Stafford Texas 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 known as 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.

Nurse Practitioner Career Summary

**Image Source – BLS.gov

Table Of Contents:

How Much Does A Nurse Practitioner Make In Stafford?

A nurse practitioner receives an average of $90,000. RNs receive $65,000 on average, which means they earn less than NPs. The reason behind this is that NPs train longer so they could be medical practitioners.

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Location

Wherever there is a growing need of NPs, they will be paid more. For instance, Hawaii pays $115,000 annually to NPs, which makes them the highest paying state. Compared to the average earnings of NPs in the rest of the country, they earn 30% more. NPs in Delaware receive $67,000.

Nurse practitioner salary information

**Image Source – BLS.gov

Length of Practice

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.

Expertise

A range of skills can increase your potential to earn a lot more. 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. The skills of geriatrics and internal medicine both fall somewhere in between these two.

Increase in Position

Salary raise in the field could only be achieved when you get a promotion or when you earn a specialization. To do this there are several options. A Nurse Practitioner Anesthetist earns $150,000 annually, which is one option. The Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner also earns more than the 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. These things will require an additional certification and some more hours of training in that specific field.

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. So, in the future, there is a high chance that Nurse Practitioners are going to get paid much more. NPs also tend to have more time on their hands to opt for the work assignment they want.

Average nurse practitioner wage in

**Image Source – BLS.gov

Nurse Practitioner Stafford 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. 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. 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.

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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.

The need for healthcare in rural areas is also increasing. Most of these areas are not suitable for new buildings, which means that the people could only consult with NPs. These professionals work hand in hand with physicans to provide medical assistance to the patients in such areas. NPs could apply in Office of Physicians, Outpatient Care Centers, and General Hospitals.

There is an increase in the demand for specialized medical care. Specializations of nurses include those in pediatrics, gerontology, acute care, and other fields. The diagnosis of the illness is clearer and faster when the disease is specialized by the practitioner.

Employment outlook for nurse practitioners in

**Image Source – BLS.gov

Nurses are also in demand in the field of education. There is a lack of teachers for nurse practitioners and other medical personnel. So, if a nurse practitioner gets a Ph.D. he or she would be authorized to teach as an academic. People generally go into consulting or teaching after a certain age. 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. In 2020, the 19% salary increase is most likely provided to nurse practitioners. 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 increase depends on the nurse practitioner’s specialization. A nurse anesthetist earns about $150,000 and this can go up to $235,000.

The salary and job prospects of any career also depend on the state one is residing in. For more statistics and data on the job outlook of NPs, you can 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

How To Become A Nurse Practioner In Stafford

How to Be A Registered Nurse

One should strive to become a registered nurse first. Earning a bachelor’s or an associate’s degree is needed to become one. 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. You can get this experience through an associate’s degree or a bachelor’s degree. After this, you must take a standardized national test and then get the license to practice as an RN. Another option is to become a Licensed Practical Nurse first.

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Earning Bachelor’s Degree

It is also recommended that one completes his/her Bachelor’s Degree. This is ideal for applicants for a diploma or an associate’s degree. A Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) is required. This will not only give you a more in-depth education in the medical world, but it will make you undergo a lot of clinical 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. RN-BSN offers bridge programs to help you in this case. 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

The medical field treats experience as a great factor. 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. 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.

Earning a Master’s Degree

To become a Nurse Practitioner, one needs to earn a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) degree. 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. Either way, the master’s degree includes spending time in both the classroom and the clinic. Extensive work experience is required for an RN before they turn into NPs. Another option will be to take the course of becoming a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP).

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Earning A Ph.D. Title

After earning a master’s degree, one has freedom to choose a specialization for his/her Ph.D. Reaching this far will potentially increase your earnings and also your reputation as a medical professional. Others choose family care, gerontology or health systems as their field of specialization.

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 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. Finally, you acquire a master’s degree following which you get licensed after applying for the appropriate program.

What Does A Stafford Nurse Practioner Do?

General Work

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. 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 also handle high risk surgeries.

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Nurse practitioners take a patient centered approach to treatment. Treating their patients involve their patient’s needs as a big factor. They want to prevent the disease rather than cure it and thus advise the patient to take the necessary steps to do so. 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. The specific duties of an NP depend on this specialization that they have chosen. Here are the most common duties they do.

Family NP

One of the patient of these NPs is a whole family. 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.

Working as Psychiatric NP

Patients who have mental issues may be handled by experts including the psychiatric nurse practitioners. These professionals can prescribe medicine and do therapeutic consultations with them. However, they are not allowed to perform psychological testing. 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.

NPs Practicing Pediatrics

Newborn to 18 year old patients are handled by pediatric NPs. A subspecialty is a neonatal NP. People you see inside Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) caring for newborn babies work in this field. Kids can have a smoother puberty process through the help of pediatric NPs. Immunizations are also part of their work.

Gerontology NP

Old people are the patients of those working as gerontology nurse practitioners. They help by recommending the ideal activities and treatments to address existing illnesses and prevent them from worsening. 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). These information should now be able to help you make sound career choices.

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