Duluth Georgia Nurse Practitioner Salary And Job Requirements

While choosing a career, it is imperative that we know the exact job. The assumption that related jobs have the same description is easily made especially in the field of medicine. A Nurse Practitioner is also called an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN). They have duties that nurses cannot do. The job duties of an NP vary from one specialization to another. Let us look at the general job duties and that of their specializations.

Nurse Practitioner Career Summary

**Image Source – BLS.gov

Table Of Contents:

How Much Does A Nurse Practitioner Make In Duluth?

A nurse practicioner earns $90,000 on average. Compared to a registered nurse this is quite high since an RN gets something around $65,000. This value is lower compared to an NP since an NP goes through more training and education and later earns the right to practice medicine.

[asd_program_button /]

Setting

The higher the demand for NPs, the higher they will be paid. For example, Hawaii is the highest paying state with an average salary of $115,000 a year. Compared to the average earnings of NPs in the rest of the country, they earn 30% more. In Delaware, NPs could earn as much as $67,000.

Nurse practitioner salary information

**Image Source – BLS.gov

Length of Practice

As far as experienced is concerned as a factor of salary, in this field, even with experience, the salary hardly increases. A 10-15% increase in the salary may be given to those who have been working in the field for more than 20 years.

Skills

An increase of salary may be given if you have more expertise in some fields. An approximate salary of $99,000 could be given to those with skills in acute care and emergency room skills. Whereas family care can take it only up to $92,000. Those who earn somewhere in between are mostly geriatrics and internal medicine practitioners.

Promotions

Getting a specialization or a promotion may be the only way to earn higher. Achieving this may require you to do the following. You can try to become a Nurse Practitioner Anesthetist who can earn about $150,000 a year. Another is by becoming an Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner, who earns slightly more than the regular NP. Other options include being a Family, Pediatric NP, Psychiatrist NP, or an Adult NP. You could also increase your salary with other specializations after doing the procedures. The specific area you take may require you to spend a period of time to apply what you learned and you will receive certificates in return.

Benefits

There are several benefits that an NP could gain. Among the number of assistance, health insurance, retirement plans, and paid vacations are included. Employees who want to enhance their skills through schooling can gain financial support from their company. Learning skills is a big matter, which is why they are given money and registration fees to participate in conferences that improve their abilities.

Because of this shortage for main medical practitioners, many aspiring health care professionals would most likely work in the field. So, in the future, there is a high chance that Nurse Practitioners are going to get paid much more. There are also more time for NPs to choose the type of cases they wish to do.

Average nurse practitioner wage in

**Image Source – BLS.gov

Nurse Practitioner Duluth Employment Outlook

The United States of America needed 170,000 nurse practitioners in 2014. The BLS predicts an average of 31% growth in the industry within the next 10 years. This means that about 57,000 new jobs will come up in that period. The main reason for this is the shortage of medical workers. Doctors and physicians cannot meet the demands of the people. Thus, the need of people like PAs and NPs is increasing and is projected to increase even further. It is estimated that the jobs for Family, Pediatric, Gastroenterology, and Hospitalist NPs will rise by about 11% whereas that of neonatal NPs will rise about 34%. The speed of growth is much higher than the the other careers’ growth rate.

[asd_program_button /]

Another reason for the increasing demand of nurses is because they take a patient-centered approach rather than a disease-centered one. It is the reason why NPs are preferred over PAs.

Rustic areas have a continuous need for better healthcare. Most of these areas are not suitable for new buildings, which means that the people could only consult with NPs. These medical practitioners may ask help from other physicians to cater to the patients in the area. The biggest employers of NPs are Office of Physicians, Outpatient Care Centers, and General Hospitals.

The need for specialized health care is also increasing. Specializations of nurses include those in pediatrics, gerontology, acute care, and other fields. This means that they can give a more accurate diagnosis of the patient’s problem if it falls in their area of specialty.

Employment outlook for nurse practitioners in

**Image Source – BLS.gov

Another need for nurses is coming up in education. Teachers of nurses and other medical professionals are needed due to the lack of people honing the skills of the future medical practitioners. A Ph.D. title is needed before a nurse practitioner becomes a teacher in the field. Some people resort to teaching after a long period of service. This choice is made by NPs who feel that the regular work in the medical field has already worn them.

Financially speaking, the future for nurse practitioners is quite bright too. The salary of a nurse practitioner is expected to grow about 19% by 2020 because of above reasons. In the field of teaching, nurse practitioners may get as much as $85,000. A high salary as amounting to $175,000 could easily be achieved after a year when you have skills and experience. The salary of a specialized nurse practitioner depends on the specialization. The earnings of a nurse anesthetist could range from $150,000 to $235,000.

Each career’s status and salary rate may differ in each state. Those who want to know the data statistics of NP employment could visit Bureau of Labor Statistics. As you can see, this is a highly competitive job with great prospects.

