- The average annual salary for a registered respiratory therapist is $58,279 as of January 2011, according to Salary.com. Half of all RRTs receive salaries between $53,990 and $62,814, although the top-earning 10 percent earn $66,943 each year. Many RRT positions are paid on an hourly basis, and the average hourly wage for an registered respiratory therapist ranges from $19.67 to $26.84 as of January 2011, according to PayScale.
- The average registered nurse working as a staff nurse rather than aiding a specialist earns $65,379 as of January 2011, according to Salary.com, with 50 percent of all RNs earning salaries between $59,451 and $71,950. The highest 10 percent of annual salaries in the profession exceed $77,932. As with RRT positions, many RNs are hourly employees. When they're paid on an hourly basis, RNs' hourly wages fall between $22.04 and $30.73 as of January 2011, according to PayScale.
- Part of the difference in the two positions' salaries can be chalked up to the differences in education required for each. To work as an RRT, a caregiver must hold an associate's degree, while RNs must complete a four-year degree to achieve their license. In addition, registered nurses may work in many different healthcare settings and assume a wide range of specialties. Registered respiratory therapists' skill set is limited to testing and consultation in respiratory fields.
- As with most healthcare professions, the demand for RRTs and RNs is expected to outpace the growth of the economy, and both are projected to grow at nearly the same rate: The number of RRT positions is expected to increase by 21 percent between 2008 and 2018, while the number of RNs on the job is expected to increase by 22 percent during the same period, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That translates to an increase in 21,000 RRT positions and 581,500 RN positions, so registered nurses may have much broader job opportunities than registered respiratory therapists.
- Advertisement -
- Advertisement -