse part time.
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Karla’s Answer
I honestly haven't encountered high paying jobs for Emergency Room nurses (critical care) the range for Midwest for RN is $25-28 per hour honestly not worth. However in long term care the rate can be $40+ for LPN and currently the agency's are paying RNs $65+ still not worth it due to the high number of patients you have to care for which is usually 25+ residents.You may think wow that's a lot of money and a lot of young nurses come straight and work very longgggg hours for the money but quickly switch careers within 3 years due to burn out,depression,stress,maltreatment,over exposure to diseases/viruses. So weigh out the options.
Find two nursing specialties you are interested in and do research.
Karla recommends the following next steps:
The ER is different from critical care
Raquel Davis