What does a nurse extern do?
The job of a nurse extern is to assist the mentor nurse in their nursing duties. They help the mentor nurse in various medical procedures such as administering medications or starting intravenous therapies. They provide or help with personal patient care, including changing bed linens, oral hygiene, and bathing. Nurse externships typically have different requirements that include having finished nursing school, completing a clinical nursing course before the training, and being registered in a nursing program.
Nurse extern responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real nurse extern resumes:
- Organize and manage regular clinics involving external physicians, including ophthalmology, ENT, Med/Surg, orthopedics, and podiatry professionals.
- Assist patients with activities of daily living, obtain vital signs and assessments, and perform 12 lead EKG's.
- Perform initial assessments on patients in outpatient oncology clinic; recording vital signs, significant medical history and chief complaints.
- Shadow to adult medical-surgical nurse staff- head-to-toe assessment, assist with medication administration, computer charting with co-signor, and telemetry monitoring
- Obtain ACLS, to ensure patients receive the best quality of care.
- Obtain ACLS certification and then float to all critical care areas as needed.
- Perform EKG's; CPR, suture preparation; wind dressings; Foley care & insertion; stock supplies.
- Provide general nursing care to patients, such as assistance with ADL's, ambulation, transport, and one-to-one observation.
- Specialize in neurological ICU patients.
- Demonstrate compassion through interacting with patients.
- Ready patients for surgery, including catheter insertions and antibacterial surgical preps.
- Utilize critical thinking and anticipate patient needs through EKG and telemetry monitoring.
- Monitor patients in seclusion & restraints according to current behavioral health guidelines.
- Record detailed information on medication and assist in the resuscitation of critically ill patients.
- Administer chemotherapy, provide education for new chemo patients, and continuous monitoring of infusions.
Nurse extern skills and personality traits
We calculated that 39% of Nurse Externs are proficient in Patients, Vital Signs, and CPR. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Compassion, and Detail oriented.
We break down the percentage of Nurse Externs that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 39%
Conducted physical examinations on adult/geriatric patients with acute/chronic orthopedic problems with an emphasis on cervical and back injuries.
- Vital Signs, 11%
Worked on maternity and Gerontology/Psychiatric Unit * Document vital signs * Recorded patient information * Documented case information * Monitored clients behavior
- CPR, 4%
Respond to Code situations, Perform CPR when necessary, adapting to difficult situations and making decision quickly with confidence.
- Direct Patient Care, 4%
Provided direct patient care including education, vital signs documentation, ambulation of postoperative patients and all patient charting.
- Direct Supervision, 4%
Provided therapeutic care under the direct supervision of a registered nurse assessing patients planning/performing interventions and involved in treatments including medications.
- Patient Care, 3%
Performed basic nursing procedures and assisted with patient care at Veterans Administration Hospital and Whispering Pines Nursing Home Facility.
Most nurse externs use their skills in "patients," "vital signs," and "cpr" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential nurse extern responsibilities here:
Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a nurse extern to have is communication skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "registered nurses must be able to communicate effectively with patients in order to understand their concerns and evaluate their health conditions." Nurse externs often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "tend to multiple patient's needs- help with communication between different interdisciplinary professionals- perform daily assessments and medication administration under nurse supervision"
Compassion. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling nurse extern duties is compassion. The role rewards competence in this skill because "registered nurses should be caring and empathetic when working with patients." According to a nurse extern resume, here's how nurse externs can utilize compassion in their job responsibilities: "provided compassionate nursing care to geriatric patients on a busy telemetry unit. "
Detail oriented. This is an important skill for nurse externs to perform their duties. For an example of how nurse extern responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "registered nurses must be precise because they must ensure that patients get the correct treatments and medicines at the right time." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a nurse extern: "practiced nursing skills, medication administration, and patient education developed and presented a project detailing externship experiences to department heads".
