by Jennifer Mcdonald

Created on: August 29, 2010

Difference between a nurse and a nurse practitioner

The registered nurse has a long history, and is a well established career. The career of a nurse practitioner evolved from the registered nurse. The shortage of doctors in primary care left experienced nurses scrambling to fill the void in this area. Sympathetic doctors were working overtime training nurses to take care of patients who did not have access to doctors. It is out of this intense collaboration that the NP was born.

The NP were working as replacements for doctors without much supervision and without uniformity. The licensure board recognized the need for regulation and licensure and set about to create specific standards for practice. They required that the Masters degree along with clinical experience would be the minimum standard to practice as a NP. Anyone wanting to become a NP would require a Bachelors of Science in Nursing to be accepted into all NP training.

A registered nurse performs duties that relates directly to patient care. They are responsible for planning and supervising the care of their patients. To achieve this they supervise the licensed professional nurses and the nursing assistants. Their objective is to carry out the doctor's orders and perform clinical duties. They are involved in routine patient care as well as skilled nursing care. They monitor vital signs, and record changes and generally keep the doctors updated about their patients. To become a RN a two year associate degree or a bachelor of science degree is required.

The nurse practioner is independent, and may or may not work with a doctor. A NP is trained to diagnose and treat common medical problems. They often provide some of the same services as doctors. Some work with doctors in a clinic or office; and patients are given the option to choose a NP or a doctor. They frequently specialize in their area of practice.

The salary of a RN is in the range of forty thousand dollars to seventy thousand dollars per year, while the salary of a NP ranges from seventy to eighty thousand dollars. Nurse Practitioners who specialize in obstetrics and gynecology along with cardiology report higher earnings. A RN with advance clinical experience can earn as much as the NP.

Registered Nurse continues to be a career that is in high demand while the nurse practitioner continue to break new ground and acquire more areas of specialties.

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