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Nurses' aide vs nurse technician

The differences between nurses' aides and nurse technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-3 months to become both a nurses' aide and a nurse technician. Additionally, a nurse technician has an average salary of $33,005, which is higher than the $30,496 average annual salary of a nurses' aide.

The top three skills for a nurses' aide include patients, vital signs and electrocardiogram. The most important skills for a nurse technician are patients, CPR, and vital signs.

Nurses' aide vs nurse technician overview

Nurses' AideNurse Technician
Yearly salary$30,496$33,005
Hourly rate$14.66$15.87
Growth rate9%9%
Number of jobs157,723195,553
Job satisfaction4.5-
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 30%Bachelor's Degree, 39%
Average age4242
Years of experience33

What does a nurses' aide do?

A nurses' aide is responsible for providing healthcare and welfare assistance to patients in long-term care facilities while under the supervision of a registered nurse or a licensed colleague with extensive expertise. A nurses' aide is mostly involved in basic hygienic tasks, such as helping a patient in bathing and dressing, using the toilet, preparing meals, feeding, and performing basic chores. It is also vital for a nurses' aide to coordinate with supervisors, reporting any changes in a patients' condition or behavior.

What does a nurse technician do?

Nurse technicians, also known as nursing aides, assistants, or attendants, usually work in clinics, hospitals, and nursing homes. Primarily, they help a registered nurse by providing essential mobility, care, and support to patients. Everyday routine duties include maintaining patients' hygiene and moving them using wheelchairs or stretchers around the facility for their meals, treatment, events, and other activities. They do tasks that help improve a patient's comfort level and become their caregivers in the long run. This job requires a high school diploma along with the completed certified nursing assistant (CNA) program.

Nurses' aide vs nurse technician salary

Nurses' aides and nurse technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Nurses' AideNurse Technician
Average salary$30,496$33,005
Salary rangeBetween $23,000 And $39,000Between $26,000 And $40,000
Highest paying CityUrban Honolulu, HISeattle, WA
Highest paying stateHawaiiOregon
Best paying companyUniversity of California, BerkeleyCarondelet High School
Best paying industryHealth CareHealth Care

Differences between nurses' aide and nurse technician education

There are a few differences between a nurses' aide and a nurse technician in terms of educational background:

Nurses' AideNurse Technician
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 30%Bachelor's Degree, 39%
Most common majorNursingNursing
Most common college--

Nurses' aide vs nurse technician demographics

Here are the differences between nurses' aides' and nurse technicians' demographics:

Nurses' AideNurse Technician
Average age4242
Gender ratioMale, 13.2% Female, 86.8%Male, 16.9% Female, 83.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 13.3% Asian, 7.6% White, 64.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 13.6% Asian, 8.0% White, 60.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage7%7%

Differences between nurses' aide and nurse technician duties and responsibilities

Nurses' aide example responsibilities.

  • Manage and schedule restorative nursing programs for patients to encourage further rehabilitation or maintenance of physical function.
  • Maintain current CPR and hospital policies, work with patients ranging from pediatrics to geriatrics on a daily basis.
  • Perform ADL's (activities of daily living) and direct care services to assign patients to ensure schedule appointments are met
  • Assist with patient transfer, ambulation, catheter care, vital signs, answering call lights, feeding, and shower.
  • Lead RCA that overlook on residents and supervise staff.
  • Perform housekeeping to maintain cleanliness of the facility or patient's residence.
  • Show more

Nurse technician example responsibilities.

  • Manage memory unity within facility.
  • Deliver timely and quality patient care on rehabilitation unit under direct supervision of staff nurses.
  • Assist patients with ADL's: bathing, transferring, ambulating, changing bed linens, skin care, etc.
  • Assist and serve patients with activities of daily living (ADL) in a manner conductive to their safety and comfort.
  • Assist new surgical patients with appropriate equipment to meet rehabilitation needs, and offer mental encouragement for a more positive recovery.
  • Pick up patient for surgery.
  • Show more

Nurses' aide vs nurse technician skills

Common nurses' aide skills
  • Patients, 27%
  • Vital Signs, 12%
  • Electrocardiogram, 8%
  • Compassion, 7%
  • Rehabilitation, 5%
  • Medical Equipment, 4%
Common nurse technician skills
  • Patients, 26%
  • CPR, 9%
  • Vital Signs, 8%
  • Rehabilitation, 5%
  • Home Health, 5%
  • Direct Patient Care, 5%

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