Nurse practitioner job outlook

**Image Source – BLS.gov

Career Requirements For Nurse Practitioners In Duluth

Becoming a Registered Nurse

The first step is to become a registered nurse. To do this you must earn a bachelor’s or an associate’s degree from any of the registered institutions. A diploma can work as well. Although, some papers may not be useful because medical experience weighs more. You can get this experience through an associate’s degree or a bachelor’s degree. Taking and passing the standardized national exam for RNs is your next step so you can work officially. You could also try to take a different path and become a Licensed Practical Nurse first.

[asd_program_button /]

Bachelor’s Degree

The next step is to earn a Bachelor’s degree. Those who have applied for a diploma or an associate’s degree should consider this. The course Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) needs to be completed. Besides the comprehensive learning of medical procedures, there is also application during internship clinic rounds. It is essential work because there is always a need for experience. You may already have a bachelor’s degree while you were pursuing a career as Registered Nurse. In such cases, there are bridge programs from RN-BSN. The program has different time schedules. The duration is longer when you are also studying while working. Bridge courses by LPN-BSN are also available.

Years of Practice

One of the best ways to make it in the health care field is to get lots of experience. Getting a master’s degree after a bachelor’s degree might be the most efficient way of becoming an NP. The practicality is not provided in this process, according to many senior nurses in the field. For this reason, getting some training is advised if you are planning to get a graduate degree. This is because prior experience is a requirement in certain NP training programs. This training teaches you how to work with a team of medical professionals, how to work efficiently, how to tend to different patients and how to treat a variety of infections.

Earning a Master’s Degree

Getting a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) is mandatory for becoming a Nurse Practitioner. RNs having diploma or an associate’s degree are usually accepted in most programs. Other programs require the students to have a bachelor’s degree. Both kinds will train you inside the classroom and in the field. Students are often required to get a lot of work experience as an RN while they are learning to be an NP. Another option will be to take the course of becoming a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP).

[asd_program_search_bar /]

Doctorate (optional)

Additionally, one can opt to get a Ph.D. in any of the specializations after the master’s degree. In this way, you can have more reputation in the field and you may have higher salary. Others choose family care, gerontology or health systems as their field of specialization.

Credentials and State License

It is mandatory for an aspiring NP to get licensed by the state. Each state has a different list of licensing requirements. Some only accept those whose bachelor degrees fall under their list of accepted programs. Becoming a nurse practitioner requires one to have the RN state license, master’s degree in nursing, and a passed state licensure exam. Your specialization is also a big factor in the type of licensure exams you will take. For example, you can apply at the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board or any other institution which is a subsidiary of American Nurses Association.

In general, you will need an associate degree or a diploma to become a registered nurse. Then, you need to earn a bachelor’s degree, which will expose you to real life medical situations. Finally, you acquire a master’s degree following which you get licensed after applying for the appropriate program.

What Does A Duluth Nurse Practioner Do?

General duties

The nurse practitioner cooperate with a physician or other professionals of the same range. They are authorized to diagnose and treat patients, too. Apart from this, they could also send the patient for tests and other medical procedures. They interpret these results and consult with the patient. Sometimes, they are also allowed to assist a physician in surgery whether as the surgeon or an anesthetist. They could even perform risky operations.

[asd_program_button /]

A more patient-centered treatment approach is done by nurse practitioners. Their patient’s needs are more important to be able to treat them effectively. They value prevention over treatment, which is why they advise their patients to start taking precautions. Patients under NPs will receive consultation including some advices on avoiding illnesses or injuries.

In general, nurse practitioners need a specialization before they take the licensure exam. There is a need for this because NPs have a specialization in the field. Here are the most common duties they do.

Family NP

One of the patient of these NPs is a whole family. Through the assistance of NPs, the whole family can avoid illnesses together, and any disease no matter how how old the patient is could be treated. Working with other physicians is also common when taking care of families.

Psychiatric NP

One of the professionals who can handle patients with mental problems is the psychiatric nurse practitioners. Both therapy and prescription of medicine can be administered by them. They cannot interpret psychological tests, though. They can choose to look at the results from the testing and then work with a professional psychologist or psychiatrist to determine a treatment plan for the patient.

Working As Pediatric NP

Pediatric NPs can handle newborn babies up to 18-year old patients. A subspecialty is a neonatal NP. This is the work of the nurses you find in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs). Pediatric NPs also help kids transition through puberty as this may be a difficult time for some. Immunizations are also part of their work.

Working as a Gerontology NP

Old people are the patients of those working as gerontology nurse practitioners. Illnesses are treated and prevented with the help of these practitioners by giving their patients some advice. Since old age is often the onset of many diseases, it is their responsibility to look after the old people and reduce the progress of such diseases as much as possible. Most patients who could only live for a certain period are kept healthy by these professionals using fitness programs.

These are just some of the specializations of a nurse practitioner. Some NPs may specialize in other fields that interest them. Different specializations may have variations in salaries. The Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetis (CRNA) is included in the list of highest paid specializations . After learning these work descriptions for your future career, you may now be able to choose the ideal path for you.

[asd_program_prefilter_box /]