Child's nurse vs child life specialist

The differences between child's nurses and child life specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a child's nurse, becoming a child life specialist takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a child's nurse has an average salary of $63,198, which is higher than the $55,201 average annual salary of a child life specialist.

The top three skills for a child's nurse include patients, social services and CPR. The most important skills for a child life specialist are patients, child development, and patient care.

Child's nurse vs child life specialist overview

	Child's Nurse	Child Life Specialist
Yearly salary	$63,198	$55,201
Hourly rate	$30.38	$26.54
Growth rate	6%	12%
Number of jobs	377,929	90,517
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 52%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Average age	44	43
Years of experience	2	12

Child's nurse vs child life specialist salary

Child's nurses and child life specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Child's Nurse	Child Life Specialist
Average salary	$63,198	$55,201
Salary range	Between $45,000 And $88,000	Between $31,000 And $96,000
Highest paying City	Philadelphia, PA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Alaska	California
Best paying company	Hca Hospital Services Of San Diego	L.E.K. Consulting
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between child's nurse and child life specialist education

There are a few differences between a child's nurse and a child life specialist in terms of educational background:

	Child's Nurse	Child Life Specialist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 52%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Most common major	Nursing	Psychology
Most common college	Duke University	Northwestern University

Child's nurse vs child life specialist demographics

Here are the differences between child's nurses' and child life specialists' demographics:

	Child's Nurse	Child Life Specialist
Average age	44	43
Gender ratio	Male, 8.9% Female, 91.1%	Male, 24.9% Female, 75.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 15.6% Asian, 7.0% White, 60.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.8%
LGBT Percentage	9%	11%

Differences between child's nurse and child life specialist duties and responsibilities

Child's nurse example responsibilities.

Manage chronic care conditions like diabetes, hypertension, asthma and HIV.
Manage surgical recovery patients including vascular, ENT, GI urological and neurological cases, coronary bypass surgery patients.
Give TB shoot and read results as ordered.
Give TB test and check test for positive or negative.
Act as an infection control coordinator, maintaining tuberculosis and hepatitis standards.
Assess psychiatric needs, formulate treatment plans, administered/monitore effects of psychotropic medications/ instruct patients and families.

Child life specialist example responsibilities.

Observe activities and respond accordingly including emergency situations such as evacuation, CPR, or first aid.
Experience working with kids diagnose with bipolar, schizophrenia, autism, ADHD, depression among other disorders.
Provide valuable technical assistance to early childhood educators seeking resources on developing quality childcare environment.
Detail knowledge of Medicare and Medicaid programs.
Compile monthly statistical data on ADL caseload progress.
Exhibit patience, care, and compassion towards others.

Child's nurse vs child life specialist skills

Common child's nurse skills

Patients, 49%
Social Services, 10%
CPR, 6%
Family Education, 4%
Physical Assessments, 4%
Direct Patient Care, 3%

Common child life specialist skills

Patients, 25%
Child Development, 9%
Patient Care, 9%
Child Life Services, 5%
Social Work, 5%
CCLS, 4%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Child's Nurse
Child's Nurse vs Child Life Specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

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