Registered Nurse Jobs Description
Registered nurses (RNs) form the backbone of today’s healthcare system. They serve as frontline Registered Nurse Jobs caregivers in doctor’s offices, hospitals, clinics, outpatient facilities and other healthcare settings – often providing more direct care to patients than any other health professional can.
Registered nurses have a vast range of duties when it comes to patient care. Ultimately, their main responsibility is ensuring that patients receive the attention and services they require.
Some RNs provide direct patient care while others supervise other nurses as they care for a patient. There are also teaching jobs available where you can instruct nursing students on their journey towards becoming a nurse. Some RNs participate in research trials for new medications or community education about certain diseases and health conditions. Finally, with the advent of telemedicine, many RNs now work from home or in telehealth, answering patients’ medical queries online or over the phone.
Potential RN responsibilities might include:
- Monitoring a patient’s condition and treatment; documenting complaints, symptoms, and courses of action taken to resolve them; adhering to workplace policies regarding patient care; adhering to workplace policies regarding infection control practices.
- Beginning IVs and administering medication while monitoring side effects
- Fulfilling doctors’ orders to treat a patient
Wound care
- Assisting with medical procedures, operations, and exams
- Direct caregiving to sick, injured or recovering patients
- Formulating and implementing patient care plans
Maintaining medical records
- Ordering diagnostic tests as directed by a doctor.
- Supervising subordinates, including nursing aides, licensed practical nurses and nursing assistants
- Educating and informing patients and their families on how to manage or treat a health condition
- Helping maintain a sterile and secure environment for patients and healthcare teams.
- Disinfecting or decontaminating rooms, instruments and medical equipment Offering support to families.
An RN’s job responsibilities will differ depending on their workplace and what is expected of them. Some RN jobs may even involve more administrative work than clinical tasks; however, most RN positions are clinical in nature and focus on providing direct patient care.
Registered Nurse Salary
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, registered nurses made an average annual salary of $82,750 as of May 2021.
With additional certifications and specialties as well as experience working for certain industries, you can significantly boost your salary.
According to Nurse.org, the highest-paid nursing specialties are certified registered nurse anesthetists at $195,610; general nurse practitioners at $120,680; and intensive care unit (ICU) nurses who earn $120,243 annually.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), registered nurses working for air transportation services and pharmaceutical manufacturing companies earn an average yearly salary of $112,630 and $105,270, respectively.
Some states pay certified registered nurses more than other states. California, Hawaii and Oregon boast the highest salaries for RNs at $98,630 to $124,000 annually. New York follows behind with an average RN salary of $93,320 annually; along with California and Texas it employs more RNs than any other state.
Stanford Health in California currently has numerous registered nurse job opportunities across various specialties. Furthermore, California faces the greatest shortage of registered nurses – it is projected that California must employ over 44,000 RNs by 2030 – so working as an RN in California can be a great way to contribute to meeting this great need.
Middlesex Health currently has registered nurse jobs available at its locations throughout Connecticut. These positions range from traditional RN roles to more specialized ones, like midwife.
CVS Health is actively recruiting registered nurses to fill more than 400 open RN positions across the U.S., including Washington, Florida, Arizona and New York among others.
Registered Nurse Training and Competencies
Nursingworld.org states that to become a registered nurse, one must complete both education and licensing requirements.
Before applying for a four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from an accredited college or university, you must first take courses to earn it. Courses will cover biology, chemistry, anatomy and nutrition as well as psychology and physiology. Your last two years will focus on chronic and acute disease management, pediatrics and community health topics.
If you wish to pursue a career in specialty nursing, further your studies and earn at least a master’s degree.
Once you’ve earned your degree, the state in which you plan to work requires licensing. Every jurisdiction has its own standards for licensure, certification, continuing education and competency; so be sure to understand them for your area.
To become licensed to practice nursing in your state, you must pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN). The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) certification is widely considered the gold standard in certification.
According to the job you apply for, you may need to acquire some technical nursing skills in order to stand out from other candidates. These could include:
- Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) and CPR certification
- Critical care nursing
- Acute care
- Case management
- Telemetry
- Life Support
Some soft skills will be highly sought-after, such as effective communication and listening abilities, multitasking ability, critical thinking ability, attention to detail, the capacity for prioritizing tasks and handling complex situations with empathy.