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Licensed vocational nurse staff nurse vs head nurse

The differences between licensed vocational nurses staff nurses and head 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 licensed vocational nurse staff nurse and a head nurse. Additionally, a head nurse has an average salary of $80,173, which is higher than the $59,312 average annual salary of a licensed vocational nurse staff nurse.

The top three skills for a licensed vocational nurse staff nurse include patients, wound care and vital signs. The most important skills for a head nurse are patients, BLS, and compassion.

Licensed vocational nurse staff nurse vs head nurse overview

Licensed Vocational Nurse Staff NurseHead Nurse
Yearly salary$59,312$80,173
Hourly rate$28.52$38.54
Growth rate6%6%
Number of jobs590,901649,127
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 36%Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age4644
Years of experience22

Licensed vocational nurse staff nurse vs head nurse salary

Licensed vocational nurses staff nurses and head nurses have different pay scales, as shown below.

Licensed Vocational Nurse Staff NurseHead Nurse
Average salary$59,312$80,173
Salary rangeBetween $44,000 And $79,000Between $48,000 And $132,000
Highest paying City-Minneapolis, MN
Highest paying state-California
Best paying company-AstraZeneca
Best paying industry-Education

Differences between licensed vocational nurse staff nurse and head nurse education

There are a few differences between a licensed vocational nurse staff nurse and a head nurse in terms of educational background:

Licensed Vocational Nurse Staff NurseHead Nurse
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 36%Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common majorNursingNursing
Most common collegeEmory UniversityDuke University

Licensed vocational nurse staff nurse vs head nurse demographics

Here are the differences between licensed vocational nurses staff nurses' and head nurses' demographics:

Licensed Vocational Nurse Staff NurseHead Nurse
Average age4644
Gender ratioMale, 15.0% Female, 85.0%Male, 13.1% Female, 86.9%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 6.5% White, 55.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 8.8% White, 65.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage7%9%

Differences between licensed vocational nurse staff nurse and head nurse duties and responsibilities

Licensed vocational nurse staff nurse example responsibilities.

  • Manage patient pain relief and sedation by providing pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention, monitor patient response and record care plans accordingly.
  • Care of the patient in high observation patients (ICU) with multiple system diagnoses in an acute care environment.
  • Set up and regulate oxygen therapy as well as initiate and/or assist with CPR.
  • Monitor EKG strips, lab data, blood work and report any critical data to the RN.
  • Operate patient care, follow up calls, make referrals and call prescriptions and document all within ATHENA EMR.
  • Help the nursing department to resolve the issues relate to EMR & computer with help of care- connect team.
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Head nurse example responsibilities.

  • Manage patient pain relief and sedation by providing pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention, monitor patient response and record care plans accordingly.
  • Receive intensive training for critical care skill development upon transferring to the medical ICU.
  • Perform advanced nursing care to acute/chronic medical/surgical, cardiac, thoracic surgery, neurosurgery, orthopedic and oncology/ hematology patients.
  • Certify staff in CPR and blood glucose monitoring.
  • Develop and implement an intensive care class for the staff; implement ACLS class for all staff.
  • Develop process improvement plan with bundles for sedation and ventilation.
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Licensed vocational nurse staff nurse vs head nurse skills

Common licensed vocational nurse staff nurse skills
  • Patients, 22%
  • Wound Care, 7%
  • Vital Signs, 7%
  • Direct Patient Care, 7%
  • Administer Medications, 6%
  • CPR, 4%
Common head nurse skills
  • Patients, 31%
  • BLS, 9%
  • Compassion, 6%
  • Acute Care, 6%
  • Acls, 4%
  • CPR, 3%

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