Clinical physician assistant vs nurse clinician

The differences between clinical physician assistants and nurse clinicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a clinical physician assistant has an average salary of $145,549, which is higher than the $65,159 average annual salary of a nurse clinician.

The top three skills for a clinical physician assistant include patients, primary care and medical care. The most important skills for a nurse clinician are patients, patient education, and CPR.

Clinical physician assistant vs nurse clinician overview

	Clinical Physician Assistant	Nurse Clinician
Yearly salary	$145,549	$65,159
Hourly rate	$69.98	$31.33
Growth rate	28%	6%
Number of jobs	94,210	596,073
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age	39	44
Years of experience	-	2

What does a clinical physician assistant do?

A clinical physician assistant is in charge of performing support tasks in clinics, hospitals, and similar establishments. Typically serving as the patients' first point of contact, it is their responsibility to gather the personal and medical information of patients, identify their needs, answer inquiries, and escort them to offices and other rooms. They may also perform clerical tasks such as answering calls and correspondence, arranging appointments, preparing and filing documentation, and coordinating with other offices. Moreover, a clinical physician assistant must maintain an active communication line with physicians and nurses, assisting them as needed.

What does a nurse clinician do?

A nurse clinician is a health expert who provides care and assistance to patients in hospitals, clinics, or similar establishments. Among their responsibilities include preparing equipment and documents, administering medication, monitoring the patient's condition, maintaining charts, and regularly reporting to physicians. In some establishments, they may also perform administrative support tasks such as answering calls and correspondence, preparing and processing documents, and organizing records. Moreover, a nurse clinician must maintain an active communication line with fellow medical staff to provide optimal services to patients.

Clinical physician assistant vs nurse clinician salary

Clinical physician assistants and nurse clinicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Clinical Physician Assistant	Nurse Clinician
Average salary	$145,549	$65,159
Salary range	Between $84,000 And $252,000	Between $48,000 And $88,000
Highest paying City	Duluth, MN	New York, NY
Highest paying state	Minnesota	New York
Best paying company	Central Ohio Primary Care	Healthpoint
Best paying industry	Non Profits	Education

Differences between clinical physician assistant and nurse clinician education

There are a few differences between a clinical physician assistant and a nurse clinician in terms of educational background:

	Clinical Physician Assistant	Nurse Clinician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 47%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Physician Assistant	Nursing
Most common college	Duke University	Duke University

Clinical physician assistant vs nurse clinician demographics

Here are the differences between clinical physician assistants' and nurse clinicians' demographics:

	Clinical Physician Assistant	Nurse Clinician
Average age	39	44
Gender ratio	Male, 38.0% Female, 62.0%	Male, 10.9% Female, 89.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.5% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 11.5% White, 66.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 12.1% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 9.6% White, 64.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	12%	9%

Differences between clinical physician assistant and nurse clinician duties and responsibilities

Clinical physician assistant example responsibilities.

Implement and manage cardiology internship college course.
Work closely with patients to manage their depression and anxiety beginning with initial diagnosis to med-initiation and follow-up care.
Complete nursing assessments, complete care plans, perform ADL's, utilize lifts, alarms and transfer patients safely.
Care for multiple patients in a fast pace setting and provide total care including all treatments, medications and ADL's.
Perform tracheostomy care and suctioning for ventilator dependent patients.
Provide physical therapy services in the inpatient rehabilitation unit and oncology floor.

Nurse clinician example responsibilities.

Manage patient pain relief and sedation by providing pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention, monitor patient response and record care plans accordingly.
Provide high level nursing care for ER step down and ICU patients prior to transfer to critical care units.
Instruct ACLS and BLS classes.
Specialize care for telemetry and orthopedic patients.
Provide specialized nursing care to ICU medical cardiac patient populations.
Provide education regarding care of surgical patients as part of orientation to orienting telemetry nurses.

Clinical physician assistant vs nurse clinician skills

Common clinical physician assistant skills

Patients, 30%
Primary Care, 6%
Medical Care, 6%
Family Medicine, 5%
Urgent Care, 5%
Diagnostic Tests, 4%

Common nurse clinician skills

Patients, 33%
Patient Education, 5%
CPR, 5%
Emergency Situations, 5%
Patient Outcomes, 3%
Educational Programs, 3%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Clinical Physician Assistant
Clinical Physician Assistant vs Nurse Clinician

Updated January 8, 2025

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