Based on 1,297 responses so far to our current National Salary and Workplace Survey of Nurse Practitioners, the average hourly rate for a part-time NP position is $45.20 (median $43). That's up almost $5 per hour from 2 years ago (when the average hourly rate was $40.32).
But those rates don't tell the whole story. The settings where part-time nurse practitioners are paid the most aren't the settings where the most part-time NPs are employed. Compare the charts below.
Average Part-Time Hourly Rates for NPs
| Setting |
Part Time |
Av. Hourly Rate |
| Retail health |
26% |
$45.19 |
| Women’s health |
26% |
$42.40 |
| Aesthetics |
22% |
$43.50 |
| Pediatrics |
19% |
$43.40 |
Another interesting finding of the survey so far: Of NPs working in part-time positions, more than one out of three (34%) report having more than one part-time job. I don't know if that's a recent change (or even a change at all) because we've never asked that question before. Also, in this survey we aren't asking NPs with full-time positions if they also have a part-time position - but we will in the 2011 survey.
Tell us about your part-time experience. Have you recently taken an additional position to make ends meet? Would you prefer a full-time position, or are you happy working part time?
With all the news about job losses, salary freezes, diminishing benefits and doing more work with fewer workers, you might think things are dismal all over. But for nurse practitioners, that doesn't seem to be the case, at least not yet.
In the 2009 ADVANCE for Nurse Practitioners National Salary and Workplace Survey of NPs (being conducted online right now!), 67% of respondents say they're better off professionally than they were 2 years ago. And 24% say they're doing about the same. That's with 1,225 completed responses so far.
Of those who tell us they're better off, 77% are making more money, 32% are receiving better benefits, and 68% say they're more satisfied with their jobs. Twenty percent say laws and regulations governing NP practice have improved.
That leaves 9% of NPs who say they're worse off now than 2 years ago. Among them, 46% report lower salaries, 34% fewer benefits, and 65% less job satisfaction. A handful (3.5%) say the practice they own is struggling.
How are you doing? Leave a comment below.
And if you haven't yet filled out the 2009 survey, you can do it now here: http://nurse-practitioners.advanceweb.com/Article/Nurse-Practitioner-Salary-Survey.aspx.
The recent hype in the media about NPs being able to "fill in" where primary care physicians are clearing out makes me wonder: Are NPs really "filling a gap" like they claim? Or is there more to it?
Check out this wsaw.com video on the topic, which features an NP in Wausau, Wisc. The reporter says, "The nurse practitioner says although she may not have the title of MD, what she can and can't do is no different than any other family physician."
What do you think? Are you stepping in where physicians are stepping out, or are you providing something new and improved? Are you doing exactly the same work the family physician does in primary care? Seems to me that NPs who have the chance to speak to the media about this new "opportunity to fill the gap" they should add a reminder of how NPs can provide even better, holistic care. Share your thoughts!
When you do a Google search on your name, what comes up? I just checked mine, and every instance of "Jill Rollet" for pages and pages referred to me. But if you have a more common name, like my colleague Jennifer Ford, you can kiss first-page Google results goodbye.
Why should you care? Because if your patients - or potential patients who've heard good things about you from other patients -- if they're looking for you, you don't want them to click on "Who's Jennifer Ford Dating?" You'd like them to easily locate your professional profile.
You can make yourself easier to find by publishing a ton of journal articles - or by just filling out a bare-bones profile on the major social media sites. LinkedIn profiles often appear among the first two or three sites in a Google search. Go to http://www.linkedin.com/ to fill out a short professional listing with your contact information and Web site URL (if you have one, which you should if you're a practice owner, otherwise link to your employer's Web site). You never have to touch it again if you don't want to.
While you're at it, fill out a tasteful Facebook profile for yourself and, if you're a practice owner, for your practice at http://www.facebook.com. You don't need to fill it with photos or post to it ever again, but it gives you ownership of your own name.
Social media can seem overwhelming and time consuming, but it doesn't have to be. Just squat on your own name and stop worrying about it.
A couple weeks ago CNN asked readers who should fill the "doctor" shortage. Nine responses are now posted on CNNMoney.com -- two from NPs, three from physicians and one each from a med student, a PA, an EMT and a consumer. Everyone but the EMT address the question of the role of NPs and PAs in primary care.
The consumer loves NPs and contrasts the amount of time and attention she's received from NPs and physicians. She says, "Three years ago, I went for an office visit and was seen by a nurse practitioner. She spent 20 to 25 minutes for my annual physical and actually listened to me before writing a prescription. Since then, I have never seen a doctor except if I did not have an option of seeing an nurse practitioner."
