Happy St. Patrick’s day!

Since everyone’s supposed to wear green today, let’s talk about making a little more green as an NP!

When you become an NP after all the sacrifices you’ve made to get through school and pass your board exam, you expect to get compensated fairly.

Who would want to go through all that work and still be paid RN wages? Let me answer for you, no one.

Hopefully, as an NP you’ve already landed a job that pays fairly. Even if you have, there are still ways that you can make yourself more competitive and command more money.

1. Learn new skills: Your value as an NP will go up dramatically if you know how to perform basic skills like suturing, I&D, and toenail removal. You may or may not have learned procedures like these in school, or maybe you have, but aren’t comfortable with them. I suggest taking a skills course so you can learn to be proficient and confident doing those skills. There are lots of workshops in various parts of the country, so just Google “NP skills workshop” and take your pick.

2. Get certified: I don’t just mean nursing certifications, change it up and get non-nursing certifications that can open opportunities for new roles and an increase in salary. Some certifications that are hot right now include project management, data analytics, and UX/UI. Additional non-nursing certifications can also prepare you for a non-clinical role in the future if that’s a goal of yours.

3. Specialize: Working in a specialized field like occupational medicine can command a higher salary than the NP that works in a primary care office. Other high-paying specialities include ER, urgent care and infusion therapy. Mind you, each of these specialties requires that you know procedural skills, which loops back to the first point.

4. Negotiate: You’ll never know if you don’t try. If you have a job offer and the salary is low (or lower than you expect), negotiate and try to get it higher. You can also negotiate on vacation time, CME time and money, and student loan repayment.

5. Bill properly: Learn how to properly document and bill for your services and get your maximal reimbursement. Don’t lose money by underbilling for your services.

Have I missed anything? Let me know your top tips for making more money as a NP!