While choosing a career, it is imperative that we know the exact job. The same could be said in the medical field, where different jobs could be mistaken for others. A Nurse Practitioner is an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN). This means that they can perform a range of specialized activities that a nurse can’t. 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
What Is The Salary of A Nurse Practitioner In Prospect?
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 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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NPs receive higher salaries if they are badly needed in the area. For example, Hawaii is the highest paying state with an average salary of $115,000 a year. This is about 30% percent more than the national average. NPs in Delaware receive $67,000.
Length of Practice
Salary increase in this field is rare even for those who have extensive experience. After 20 years of working, the salary may increase 10-15%.
Ability
Your capacity for work could contribute to your salary increase. Acute care and Emergency room skills will be something that can increase your average salary to up to $99,000. Those who have family care skills can earn up to $92,000. Those who earn somewhere in between are mostly geriatrics and internal medicine practitioners.
Work Promotions
Getting a specialization or a promotion may be the only way to earn higher. To do this there are several options. 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. You could also increase your salary with other specializations after doing the procedures. In order to achieve these things, you will need to undergo a number of training sessions and acquire additional certification.
Assistance
An NP is entitled to numerous benefits. These include paid vacations, retirement planning and health insurance. Most of the time, the company gives back the amount of money spent on further schooling that enhances their abilities. If there are conventions or seminars, they are given registration fees and some allowances.
Because of this shortage for main medical practitioners, many aspiring health care professionals would most likely work in the field. Therefore, an increase in Nurse Practitioners salary is more likely to happen in time. There are also more time for NPs to choose the type of cases they wish to do.
The Status of Nurse Practitioner Employment In Prospect
As of 2014, there were about 170,000 jobs for nurse practitioners solely in the United States of America. The BLS predicts an average of 31% growth in the industry within the next 10 years. In other words, that period will have roughly 57,000 new jobs. This is primarily due to the lack of healthcare professionals. The need for doctors and physicians cannot be catered by the number of medical professionals. This means that PAs and NPs will continue to be needed for a long time. 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%. Compared to other jobs, this increase in growth is faster.
[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. Thus, patients sometimes prefer NPs to PAs.
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. The biggest employers of NPs are 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. This means that they can give a more accurate diagnosis of the patient’s problem if it falls in their area of specialty.
Nurses are also in demand in the field of education. Teachers of nurses and other medical professionals are needed due to the lack of people honing the skills of the future medical practitioners. So, if a nurse practitioner gets a Ph.D. he or she would be authorized to teach as an academic. 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. 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. This can go up to $175,000 a year easily with experience. The salary of a specialized nurse practitioner depends on the specialization. Those specializing as nurse anesthetists may receive a salary between $150,000 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.
Nurse Practitioner Job Requirements In Prospect
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. 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 /]Earning Bachelor’s Degree
Earning a bachelor’s degree is the next thing to do. Those who have applied for a diploma or an associate’s degree should consider this. 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. One’s experience in the field contributes a lot to the career of a medical professional. There are people who are Registered Nurses, while also professionals in other fields. 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.
Experience
As mentioned before, being experienced is key to getting into of the careers in the medical field. Earning your master’s degree right after your bachelor’s degree may be the ideal process to follow to become an NP. However, many people already in the profession feel that this leaves you inadequately trained for the situations that you might face in life. 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. During the training, you will learn how to work effectively as an individual and with other professionals, how to ensure the welfare of various patients and treat the infections they may have.
Earning a 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. Other programs require the students to have a bachelor’s degree. Both kinds will train you inside the classroom and in the field. While studying to earn the NP title, RNs mostly need to undergo long hours of training. You might also try to get a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree as an alternative.
[asd_program_search_bar /]Getting A Doctorate (optional)
Additionally, one can opt to get a Ph.D. in any of the specializations after the master’s degree. 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.
State License and Other Documents
An NP must be licensed by the state. Requirements for licensing may vary in every state. Others have a set of bachelor’s degree and programs they accept. Passing the state licensure exam, RN license, and a master’s degree are the requirements in becoming a nurse practitioner. Licensure exams are in line with your specialization. You can pass your application and requirements in any establishments under the American Nurses Association such as the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board.
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. 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 Prospect Nurse Practitioner?
General duties
A nurse practitioner usually works under the supervision of a physician or someone of the same level. They are authorized to diagnose and treat patients, too. They can also order certain tests and medical procedures to be conducted. They can handle patient consultations and also interpret test results. 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 take a patient centered approach to treatment. 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. This means that part of the NPs job is to discuss prevention of injuries and diseases to their patients.
Before the licensure exam, a nurse practitioner is generally required to complete a specialization program. There is a need for this because NPs have a specialization in the field. Here are the most common duties they do.
NPs Specializing in Families
One of the patient of these NPs is a whole family. They can deal with patients of every age and help avoid illnesses within the family. Families can receive high quality health care because the practitioner works with a physician.
Working as Psychiatric NP
Patients who have mental issues may be handled by experts including the psychiatric nurse practitioners. They can practice as therapists and sometimes prescribe appropriate medicine. They cannot interpret psychological tests, though. In this case, they can work with a professional psychologist to come up with a treatment program base on the results.
Pediatric NP
As the name suggests, pediatric NPs look after kids of all ages – from newborn babies to 18-year old kids. The neonatal NP belongs to this specialization. People you see inside Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) caring for newborn babies work in this field. Pediatric NPs also help kids transition through puberty as this may be a difficult time for some. They are also responsible for immunizations.
Working as a Gerontology NP
Those specializing as nurse practitioners in gerontology will be dealing with medical problems of elderlies. Illnesses are treated and prevented with the help of these practitioners by giving their patients some advice. However, since old people are more sickly, it is the expert’s job to make sure their illnesses do not reduce the quality of their lifestyles. They are also responsible for coming up with fitness plans for such people who will need it to live for an extended period.
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 . Now that you know the different roles that your job may entail, you can make an informed decision about your career choice.
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