The physicians are all negative toward the idea that NPs and PAs can play a large and important role in a reformed healthcare system. Here's my favorite comment: "Many physician assistants and nurse practitioners are very good at their job, but the fact is they are less likely to recognize rare diseases and symptoms that might suggest a serious underlying condition. They (also) do not take any legal liability for their decisions. Instead the liability is passed back to the physician who employs them. And yet many of them get paid nearly as much as primary care doctors. What a deal!"
Yes, what a deal! How many of you are getting away scott free with malpractice and still making as much as physicians?
A recent blog post on The Health Care Blog was titled, "Patient, Heal Thyself." Don Kemper, CEO of Healthwise, writes about how empowering patients to manage their own health will help to save the healthcare system in this country:
If you want a better system, support a smarter patient.
For weeks now Congress has been stymied by how to pay for extending coverage to the uninsured. While it may seem stupid to look to the patient for the answer, pumping more money into the current system would be the stupidest idea of all. Helping people to do more for their own health care may be the only thing that saves health care reform.
Many of the commenters agree that this is a good idea but perhaps too optimistic about patients' ability or willingness. Others say they think the problem is physician greed resulting in too many tests. Still others remind readers that even educated patients need immediate response or confirmation if dealing with acute symptoms, and that they wouldn't be able to get that in the current system.
Why doesn't Kemper mention utilizing the thousands of nurse practitioners in this country to do exactly what he dreams of in his post? Nurse practitioners can fill two roles here: patient educator and "first repsonder" to the patients' concerns.
The Japanese are looking to us for tips on saving money on healthcare. TV Tokyo is in Green Bay, Wisconsin this week filming a documentary about Bellin Health's FastCare retail healthcare clinics. The documentarists told the Green Bay Press Gazette that they hope the film will encourage similar clinics to open in Japan, whose healthcare system has similar challenges to our own:
"We are doing a special feature about this retail clinic and about how hospitals got into this," said Mariko Daicho, a producer with TV Tokyo America Inc.
Daicho said Japan's national health-care system is plagued by overcrowded emergency rooms and a shortage of physicians. It doesn't have retail clinics or allow physician assistants.
"We said, 'There must be some merit for the hospitals as well as the patients. What would be the merit?'" she said.
Ken Berndt, director of Business Development for Bellin Health, said the Japanese health-care system is bankrupting the country.
"They have poor access and it's expensive," he said. "They are hoping to influence Japanese leaders to bring retail care to Japan."
Reader comments at the end of the article are interesting as well: ciao1 expressed worry that Japan's government-sponsored healthcare plan is still overtaxed and expensive. "Why again are we considering a government run system? I think this is the bigger story here."
Do you NPs believe retail healthcare will help the U.S. or Japanese healthcare systems save money?
Cherilynn Lee, NP, has been all over the media, relating her claims about Michael Jackson's death. Her story involves Michael asking her for treatment of his insomnia using the anesthetic Diprivan, which is usually only available in the hospital setting when patients can be monitored closely.
Lee says she refused his requests and brought him information about the drug and its risks. Lee has been interviewed by major news figures, such as Larry King, and she claims that she wants to tell this story to debunk drug abuse rumors about Jackson.
The news media doesn't seem to know what to call her; in videos we see "nurse" across the bottom of the screen and in news reports I've seen her called a nutritionist and a holistic health practitioner. But, the California Nurses Association lists her as an NP, and so does her Web site. It looks like they're trying, at least: Larry King called her a "registered nurse family practitioner."
If you're an NP who owns your own practice, be sure to enter the 2009 ADVANCE for Nurse Practitioners NP Entrepreneur of the Year competition. Do it for Leah Hansen, perhaps the only nurse practitioner with her own practice in Australia. Because her practice isn't in the United States, Hansen isn't eligible for the competition. But you are.
Now, some more about Hansen and her practice...
Almost all NPs in Australia work in hospital settings, but otherwise their training and struggles are similar to those NPs have faced in the United States: resistance from other health professionals, different legal requirements in different states, less than full prescribing authority, lack of recognition by the public, etc. The role is also very young -- about a decade old -- and NPs number fewer than 1,000.
That makes Hansen's Revive Clinic all the more remarkable. She and a business partner opened two clinics in Western Australia in December: one a standalone office in a shopping center, and another a "pod" in a pharmacy. According to Hansen, these are the first NP-owned clinics and the first retail-based NP clinic in the country.
The partners have plans to expand Revive Clinics in the next couple of months with four more pharmacy clinics in Queensland, New South Wales and Western Australia. NPs are cash-only in Australia, and Revive's Web site provides a clear overview of the clinic's services and fees.
If you're an NP outside the United States and read ADVANCE, let us know. We're interested in what's happening with the profession around the world.
Whereas previously NPs were only accepted as part of a new discount family insurance plan, (New Discount Plan to Include NPs), now the company plans to include and reimburse NPs directly. This is a great move toward full recognition of NPs' abilities in Florida, one of two remaining states that does not allow nurse practitioners to prescribe medications. Florida NPs were asked to send in registration information by July 15.
