Nursing director vs head nurse

The differences between nursing directors and head nurses can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a nursing director, becoming a head nurse takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a nursing director has an average salary of $87,643, which is higher than the $80,173 average annual salary of a head nurse.

The top three skills for a nursing director include patients, term care and home health. The most important skills for a head nurse are patients, BLS, and compassion.

Nursing director vs head nurse overview

	Nursing Director	Head Nurse
Yearly salary	$87,643	$80,173
Hourly rate	$42.14	$38.54
Growth rate	28%	6%
Number of jobs	76,956	649,127
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 44%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	47	44
Years of experience	6	2

Nursing director vs head nurse salary

Nursing directors and head nurses have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Nursing Director	Head Nurse
Average salary	$87,643	$80,173
Salary range	Between $64,000 And $118,000	Between $48,000 And $132,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Minneapolis, MN
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	Oculus	AstraZeneca
Best paying industry	Health Care	Education

Differences between nursing director and head nurse education

There are a few differences between a nursing director and a head nurse in terms of educational background:

	Nursing Director	Head Nurse
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 44%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	Duke University

Nursing director vs head nurse demographics

Here are the differences between nursing directors' and head nurses' demographics:

	Nursing Director	Head Nurse
Average age	47	44
Gender ratio	Male, 11.6% Female, 88.4%	Male, 13.1% Female, 86.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 7.5% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	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 Percentage	12%	9%

Differences between nursing director and head nurse duties and responsibilities

Nursing director example responsibilities.

Manage FTE'S of the units.
Manage FTE numbers by following staffing grids.
Lead in the implementation of whole house telemetry.
Manage and provide inpatient nursing care for all aspects of general surgery.
Manage and coordinate all aspects of nursing and ancillary services for successful operation of the SNF.
Complete comprehensive assessments for all LTC residents which include managing falls, pain, skin integrity, and medications.

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.

Nursing director vs head nurse skills

Common nursing director skills

Patients, 16%
Term Care, 8%
Home Health, 7%
Resident Care, 6%
Rehabilitation, 5%
Infection Control, 5%

Common head nurse skills

Patients, 31%
BLS, 9%
Compassion, 6%
Acute Care, 6%
Acls, 4%
CPR, 3%