I finished residency about 20 years ago. The “aggravation factor” Among the anesthesiologists and surgeons that I work with is the highest I’ve ever seen. Firefighters here in Las Vegas make about $200,000, nurse anesthetist are heading towards $300,000, yet physicians have seen essentially no pay increase. Everybody else is getting paid more, yet the melting ice cubes that I am getting are worth 50% less than they were two years ago.
If one factors in overtime pay and just a little bit of a productivity factor, an ICU nurse here in Las Vegas is making about half of what I make. I feel that I am worth eight times more what an ICU nurse should get, given the fact that my education took three times longer, I am way more productive and have way more responsibility and stress. Some general locum tenens positions for anesthesia are paying $400/hr an hour and I think that is about right.
Just for reference, one day last week I did seven robot General Surgery cases by 3 PM. No break no lunch, seven tap blocks, intubations, wake ups and all the charting. Mostly somewhat ill Medicaid patients. Then I had another ex lap and a urology case to follow that for nine cases by 6 PM. The next day I was supervising with three thoracic cases in one room and six orthopedic cases in the other.
Surgeons are working hard too and equally frustrated. Numerous hospitals have only intermittent General Surgery call and some have picked up some surgeons that I would not let operate on me to cover their after hours work. They are very hesitant to pay adequate call stipends to doctors, yet are fine paying traveling nurses $130 an hour.
My crystal ball is at the shop, undergoing repairs, but I don’t see how something significant isn’t going to change in the near future.