A letter was sent to providers in Florida by BCBS that tells the good news, with one frustrating twist: the company is calling the group of new accepted providers (which includes physician assistants and all advanced practice nurses) "physician extenders." Florida NP groups have started talks about creating an educational letter for BCBS requesting that the language be changed. Get involved! Contact the Florida Nurse Practitioner network by visiting www.fnpn.org.
The media has been bombarding us with news about Michael Jackson's death, which hasn't been noteworthy for our blog until today, when California nurse practitioner Cherilyn Lee spoke up in defense of Michael Jackson, who Lee says sought sedatives from her as a sleep aid but not to abuse. Lee had been providing nutrition advice to MJ.
The Associated Press reported the news about Michael's NP, who said that Michael asked her repeatedly for the IV sedative Diprivan, and she refused because of its risks. She also said she feared he'd been able to obtain the drug from another provider.
The article was a bit murky about whether Lee was a registered nurse, an NP, or a nutritionist, but it does seem that, according to listings on the California Association of Nurse Practitioners Web site, that she is in fact a nurse practitioner.
Lee said she tried repeatedly to educate Jackson about the cardiac risks of using the IV sedative but he waved her off.
Lee said she spoke out now to protect Jackson:
Lee said she decided to speak out to protect Jackson's reputation from what she considers unfounded allegations of drug abuse or shortcomings as a parent.
"I think it's so wrong for people to say these things about him," she said. "He was a wonderful, loving father who wanted the best for his children."
It looks like Lee did her best to protect and educate him before and after his death.
Earlier this month the American Medical Association held its House of Delegates meeting, during which it discusses what issues are important to their profession and sets the stage for political action to be pursued by the organization. The American Academy of Family Physicians published an article about testimony made against the DNP certification exam developed by the American Board of Comprehensive Care/Council for the Advancement of Comprehensive Care (ABCC/CACC).
If you visit this article on the AAFP's web site, you can listen to the testimony. AMA is very concerned that the National Board of Medical Examiners, whose pool of test items the DNP was drawn from, has not held up its promise to be clear that the DNP exam is not equivalent to an MD exam.
So, now that we've seen strong opinions against the exam from the AMA as well as the hard-hitting NP organizations, itseems the only person still championing the exam is Mary Mundinger, dean of the Columbia University school of nursing and member of the ABCC/CACC. Do any of you believe it will help NPs prove their abilities? Are those crickets I hear?
This is the third post in a series by first-time AANP conference attendees. Cheryll N. Simmons is a family nurse practitioner student at the University of Miami. At the completion of her program in August of 2009, she will continue her studies at UM, pursuing her doctorate of nursing practice degree. Here are Cheryll's impressions of the conference:
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Guest blogger Cheryll N. Simmons, NP-S |
I had no idea what to expect from my first American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) conference in Nashville, Tennessee. I was totally prepared to struggle through understanding technical jargon geared toward experienced nurse practitioners and not a soon-to-be graduate. As I thumbed through the conference guide, I was overwhelmed by the number of options available ranging from Twelve-Lead EKG interpretation to perfecting gynecological assessment. I decided to take my chances at participating in a wound care seminar. Walking through the elaborate Gaylord Opryland Hotel, which resembled Disney's Epcot Center, gave the impression of regality; however, the atmosphere warmed by genteel smiles and shared passions for the direction of medicine made it feel like home.
In my session on wound care held in the Governor's Ballroom, I found a seat close to the podium. As I sat quietly, trying not to call attention to my slowly increasing anxiety, a nurse practitioner sat next to me and must have noticed the purple color of my badge. She turned to me and asked when I expected to graduate. I told her August and expressed my feelings of nervousness and apprehension. She immediately began to console me, sharing her first experiences as a nurse practitioner and having the same moments of doubt. It was exciting to listen to scholarly didactics from the podium, but reassuring to engage in personal conversation on my level. I was going to be fine.
There were over 4,500 people gathered together to talk about the future of health care. In the general sessions, we talked about the importance of being politically active in order to promote nurse practitioners. We also discussed health care reform and the vital role that nurse practitioners play in actualizing it. Though I didn't think I'd have much to contribute I was astounded at how much I had absorbed through my program of study at the University of Miami. All participants seemed eager to offer advice and to listen to new ideas.
My first experience at the AANP conference will be indelibly etched in my memory. I expected to attend this conference with my mind rattled by the depth of information collected. However, I was astounded by the amount of information I digested. I feel ready to enter the world of nurse practitioners, partly because I feel more prepared and partly because a stranger made me feel better. I think that was the heart of this conference-believing that what we are doing is valuable and believing in the value of each other. And as one speaker put it, "Nurse practitioners are the best kept secret in health care." I concur; however, after this conference I dare say the secret is out.
Thank you, Cheryll!