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Are you paid enough?

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

CVTs, RNs report higher wages in 2017

A national survey of cardiovascular professionals in Cath, EP and combo labs showed strong wage growth for Cardiovascular Technologists and Registered Nurses from 2015 to 2017.

National average hourly wages reported by CVTs and RNs grew significantly—from $30.81 to $33.16 and from $36.64 to $39.57, respectively—while average wages for Radiologic Technologists regressed from their 2015 highs—from $36.13 to $34.61—according to the 2017 CATH/IR/EP Wage Survey presented by SpringBoard Healthcare.

"While each licensure all had moderate wage growth between 2011 and 2013, in 2015 the trends of the different licensures diverged," reads the SpringBoard report. "RNs and CVTs actually decreased in 2015, while RTs had very strong growth (almost 6%); however, in 2017 that trend reversed as RNs and CVTs had extremely strong growth (almost 10%) while RT compensation decreased."

Take ACVP's 11 minute survey now for more complete data & detailed analysis.

Over the period SpringBoard has surveyed wage trends for Cath/IR/EP professionals—2011 to 2017—CVTs have shown the strongest wage growth "by a large margin" compared to RNs and RTs in the West, Northeast and South regions.

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SICP to Join ACVP

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

Uniting the Cardiovascular Profession—For Your Benefit

The Society of Invasive Cardiovascular Professionals will soon strengthen the ranks of the Alliance of Cardiovascular Professionals.

Seeing an opportunity to unite the profession and improve the benefits of current members of both organizations, ACVP and SICP leadership agreed to join together.

SICP & ACVP joining means more resources, better benefits for members.

This opportunity to consolidate resources and benefits will result in more resources, better benefits, and fewer "upkeep" costs for members of the combined organization.

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CT angiography and stress tests can predict heart attacks

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

Invasive angiography unnecessary?

Noninvasive CT angiography and CT myocardial stress perfusion imaging can adequately predict heart attacks and major adverse cardiovascular events, according to a study published yesterday in Radiology—no invasive coronary angiography (ICA) required.

Invasive coronary angiography (ICA), along with stress tests and single photon emission tomography (SPECT) imaging, has long been the "gold standard" for making determinations of whether a lesion is hemodynamically significant and likely to result in major adverse cardiovascular events, reads a Radiological Society of North America press release.

But this "gold standard" has its drawbacks—in costs and risk.

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Career ladders getting higher for nurses—what about allied health?

Posted on by Kurt Jensen

All cardiac care professionals could see more professional development, opportunity.

With the switch to value-based medicine, more nurses are becoming hospital CEOs reads an article published online today in Hospitals & Health Networks Magazine.

Three hospitals in the six-hospital Memorial Healthcare System in Florida are now run by nurses—for RNs, it seems, the career ladder has grown longer, with more nurses climbing higher in healthcare management.

Beyond Florida, an August 2016 article in Becker's Hospital Review listed 33 nurses who transitioned to hospital CEOs.

Why are more hospitals tapping nurses to run the organization? Management competencies are changing, says Lamont Yoder, RN, of the American Organization of Nurse Executives to H&HN Magazine's Maggie Van Dyke.

Continue reading Career ladders getting higher for nurses—what about allied health?