Emotional stability. For certain nurse extern responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "emotional stability." The day-to-day duties of a nurse extern rely on this skill, as "registered nurses need emotional resilience and the ability to cope with human suffering, emergencies, and other stressors." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what nurse externs do: "provided physical and emotional support in various situations including labor and delivery, surgical procedures, and diagnostic tests. "
Organizational skills. Another crucial skill for a nurse extern to carry out their responsibilities is "organizational skills." A big part of what nurse externs relies on this skill, since "nurses often work with multiple patients who have a variety of health needs." How this skill relates to nurse extern duties can be seen in an example from a nurse extern resume snippet: "developed basic patient care competency and organizational skills in the neonatal intensive care unit"
Physical stamina. While "physical stamina" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to nurse extern responsibilities. Much of what a nurse extern does relies on this skill, seeing as "nurses should be comfortable performing physical tasks, such as lifting patients." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of nurse externs: "worked on a medical/surgical floor where my main duties included physical assessment and medication administration. "
The three companies that hire the most nurse externs are:
- HealthTrust173 nurse externs jobs
- Tenet Healthcare99 nurse externs jobs
- Hca Hospital Services Of San Diego
83 nurse externs jobs
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Compare different nurse externs
Nurse extern vs. Emergency department registered nurse
An emergency registered nurse is first in line for patients who need a response. These nurses are first to respond to emergency cases such as trauma, allergic reactions, and injuries. They assist doctors and other medical staff in emergency medical care. It is their responsibility to always provide high-quality standards for nursing. The skills they should possess include diligence, attention to detail, levelheadedness, and strong communication. They also need to be knowledgeable about emergency care.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a nurse extern are more likely to require skills like "direct supervision," "medical-surgical," "infection control," and "blood pressure." On the other hand, a job as an emergency department registered nurse requires skills like "acls," "acute care," "life support," and "patient outcomes." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Emergency department registered nurses really shine in the health care industry with an average salary of $77,094. Comparatively, nurse externs tend to make the most money in the health care industry with an average salary of $39,085.On average, emergency department registered nurses reach similar levels of education than nurse externs. Emergency department registered nurses are 2.4% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.3% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Nurse extern vs. Oncology registered nurse
An oncology registered nurse is in charge of taking care of patients with cancer. Their responsibilities revolve around coordinating with physicians to devise particular care plans for patients, monitoring their daily condition and progress, administering medicine, preparing nutritious meals, and evaluating treatment results, reporting to the physician should there be any issues. Furthermore, as an oncology registered nurse, it is vital to provide physical and emotional support to patients as the treatments tend to be stressful and emotionally tolling.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that nurse extern responsibilities requires skills like "cpr," "direct supervision," "medical-surgical," and "infection control." But an oncology registered nurse might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "acute care," "acls," "hematology," and "ons."
On average, oncology registered nurses earn a higher salary than nurse externs. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, oncology registered nurses earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $63,612. Whereas nurse externs have higher pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $39,085.oncology registered nurses earn similar levels of education than nurse externs in general. They're 0.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for nurse externs in the next 3-5 years?
Lisa Rebeschi Ph.D.
Associate Dean of the School of Nursing Professor of Nursing, Quinnipiac University
Nurse extern vs. Senior registered nurse
A senior registered nurse is a superior healthcare professional who provides high-quality palliative care to patients and their families. Senior registered nurses are required to liaise between patients and other healthcare professionals, such as physicians, occupational therapists, and physiotherapists. They lead a team of registered nurses and care assistants to ensure that they follow the hospital's best practice care standards. Senior registered nurses also administer and order medicines as required by patients and the hospital's policies and procedures.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from nurse extern resumes include skills like "direct supervision," "patient care," "medical-surgical," and "blood pressure," whereas a senior registered nurse is more likely to list skills in "home health," "acute care," "care coordination," and "bls. "
Senior registered nurses make a very good living in the health care industry with an average annual salary of $85,104. On the other hand, nurse externs are paid the highest salary in the health care industry, with average annual pay of $39,085.senior registered nurses typically earn similar educational levels compared to nurse externs. Specifically, they're 1.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Nurse extern vs. Clinical research nurse
A clinical research nurse is responsible for conducting research studies on various health conditions, illness treatments, and healthcare methodologies, analyzing existing scientific research to make new reports. Clinical research nurses also communicate with other health professionals and health organizations for their insights and recommendations for a specific medical study, ensuring to report their findings to doctors and medical researchers for further validation and clinical trials. A clinical research nurse must have excellent knowledge of communication, both written and spoken, as well as expertise in the medical industry.
Types of nurse extern
Updated January 8, 2025
