Nursing director vs resident services director

The differences between nursing directors and resident services directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a nursing director and a resident services director. Additionally, a nursing director has an average salary of $87,643, which is higher than the $62,648 average annual salary of a resident services director.

The top three skills for a nursing director include patients, term care and home health. The most important skills for a resident services director are resident care, state regulations, and CPR.

Nursing director vs resident services director overview

	Nursing Director	Resident Services Director
Yearly salary	$87,643	$62,648
Hourly rate	$42.14	$30.12
Growth rate	28%	28%
Number of jobs	76,956	84,382
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 44%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	6	6

What does a nursing director do?

A nursing director's role is to oversee and evaluate all nurse staff in a hospital or organization, ensuring their efficiency at providing care towards patients. A nursing director's responsibilities mainly revolve around administrative tasks such as coordinating with physicians and other consultants, producing reports, conducting assessments, managing the budget and expenditures, and resolving issues. Furthermore, a nursing director must keep and maintain accurate records, ensuring all procedures adhere to the highest health standards and aligns with the hospital's policies and regulations.

What does a resident services director do?

A resident service director is responsible for developing, planning, implementing, supervising, and monitoring the resident services staff and program for residents consistent with regulations and established best practices. Their duties and responsibilities include maintaining accurate resident records and coordinating safety and emergency programs.

Nursing director vs resident services director salary

Nursing directors and resident services directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Nursing Director	Resident Services Director
Average salary	$87,643	$62,648
Salary range	Between $64,000 And $118,000	Between $32,000 And $120,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	New York, NY
Highest paying state	California	Delaware
Best paying company	Oculus	Kaiser Permanente
Best paying industry	Health Care	Transportation

Differences between nursing director and resident services director education

There are a few differences between a nursing director and a resident services director in terms of educational background:

	Nursing Director	Resident Services Director
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 44%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	University of Pennsylvania

Nursing director vs resident services director demographics

Here are the differences between nursing directors' and resident services directors' demographics:

	Nursing Director	Resident Services Director
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 11.6% Female, 88.4%	Male, 22.7% Female, 77.3%
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, 11.8% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.2% Asian, 7.7% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between nursing director and resident services director 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.

Resident services director example responsibilities.

Manage resident and facility accounts, budgets, social security applications, and Medicare and Medicaid benefits.
Attend weekly Medicare meetings and notify families of available coverage and mail necessary Medicare letters to families for confirmation.
Perform daily maintenance on boilers, HVAC unit and all mechanical system.
Perform HVAC, plumbing and electrical repairs including older circuit breaker boxes and meter stacks.
Assist with resident and family decision making regarding clinical and long term care (LTC).
Develop system to track all housing applications and improve internal housing relocation methods in response to new DHS mandates.

Nursing director vs resident services director skills

Common nursing director skills

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

Common resident services director skills

Resident Care, 12%
State Regulations, 9%
CPR, 8%
Social Work, 7%
Memory Care, 6%
Independent Living, 6%

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Nursing Director
Nursing Director vs Resident Services Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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