A look at cath lab pay and how you might do better

If you work in a cath lab and you would like to make more money, take some pointers from SpringBoard Healthcare’s 2015 survey. The survey results shed light on wage information from directors and managers to nurses and techs.

  • Location, location, location. Cath lab personnel who worked in the West and Northeast earned higher wages on average than counterparts in the Midwest and South.
  • Pick up roots. Traveling staff pulled in more money than nontraveling staff for all regions and positions. A nontraveling registered nurse in the West earned an hourly wage of $42.97 vs. $49.50 for a traveling RN; in the South, the wages were $32.67 vs. $43.42.  
  • Get credentials. Almost one in three respondents reported that they received a pay increase after getting credentialed and about two in three added that their employer reimbursed them for the undertaking.
  • Find the sweet spot. RNs who handled a combination of cath and electrophysiology lab duties on average made top dollars. Catheterization and radiology technologists fared better by sticking to one role.
  • Gain experience. Respondents with 10 years or more experience drew an average hourly wage of $36.53 while those with one to five years of experience received $28.53 an hour.
  • Choose your setting. Respondents who worked in academic and teaching institutions reported the highest average wage by employer type, at $34.60 an hour. By comparison, the 83.5 percent of respondents who held positions in hospitals made $1.10 less per hour.

SpringBoard, based in Phoenix, provides consulting, education and talent acquisition services in partnerships with hospitals and healthcare organizations to help enhance cardiovascular service lines. It has conducted the Cath Lab Wage Survey since 2011.

Candace Stuart, Contributor

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