Some Nurses Land Higher Salaries Than Primary Care Doctors
by Jacob Goldstein
Sure, going to med schools a good way to make a decent living. But if you really want to do well, become a nurse anesthetist.
In the past year, nurse anesthetists recruited through the staffing firm Merritt Hawkins & Associates landed salaries that averaged $185,000.
That beats the pay for family practice docs hired through the firm, who averaged $172,000, and internists, who averaged $176,000.
A lot of it is just based on economics, Phil Miller, a VP at the firm explained. An investment in a [nurse anesthetist] who can do all your anesthesiology and keep your operating room going and ensure youre getting all those high-dollar procedures coming in to your hospital or your surgery center makes sense, particularly in rural areas where you may not have an anesthesiologist.
Nurse anesthetists typically receive an undergraduate nursing degree, have experience working as registered nurses and complete two to three years of post-graduate training. They can perform many (but not all) of the tasks often performed by anesthesiologists. The anesthesiologists recruited through Merritt Hawkins averaged $336,000 per year.
[...]
Here are the Merritt Hawkins averages for some other medical specialties:
Cardiology: $392,000
Dermatology: $315,000
Emergency medecine: $240,000
Gastroenterology: $379,000
General surgery: $321,000
OBGYN: $255,000
Orthopedic surgery: $439,000
Pediatrics: $159,000
Psychiatry:$189,000
Radiology: $401,000
[...]
http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2008/06/18/some-nurses-land-higher-salaries-than-primary-care-doctors/
by Jacob Goldstein
Sure, going to med schools a good way to make a decent living. But if you really want to do well, become a nurse anesthetist.
In the past year, nurse anesthetists recruited through the staffing firm Merritt Hawkins & Associates landed salaries that averaged $185,000.
That beats the pay for family practice docs hired through the firm, who averaged $172,000, and internists, who averaged $176,000.
A lot of it is just based on economics, Phil Miller, a VP at the firm explained. An investment in a [nurse anesthetist] who can do all your anesthesiology and keep your operating room going and ensure youre getting all those high-dollar procedures coming in to your hospital or your surgery center makes sense, particularly in rural areas where you may not have an anesthesiologist.
Nurse anesthetists typically receive an undergraduate nursing degree, have experience working as registered nurses and complete two to three years of post-graduate training. They can perform many (but not all) of the tasks often performed by anesthesiologists. The anesthesiologists recruited through Merritt Hawkins averaged $336,000 per year.
[...]
Here are the Merritt Hawkins averages for some other medical specialties:
Cardiology: $392,000
Dermatology: $315,000
Emergency medecine: $240,000
Gastroenterology: $379,000
General surgery: $321,000
OBGYN: $255,000
Orthopedic surgery: $439,000
Pediatrics: $159,000
Psychiatry:$189,000
Radiology: $401,000
[...]
http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2008/06/18/some-nurses-land-higher-salaries-than-primary-care-doctors/