Registered Nurses
Health Science > Therapeutic ServicesProjected Growth: Much faster than average
Projected Job Openings
Medium Preparation Needed
Job Description
Your job is to Assess patient health problems and needs, develop and implement nursing care plans, and maintain medical records. Administer nursing care to ill, injured, convalescent, or disabled patients. May advise patients on health maintenance and disease prevention or provide case management. Licensing or registration required.
Common job titles of Registered Nurses include:
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Experience and Education
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
66.1% said they needed a Associate's Degree.
23.25% said they needed a Bachelor's Degree.
Tasks
Monitor all aspects of patient care, including diet and physical activity.
Prepare patients for and assist with examinations or treatments.
Direct or supervise less-skilled nursing or healthcare personnel or supervise a particular unit.
Observe nurses and visit patients to ensure proper nursing care.
Perform administrative or managerial functions, such as taking responsibility for a unit's staff, budget, planning, or long-range goals.
Inform physician of patient's condition during anesthesia.
Consult and coordinate with healthcare team members to assess, plan, implement, or evaluate patient care plans.
Monitor, record, and report symptoms or changes in patients' conditions.
Maintain accurate, detailed reports and records.
Record patients' medical information and vital signs.
Modify patient treatment plans as indicated by patients' responses and conditions.
Instruct individuals, families, or other groups on topics such as health education, disease prevention, or childbirth and develop health improvement programs.
Administer medications to patients and monitor patients for reactions or side effects.
Prepare rooms, sterile instruments, equipment, or supplies and ensure that stock of supplies is maintained.
Assess the needs of individuals, families, or communities, including assessment of individuals' home or work environments, to identify potential health or safety problems.
Provide health care, first aid, immunizations, or assistance in convalescence or rehabilitation in locations such as schools, hospitals, or industry.
Conduct specified laboratory tests.
Work with individuals, groups, or families to plan or implement programs designed to improve the overall health of communities.
Direct or coordinate infection control programs, advising or consulting with specified personnel about necessary precautions.
Hand items to surgeons during operations.
Refer students or patients to specialized health resources or community agencies furnishing assistance.
Prescribe or recommend drugs, medical devices, or other forms of treatment, such as physical therapy, inhalation therapy, or related therapeutic procedures.
Perform physical examinations, make tentative diagnoses, and treat patients en route to hospitals or at disaster site triage centers.
Order, interpret, and evaluate diagnostic tests to identify and assess patient's condition.
Consult with institutions or associations regarding issues or concerns relevant to the practice and profession of nursing.
Engage in research activities related to nursing.
Provide or arrange for training or instruction of auxiliary personnel or students.
Administer local, inhalation, intravenous, or other anesthetics.
Tools
Walkers
Vest restraints
Ventricular assist devices VAD
Ventimasks
Ventilators
Venous Oxygen Saturation SVO2 monitors
Vacuum extractors
All ToolsUrine analysis equipment
Urinary catheters
Urinalysis test strips
Upper extremity prosthetic devices
Umbilical catheters
Tuberculosis TB skin test equipment
Triple lumen catheters
Transport cardiac monitors
Transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation TENS equipment
Traction equipment
Tracheostomy collars
Tracheal suctioning equipment
Tourniquets
Torso immobilizers
Titmus vision screeners
Telemetry units
Telemedicine equipment
Tablet computers
T-pieces with aerosol
Syringes
Swab dryers
Suture removal kits
Suture needles
Suture needleholders
Surgical lights
Surgical drapes
Surgical clamps
Suction equipment
Subcutaneous hypodermic needles
Straight hemostats
Staple removers
Splints
Spine boards
Snellen eye charts
Skin traction equipment
Single lumen catheters
Sequential compression devices
Scalpels
Russell’s traction equipment
Retractors
Reflex hammers
Rape kits
Pulse oximeters
Pulmonary artery catheters
Pocket personal computers PC
Pleuravacs
Phototherapy equipment
Photopheresis systems
Phaco consoles
Phaco apparatus
Personal computers
Peripheral intravenous IV locks
Peripheral butterflys
Peripheral angiocaths
Percussion hammers
Pelvic traction equipment
Pelvic specula
Patient lifters
Patient controlled analgesia PCA pumps
Partial masks
Pacemakers
Oxyhoods
Oxygen tanks
Oxygen regulators
Oxygen flowmeters
Oxygen administration equipment
Overhead clinical trapezes
Otoscopes
