Doula vs nurse

The differences between doulas and nurses can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a nurse has an average salary of $57,564, which is higher than the $51,691 average annual salary of a doula.

The top three skills for a doula include childbirth education, patients and emotional support. The most important skills for a nurse are patients, home health, and CPR.

Doula vs nurse overview

	Doula	Nurse
Yearly salary	$51,691	$57,564
Hourly rate	$24.85	$27.68
Growth rate	-	6%
Number of jobs	67	696,124
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 60%	Bachelor's Degree, 43%
Average age	42	44
Years of experience	-	2

Doula vs nurse salary

Doulas and nurses have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Doula	Nurse
Average salary	$51,691	$57,564
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $108,000	Between $38,000 And $86,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Conviva
Best paying industry	-	Government

Differences between doula and nurse education

There are a few differences between a doula and a nurse in terms of educational background:

	Doula	Nurse
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 60%	Bachelor's Degree, 43%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	-	Duke University

Doula vs nurse demographics

Here are the differences between doulas' and nurses' demographics:

	Doula	Nurse
Average age	42	44
Gender ratio	Male, 5.7% Female, 94.3%	Male, 14.0% Female, 86.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 6.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.8% Asian, 6.7% White, 60.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	6%	9%

Differences between doula and nurse duties and responsibilities

Doula example responsibilities.

Freelance henna tattoo artist; can draw free hand designs or use stencils.
Market and advertise services via flyers, business cards, Facebook, etc.
Provide in-patient counseling and emotional support to terminally ill patients and their families.
Train in cross-contamination and CPR.
Update online website and Facebook.
Certify in blood-borne pathogens, basic first aid, and CPR.

Nurse example responsibilities.

Monitor patients' status during surgery (circulate in operating room) and manage patients in PACU.
Manage high-acuity cardiac/pulmonary and psychiatric patients
Monitor patients for cardiac rhythm changes and implement medication according to ACLS guidelines.
Educate patients and families on diseases processes, medications, wind care, and iv infusion.
Provide care for patients on medical/surgical, transplant, cardiac, orthopedic, postpartum, neonatal ICU, and psychiatric units
Demonstrate competence in CPR and other medical emergency situations.

Doula vs nurse skills

Common doula skills

Childbirth Education, 23%
Patients, 18%
Emotional Support, 8%
Doulas, 7%
Physical Support, 6%
Informational Support, 5%

Common nurse skills

Patients, 21%
Home Health, 7%
CPR, 6%
BLS, 6%
Acute Care, 5%
Acls, 4%

Updated January 8, 2025

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