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What is a palliative care nurse practitioner and how to become one
Palliative care nurse practitioners are advanced practice nurses who are responsible for the treatment of the patient who has a terminal diagnosis or threatening illnesses. You are expected to provide support emotionally to patients and their families in the face of a devastating diagnosis. Sometimes, you might have to make a home visit to patients who are too ill to make an office visit. Also, you are expected to prescribe therapies, diets, and exercises to patients suffering from complicated illnesses. Prescription, by the way, depends on individual state rules. Furthermore, you are to arrange for comfort measures like palliative chemotherapy and radiation, which help to reduce the pain and distress of cancer patients.
To become a palliative care nurse practitioner, you must hold a bachelor's degree in nursing. It is necessary that you also meet the state licensing requirements to be a registered nurse. There is a need for you to further your education and complete a master's of science in nursing. After that, you have to be licensed as a nurse practitioner. You will earn an average of $112,673 yearly.
What general advice would you give to a palliative care nurse practitioner?
Amy Grugan Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Assistant Director of Nursing, Bradley University
Avg. Salary $102,753
Avg. Salary $59,228
Growth rate 40%
Growth rate 0.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.32%
Asian 6.33%
Black or African American 4.66%
Hispanic or Latino 6.65%
Unknown 4.50%
White 77.54%
Genderfemale 87.22%
male 12.78%
Age - 41American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%
Asian 7.00%
Black or African American 14.00%
Hispanic or Latino 19.00%
White 57.00%
Genderfemale 47.00%
male 53.00%
Age - 41Stress level is very high
7.1 - high
Complexity level is advanced
7 - challenging
Work life balance is fair
6.4 - fair
Palliative care nurse practitioner career paths
Key steps to become a palliative care nurse practitioner
Explore palliative care nurse practitioner education requirements
Start to develop specific palliative care nurse practitioner skills
Skills Percentages Patients 32.56% Patient Care 16.38% Home Health 5.80% Compassion 3.69% Patient Education 3.34% Complete relevant palliative care nurse practitioner training and internships
Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New palliative care nurse practitioners learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a palliative care nurse practitioner based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real palliative care nurse practitioner resumes.Research palliative care nurse practitioner duties and responsibilities
- Evaluate and manage physical, intellectual, emotional, social & spiritual needs of veterans with serious illnesses.
- Manage acute rehabilitation and skil care inpatient population following orthopedic surgery until discharge.
- Prepare monthly re-certification audits for bi-weekly IDT meeting with MD.
- Utilize several different EMR systems for all of the various patient locations.
Prepare your palliative care nurse practitioner resume
When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your palliative care nurse practitioner resume.
You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a palliative care nurse practitioner resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.
Choose from 10+ customizable palliative care nurse practitioner resume templates
Build a professional palliative care nurse practitioner resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your palliative care nurse practitioner resume.
Apply for palliative care nurse practitioner jobs
Now it's time to start searching for a palliative care nurse practitioner job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:
- Browse job boards for relevant postings
- Consult your professional network
- Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
- Watch out for job scams
How did you land your first palliative care nurse practitioner job
Are you a palliative care nurse practitioner?
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Average palliative care nurse practitioner salary
The average palliative care nurse practitioner salary in the United States is $102,753 per year or $49 per hour. Palliative care nurse practitioner salaries range between $55,000 and $190,000 per year.
What am I worth?
How do palliative care nurse practitioners rate their job?
Palliative care nurse practitioner reviews
Helping others
Lack of pay, paperwork, seeing the same patients and doing the same as a physician but getting paid alot less!
I like the autonomy and the fulfillment of helping others.
patient interaction, discussion of anything encouraging as they deal with longterm chronic illnesses. Empowering the patient to be part of the solution, and also to find ways to focus outside of their illness. And I love discussing research with patients when it relates .
#1 Administration does not value you as a health professional. They are stuck in the image of the nurse meaning we follow. They don't see us as clinicians that make a difference not just by caring, but by evaluating organ systems, medication regimens, finding the answer by communicating and getting a great history in regards to chief complaints, evaluating labs and staying up to date with research. I and other NP's before me laid the groundwork for our profession y working hard and being smart and educated. I have seen how companies want to get rid of the experienced NP to fill the role with two entry level NP's. There is age discrimination on top of it, it's not just the pay. #2 Arrogant doctors who push most of the work onto you in regards to documentation and also patient's medical management. Then act like they are "so busy". We know the good doctors from the ones who are their own fan club.
Updated January 8, 2025
