Selecting a career may require you to know the nature of the job. This is especially true for the medical field, since the job descriptions of so many professions in this field are similar. A Nurse Practitioner is also called an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN). Some of their work cannot be done by nurses. Depending on the specialization, NPs have differentiated work. Here are the general tasks and the specific work they do.
Table Of Contents:
- Nurse Practitioner Salary
- Nurse Practitioner Employment Outlook
- How To Become A Nurse Practitioner
- Nurse Practitioner Job Description
How Much Does A Nurse Practitioner Make In Fairfield?
A nurse practitioner receives an average of $90,000. The NP receives higher salary than RNs, which is approximately $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.
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Wherever there is a growing need of NPs, they will be paid more. For example, Hawaii is the highest paying state with an average salary of $115,000 a year. This amount is 30% higher than the average national salary. NPs in Delaware receive $67,000.
Years of Experience
As far as experienced is concerned as a factor of salary, in this field, even with experience, the salary hardly increases. It increases about 10-15% over 20 years of experience.
Skills
Your capacity for work could contribute to your salary increase. Skills in acute care and emergency room may help increase salary to $99,000. 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
Salary raise in the field could only be achieved when you get a promotion or when you earn a specialization. There are a few processes you can follow to achieve this. A Nurse Practitioner Anesthetist earns $150,000 annually, which is one option. You could also try to become an Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner to earn a bit more than a normal 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
NPs also receive some benefits. Some of the few are retirement plans, paid vacations, and health insurance. Most of the time, the company gives back the amount of money spent on further schooling that enhances their abilities. Learning skills is a big matter, which is why they are given money and registration fees to participate in conferences that improve their abilities.
Since primary medical personnel is short in numbers, the demand for mid-level medical care professionals may increase. There is a high possibility that Nurse Practitioners will receive higher salaries later on. There are also more time for NPs to choose the type of cases they wish to do.
Nurse Practitioner Fairfield Employment Outlook
The United States of America needed 170,000 nurse practitioners in 2014. According to BLS, the industry is expected to grow by 31% over the next decade. During that time, as much as 57,000 jobs will be available. This is primarily due to the lack of healthcare professionals. The number of doctors and physicians cannot cope with the increasing medical needs of the population. Thus, the need of people like PAs and NPs is increasing and is projected to increase even further. There is an expected 11% increase in jobs for Family, Pediatric, Gastroenterology, and Hospitalist NPs while jobs for neonatal NPs will have a 34% increase. This is way above the average growth rate of other careers.
[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. NPs are more sought for than PAs for this reason.
The need for healthcare in rural areas is also increasing. It is not possible to set up the infrastructure in such areas and thus NPs are the source of primary health care. These medical practitioners may ask help from other physicians to cater to the patients in the area. NPs could apply in Office of Physicians, Outpatient Care Centers, and General Hospitals.
The need for specialized health care is also increasing. Nurse practitioners are usually specialized in some or the other field like pediatrics, gerontology, acute care and many other things. This means that they can give a more accurate diagnosis of the patient’s problem if it falls in their area of specialty.
Another need for nurses is coming up in education. There is a lack of teachers for nurse practitioners and other medical personnel. A Ph.D. title is needed before a nurse practitioner becomes a teacher in the field. People generally go into consulting or teaching after a certain age. So this is the perfect option for NPs who feel that they are now not fit enough to handle the stresses that come with the medical field.
There is a brighter future for nurse practitioners in terms of earnings. 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. This can go up to $175,000 a year easily with experience. The salary increase depends on the nurse practitioner’s specialization. A nurse anesthetist earns about $150,000 and this can go up to $235,000.
The state you live in has a say on the job standpoint and salary of each career. More information and data about NPs could be found in Bureau of Labor Statistics. This career is not only very competitive but also have huge prospects.
