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Medical surgical staff nurse vs registered nurse

The differences between medical surgical staff nurses and registered 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 medical surgical staff nurse and a registered nurse. Additionally, a registered nurse has an average salary of $73,349, which is higher than the $67,649 average annual salary of a medical surgical staff nurse.

The top three skills for a medical surgical staff nurse include patients, CPR and acute care. The most important skills for a registered nurse are patients, BLS, and CPR.

Medical surgical staff nurse vs registered nurse overview

Medical Surgical Staff NurseRegistered Nurse
Yearly salary$67,649$73,349
Hourly rate$32.52$35.26
Growth rate6%6%
Number of jobs720,628646,159
Job satisfaction-2.75
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 47%Associate Degree, 46%
Average age4444
Years of experience22

Medical surgical staff nurse vs registered nurse salary

Medical surgical staff nurses and registered nurses have different pay scales, as shown below.

Medical Surgical Staff NurseRegistered Nurse
Average salary$67,649$73,349
Salary rangeBetween $39,000 And $115,000Between $45,000 And $117,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaCalifornia
Best paying companyUniversity of California, BerkeleyNORCAL Ambulance
Best paying industryHealth CareHealth Care

Differences between medical surgical staff nurse and registered nurse education

There are a few differences between a medical surgical staff nurse and a registered nurse in terms of educational background:

Medical Surgical Staff NurseRegistered Nurse
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 47%Associate Degree, 46%
Most common majorNursingNursing
Most common collegeDuke UniversityDuke University

Medical surgical staff nurse vs registered nurse demographics

Here are the differences between medical surgical staff nurses' and registered nurses' demographics:

Medical Surgical Staff NurseRegistered Nurse
Average age4444
Gender ratioMale, 9.6% Female, 90.4%Male, 12.3% Female, 87.7%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 9.0% White, 66.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage9%9%

Differences between medical surgical staff nurse and registered nurse duties and responsibilities

Medical surgical 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.
  • Provide comprehensive nursing care to a variety of in-patient medical, surgical and telemetry patients.
  • Coordinate and provide direct patient care for cardiac/telemetry, surgical, orthopedic, respiratory, geriatric and pain management patients.
  • Obtain CPR certification for the first time.
  • Assist with patients that have acute active GI bleeding.
  • Administer rapid response and cardiac arrest care as a part of resuscitation team.
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Registered nurse example responsibilities.

  • Manage patient care for individuals with multiple diagnoses including COPD, diabetes, stroke and cardiac issues.
  • Organize and manage regular clinics involving external physicians, including ophthalmology, ENT, Med/Surg, orthopedics, and podiatry professionals.
  • Manage surgical recovery patients including vascular, ENT, GI urological and neurological cases, coronary bypass surgery patients.
  • Manage patient pain relief and sedation by providing pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention, monitor patient response and record care plans accordingly.
  • Provide care for cardiac patients in arrhythmia critical care unit, providing patient education and monitoring telemetry
  • Re-Cover surgical patients immediately after heart and vascular surgery until transfer out of ICU.
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Medical surgical staff nurse vs registered nurse skills

Common medical surgical staff nurse skills
  • Patients, 34%
  • CPR, 10%
  • Acute Care, 7%
  • Acls, 5%
  • Direct Patient Care, 4%
  • Telemetry, 4%
Common registered nurse skills
  • Patients, 24%
  • BLS, 10%
  • CPR, 6%
  • Acute Care, 5%
  • Acls, 5%
  • Home Health, 4%

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