Home care nurse vs progressive care nurse

The differences between home care nurses and progressive care nurses can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a home care nurse and a progressive care nurse. Additionally, a progressive care nurse has an average salary of $71,768, which is higher than the $53,762 average annual salary of a home care nurse.

The top three skills for a home care nurse include patients, home health and CPR. The most important skills for a progressive care nurse are patients, BLS, and progressive care.

Home care nurse vs progressive care nurse overview

	Home Care Nurse	Progressive Care Nurse
Yearly salary	$53,762	$71,768
Hourly rate	$25.85	$34.50
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	692,730	654,051
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 41%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	2	2

What does a home care nurse do?

A home care nurse is responsible for providing quality health care for patients, usually in a private home setting. Home care nurses monitor patients' conditions and their medication and other treatments as prescribed by the attending physician or other health care professionals. They assist with the patients' daily activities such as bathing, feeding, and performing procedures such as taking the patients' temperature and vital signs, collecting specimens, and updating their medical chart.

What does a progressive care nurse do?

Progressive care nurses are nursing professionals who are responsible for monitoring the condition of patients that are admitted to the hospital's progressive care unit (PCU). These nurses are required to observe the acutely ill patients for critical vital signs and detect any changes while initiating life-saving interventions when needed. They must interpret measurements from specialized medical equipment while performing diagnostic assessments on the changes in the measurements. Progressive care nurses must also update patient files and report any deteriorating conditions to healthcare specialists.

Home care nurse vs progressive care nurse salary

Home care nurses and progressive care nurses have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Home Care Nurse	Progressive Care Nurse
Average salary	$53,762	$71,768
Salary range	Between $34,000 And $84,000	Between $45,000 And $113,000
Highest paying City	Eugene, OR	Redding, CA
Highest paying state	Oregon	New Jersey
Best paying company	Overlake Medical Center & Clinics	AccentCare
Best paying industry	Health Care	Health Care

Differences between home care nurse and progressive care nurse education

There are a few differences between a home care nurse and a progressive care nurse in terms of educational background:

	Home Care Nurse	Progressive Care Nurse
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 35%	Bachelor's Degree, 41%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	Duke University	Duke University

Home care nurse vs progressive care nurse demographics

Here are the differences between home care nurses' and progressive care nurses' demographics:

	Home Care Nurse	Progressive Care Nurse
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 13.5% Female, 86.5%	Male, 13.2% Female, 86.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between home care nurse and progressive care nurse duties and responsibilities

Home care nurse example responsibilities.

Manage patient care monitoring vital signs, performing physical assessment, checking patients medications for effectiveness.
Enter the nursing profession working in an ICU step down unit, with medical and surgical patients.
Care for many patients with complex issues with compassion and care and enhances the standard of care within the clinical area.
Provide care for pediatric patients with chronic illnesses and pediatric ventilator and tracheostomy patients.
Provide home dialysis services to patients receiving rehabilitation in a nursing home setting utilizing NxStage machines.
Monitor cardiac rhythms and treat per ACLS protocols

Progressive care nurse example responsibilities.

Manage patient pain relief and sedation by providing pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention, monitor patient response and record care plans accordingly.
Develop, implement and evaluate patients' rehabilitation goals to facilitate patient satisfaction.
Utilize EMR for charting, medication ordering, and referrals
Stage, measure, photograph wounds and document in EMR system.
Used strict aseptic technique during the dialysis procedure and when caring for the peritoneal catheter.
Set up and operate equipment as needed: EKG, cardiac monitors, suction and respiratory equipment.

Home care nurse vs progressive care nurse skills

Common home care nurse skills

Patients, 25%
Home Health, 18%
CPR, 8%
Companionship, 8%
Social Work, 3%
Primary Care, 3%

Common progressive care nurse skills

Patients, 23%
BLS, 14%
Progressive Care, 8%
Acute Care, 6%
Acls, 6%
Telemetry, 5%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Home Care Nurse
Home Care Nurse vs Progressive Care Nurse

Updated January 8, 2025

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