How To Become A Nurse Practioner In Fairfield
Becoming a Registered Nurse
One should strive to become a registered nurse first. In order to be one, get your bachelor’s or an associate’s degree from an accredited school. Another way is earning a diploma. Although, some papers may not be useful because medical experience weighs more. This experience is provided by 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
Earning a bachelor’s degree is the next thing to do. This is mostly for people who had earlier applied for a diploma or an associate’s degree. The course Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) needs to be completed. During this period, the concepts learned will also be applied and put into actions during clinic duties. One’s experience in the field contributes a lot to the career of a medical professional. 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. It will take more time if you are working while you are studying. LPN-BSN also offers bridge courses.
Period of Experience
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. Some nurses who have been working for a long time feel that this process is somehow lacking when it comes to real life applications. Before earning a graduate degree, they recommend more training. Most graduate degrees require a certain amount of experience before the student could be admitted. 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.
Master’s Degree
To become a Nurse Practitioner, one needs to earn a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) degree. Lots of programs only need the RN’s diploma or an associate’s degree as a requirement. 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. You might also try to get a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree as an alternative.
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Additionally, one can opt to get a Ph.D. in any of the specializations after the master’s degree. This will improve your credibility as a medical professional and improve your chances to earn a bit more. Others choose family care, gerontology or health systems as their field of specialization.
Credentials and State License
The state license is a requirement for those who want to be an NP. Requirements for licensing may vary in every state. Some only accept those whose bachelor degrees fall under their list of accepted programs. Passing the state licensure exam, RN license, and a master’s degree are the requirements in becoming a nurse practitioner. The licensure exam differs depending on the specialization you are choosing. For example, you can apply at the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board or any other institution which is a subsidiary of American Nurses Association.
In summary, becoming a registered nurse requires you an associate’s degree or a diploma. Then, you need to earn a bachelor’s degree, which will expose you to real life medical situations. Lastly, you will get a master’s degree in your chosen area of specialization and the license will follow.
What Work Is Done by A Fairfield Nurse Practitioner?
Works in general
A nurse practitioner usually works under the supervision of a physician or someone of the same level. Diagnosing and treating patients are also part of their jobs. If patients need to undergo medical tests and other proceedings, they can are also allowed to conduct them. 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 also handle high risk surgeries.
[asd_program_button /]Nurse practitioners take a patient centered approach to treatment. This means that they focus more on the patients’ needs and wants while treating them. They value prevention over treatment, which is why they advise their patients to start taking precautions. This means that part of the NPs job is to discuss prevention of injuries and diseases to their patients.
A nurse practitioner is generally supposed to take up some or the other kind of specialty before taking the licensure exam. There are specific duties by NPs on the field, which is why they need this. Here are the most common duties they do.
NPs for Families
NPs on this field consult with whole families. They can treat people of all ages and discuss ways to prevent diseases with the family. Working with other physicians is also common when taking care of families.
Psychiatric NP
Patients who have mental issues may be handled by experts including the psychiatric nurse practitioners. Both therapy and prescription of medicine can be administered by them. However, phsychological testing is not a part of their job. In this case, they can work with a professional psychologist to come up with a treatment program base on the results.
NPs Practicing Pediatrics
Pediatric NPs can handle newborn babies up to 18-year old patients. Under this specialty is the neonatal NP. This is the work of the nurses you find in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs). Kids can have a smoother puberty process through the help of pediatric NPs. They are also the ones who give immunizations and vaccines to children.
NPs in Gerontology
Those specializing as nurse practitioners in gerontology will be dealing with medical problems of elderlies. They educate them about disease prevention and manage any illnesses they might have. Old people are more prone to different diseases. These healthcare experts will help reduce the risks of other diseases. In an effort to prolong the life of their patients, they provide them fitness plans.
These are just some of the specializations of a nurse practitioner. There are more fields that NP would want to pursue. Each of these specializations offers a different amount of salary. One of the highest paying specializations is a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA). After learning these work descriptions for your future career, you may now be able to choose the ideal path for you.
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