Selecting a career may require you to know the nature of the job. The assumption that related jobs have the same description is easily made especially in the field of medicine. A Nurse Practitioner is an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN). They have duties that nurses cannot do. NPs have different work depending on the field they specialize on. The rest of the article will show you the specializations and general work duties of these professionals.
Table Of Contents:
- Nurse Practitioner Salary
- Nurse Practitioner Employment Outlook
- How To Become A Nurse Practitioner
- Nurse Practitioner Job Description
What Is The Salary of A Nurse Practitioner In Pleasant Hill?
A nurse practitioner receives an average of $90,000. Compared to a registered nurse this is quite high since an RN gets something around $65,000. This is because the training of NPs are more extensive, allowing them to earn a medical practitioner title.
[asd_program_button /]Location
Wherever there is a growing need of NPs, they will be paid more. NPs in Hawaii are the highest earners among all the states as they receive $115,000 every year. This is about 30% percent more than the national average. NPs in Delaware receive $67,000.
Years of Experience
Experience is not too much of a factor for salary increase in the field. A 10-15% increase in the salary may be given to those who have been working in the field for more than 20 years.
Ability
An increase of salary may be given if you have more expertise in some fields. Acute care and Emergency room skills will be something that can increase your average salary to up to $99,000. Whereas family care can take it only up to $92,000. Those who work as geriatrics and internal medicine specialists earn somewhere in between.
Increase in Position
Salary raise in the field could only be achieved when you get a promotion or when you earn a specialization. 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 alternatives are to become a Family, Pediatric NP, Psychiatrist NP, or an Adult NP. After this, of course, there are further specializations that can help you a bit more cash if needed. In order to achieve these things, you will need to undergo a number of training sessions and acquire additional certification.
Benefits
An NP is entitled to numerous benefits. Among the number of assistance, health insurance, retirement plans, and paid vacations are included. 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.
With the shortage of primary health care personnel, the job outlook of mid-level health care practitioners is supposed to be on the rise. Therefore, an increase in Nurse Practitioners salary is more likely to happen in time. NPs also tend to have more time on their hands to opt for the work assignment they want.
Nurse Practitioner Pleasant Hill Employment Outlook
In 2014, the United States of America provided 170,000 jobs to nurse practitioners. 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 lack of medical professionals caused this. Doctors and physicians cannot meet the demands of the people. The need for PAs and NPs will keep on increasing in the future. The jobs for neonatal NPs will boost by 34%. The same could be said with Family, Pediatric, Gastroenterology, and Hospitalist NPs, which will have an 11% increase. The speed of growth is much higher than the the other careers’ growth rate.
[asd_program_button /]The need for nurses is growing because their techniques in work are focused on the needs of the patient instead of the disease. It is the reason why NPs are preferred over PAs.
Rustic areas have a continuous need for better healthcare. 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.
Specialized health care demands are rapidly increasing. Specializations of nurses include those in pediatrics, gerontology, acute care, and other fields. When the patient’s illness is within their scope of specialty, they can diagnose it more accurately.
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. After spending much time with work, most people go for teaching jobs. This choice is made by NPs who feel that the regular work in the medical field has already worn them.
There is a brighter future for nurse practitioners in terms of earnings. Because of the need for nurse practitioners, a 19% salary raise in 2020 may be given. As for an academic, the average salary starting out is about $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 increase depends on the nurse practitioner’s specialization. The earnings of a nurse anesthetist could range from $150,000 to $235,000.
The salary and job prospects of any career also depend on the state one is residing in. More information and data about NPs could be found in Bureau of Labor Statistics. Obviously, it is a career that is challenging and highly accredited, as well.
How To Become A Nurse Practioner In Pleasant Hill
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. However, they do not hold as much importance as the other two since some of the clinics and hospitals need you to have some clinical experience before applying for the job. This experience is provided by an associate’s degree or a bachelor’s degree. Then, the licensure examination for nurses will take place and only then will you be called an RN if you pass the standardized national test. You could also try to take a different path and become a Licensed Practical Nurse first.
[asd_program_button /]Completing Bachelor’s Degree
The next step is to earn a Bachelor’s degree. This is ideal for applicants for a diploma or an associate’s degree. A requirement is a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) diploma. 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 be a bachelor’s degree holder already and going for a Registered Nurse career at the same time. Such cases can be addressed through the bride programs offered by RN-BSN. The time duration of these programs varies. The duration is longer when you are also studying while working. There are also bridge courses from LPN-BSN.
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. Some nurses who have been working for a long time feel that this process is somehow lacking when it comes to real life applications. Thus, they recommend you go through some training before applying for a graduate degree since some of the NP training programs also require you to have some prior experience. 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
Getting a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) is mandatory for becoming a Nurse Practitioner. Many programs accept RNs with a diploma or an associate’s degree. Students who want to be enrolled in other programs needs to have a bachelor’s degree. Both kinds will train you inside the classroom and in the field. Extensive work experience is required for an RN before they turn into NPs. Alternatively, you could get a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree.
[asd_program_search_bar /]Getting A Doctorate (optional)
The Ph.D. title follows after the master’s degree and in this program, one can opt for the specialization that best fits him/her. Reaching this far will potentially increase your earnings and also your reputation as a medical professional. You can choose to specialize in fields like family care, gerontology or health systems.
Credentials and State License
An NP must be licensed by the state. Different states may require some documents that other stated do not. 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 general, you will need an associate degree or a diploma to become a registered nurse. A bachelor’s degree should follow wherein you will be trained in the field. Then, you choose the best specialization and earn your license after finishing your master’s degree.
What Work Is Done by A Pleasant Hill Nurse Practitioner?
General duties
Physicians and other medical professionals of the same level supervise nurse practitioners. They are authorized to diagnose and treat patients, too. Apart from this, they could also send the patient for tests and other medical procedures. After the results are out, they can interpret and discuss them with the patient. They are also authorized to help as a surgeon as an anesthetist when needed in an operation. Some high-risk cases are also handled by them.
[asd_program_button /]Nurse practitioners work with the patient-centered method. This means that they focus more on the patients’ needs and wants while treating them. They want to prevent the disease rather than cure it and thus advise the patient to take the necessary steps to do so. Thus, a huge role of NPs is to consult patients on how to prevent injuries and illnesses.
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. The following are the works most of them choose.
NPs Specializing in Families
These NPs take care of the whole family. They can treat people of all ages and discuss ways to prevent diseases with the family. They also provide direct care to the family in collaboration with a physician.
Working as 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.
Pediatric NP
As the name suggests, pediatric NPs look after kids of all ages – from newborn babies to 18-year old kids. A subspecialty is a neonatal NP. This is the work of the nurses you find in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs). Another work of pediatric NPs is helping kids have a smooth journey through puberty. They are also responsible for immunizations.
Gerontology NP
Old people are the patients of those working as gerontology nurse practitioners. They educate them about disease prevention and manage any illnesses they might have. 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. 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. Some NPs may specialize in other fields that interest them. Different specializations may have variations in salaries. The Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) is a specialization that lets one earn one of the highest salaries. These information should now be able to help you make sound career choices.
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