Oral suctioning equipment
One-way valve protective shields
Occlusion clamps
Notebook computers
Non-rebreather masks
Nebulizers
Nasogastric tubes
Nasal suctioning equipment
Nasal cannulas
Medical tuning forks
Medical encyclopedias
Meconium aspirators
Mechanical stethoscopes
Mechanical lift devices
Mayo trays
Manually operated oxygen supply resuscitators
Manual resuscitation bags
Manual blood pressure monitors
Manometers
Lukens traps
Lower extremity prosthetic devices
Loop electrosurgical excision procedure LEEP equipment
Limb restraints
Levine tubes
Leather restraints
Laser printers
Laryngoscope blades
Lancets
Jackson-Pratt drains
Isolettes
Intubation stylets
Intravenous syringe pumps
Intravenous IV tubing
Intravenous IV equipment
Intramuscular needles
Intracranial pressure monitors
Intra-aortic balloon pumps IABP
Intermittent enteral feeding equipment
Insulin pumps
Infusion pump enteral feeding tubes
Infusion control devices
Infant warmers
Infant security sensors
Incentive spirometers
Hyper/hypothermia blankets
Hospital beds
Heparin locks
Hemovac drains
Hemostats
Heelstick blood sampling equipment
Head immobilizers
Grounding pads
Glucose testing equipment
Gastrointestinal GI endoscopes
Gait belts
Flexible sigmoidoscopes
Flash sterilizers
Fetal scalp electrodes
Fetal monitors
Evacuated blood collection tubes
Epidural pumps
Epidural catheters
Enema equipment
Endotracheal ET tubes
Electrosurgical devices
Electronic blood pressure monitors
Electrocardiography EKG units
Double lumen catheters
Doppler pulse measurement devices
Defibrillators
Curved hemostats
Crutches
Cooling blankets
Continuous positive airway pressure CPAP ventilators
Continuous passive motion CPM machines
Continuous enteral feeding equipment
Computerized electrocardiography EKG and hemodynamic monitoring systems
Colposcopes
Colonoscopy equipment
Chemotherapy spill kits
Cervical traction equipment
Cervical collars
Centrifuges
Cardiac monitors
Cardiac monitor electrodes
Capillary glucose monitors
Canes
Bucks traction equipment
Blood warming equipment
Blood collection needles
Bladder irrigation equipment
Binocular light compound microscopes
Bilimeters
Bilevel positive airway pressure BiPAP ventilators
Bed scales
Balanced suspension traction equipment
Bag-valve masks
Autotransfusion systems
Automated medicine dispensing equipment
Autoclaves
Audiometers
Arterial line catheters
Arterial blood gas testing equipment
Aqua K pads
Apnea monitors
Anti-embolism elastic stockings
Angiocaths
Technologies
Data entry software
Epic Systems
Healthcare common procedure coding system HCPCS
Medical condition coding software
MEDITECH software
Microsoft SharePoint
All TechnologiesOracle Taleo
Allscripts Misys Healthcare Systems
Allscripts Sunrise Clinical Manager
Diagnostic and procedural coding software
DoctorsPartner EMR
Drug guide software
Electronic medical record EMR software
FileMaker Pro
HMS
Human resource management software HRMS
Kronos Workforce Timekeeper
Medical procedure coding software
PCC EHR
Per-Se Technologies ORSOS One-Call
PointClickCare
Prognosis Innovation Healthcare ChartAccess
QuadraMed Affinity Healthcare Information System
Siemens SIENET Sky
Skills
Active Listening
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Social Perceptiveness
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Speaking
Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Service Orientation
Actively looking for ways to help people.
Reading Comprehension
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Critical Thinking
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Coordination
Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Monitoring
Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Judgment and Decision Making
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Writing
Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Active Learning
Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Complex Problem Solving
Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Instructing
Teaching others how to do something.
Learning Strategies
Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
Persuasion
Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
Time Management
Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Abilities
Listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Oral Comprehension
Communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Oral Expression
Tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Problem Sensitivity
Read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Written Comprehension
Apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Deductive Reasoning
Combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Cognitive Abilities › Idea Generation and Reasoning Abilities › Inductive Reasoning
Identify and understand the speech of another person.
Auditory and Speech Abilities › Sensory Abilities › Speech Recognition
See details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Sensory Abilities › Visual Abilities › Near Vision