What does a registered professional nurse do?
Registered professional nurse responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real registered professional nurse resumes:
- Manage patient pain relief and sedation by providing pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention, monitor patient response and record care plans accordingly.
- Provide direct patient care to but not limit to acute, palliative care, and oncology patients.
- Provide telemetry monitoring for cardiac patients.
- Involve in prescribing patients individual rehabilitation programs in conjunction with staff exercise physiologists and helping patients meet their expect goals.
- Provide excellent and compassionate ICU patient care.
- Assist ICU manager with scheduling and work assignments.
- Insert indwelling foley catheter, and observe for signs/symptoms of infection.
- Analyze EKG rhythms, arterial lines, venous pressure lines, and ICP.
- Provide care using various cardiac drugs, beta blockers, and ACLS critical drug regimens.
- Care of the full term and preterm neonate at delivery, including APGAR scoring, newborn care and resuscitation.
- Perform several medical procedures, including temperature, pulse and blood pressure readings, TB testing, immunizations and EKG's.
- Sound management of newborn resuscitation e.g.
- Administer medications and assist in convalescence and rehabilitation.
- Identify irregular telemetry readings and notify appropriate medical team members.
- Work closely with anesthesiologist to ensure patient adherence to protocols and readiness for surgery.
Registered professional nurse skills and personality traits
We calculated that 27% of Registered Professional Nurses are proficient in Patients, BLS, and Patient Safety. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Compassion, and Detail oriented.
We break down the percentage of Registered Professional Nurses that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 27%
Provided quality and compassionate nursing care to high-control female long-term psychiatric patients and geriatric male patients.
- BLS, 12%
License and Certification Illinois Registered Professional Nurse Illinois Nurse Assistant/Aide Training Instructor BLS American Heart Association
- Patient Safety, 11%
Execute proper care, use, and handling of surgical equipment ensuring patient safety.
- Acls, 6%
Provided care using various cardiac drugs, beta blockers, and ACLS critical drug regimens.
- EKG, 4%
Performed several medical procedures, including temperature, pulse and blood pressure readings, TB testing, immunizations and EKG's.
- Compassion, 3%
Demonstrated clinical competency and compassion in providing care, using technology, administering medications, performing procedures and managing emergencies
"patients," "bls," and "patient safety" are among the most common skills that registered professional nurses use at work. You can find even more registered professional nurse responsibilities below, including:
Communication skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a registered professional nurse 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." Registered professional nurses often use communication skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "collaborated with patients to set health care goals * successfully used therapeutic communication skills"
Compassion. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling registered professional nurse 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 registered professional nurse resume, here's how registered professional nurses can utilize compassion in their job responsibilities: "administer medications and implement emotional support, compassion and empathy. "
Detail oriented. registered professional nurses are also known for detail oriented, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to registered professional nurse responsibilities, because "registered nurses must be precise because they must ensure that patients get the correct treatments and medicines at the right time." A registered professional nurse resume example shows how detail oriented is used in the workplace: "worked in various units, er, icu, ccu, and telemetry, details on request. "
Emotional stability. registered professional nurse responsibilities often require "emotional stability." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "registered nurses need emotional resilience and the ability to cope with human suffering, emergencies, and other stressors." This resume example shows what registered professional nurses do with emotional stability on a typical day: "compare stability of vital signs with pre-op to establish parameters. "
Organizational skills. Another crucial skill for a registered professional nurse to carry out their responsibilities is "organizational skills." A big part of what registered professional nurses relies on this skill, since "nurses often work with multiple patients who have a variety of health needs." How this skill relates to registered professional nurse duties can be seen in an example from a registered professional nurse resume snippet: "utilize critical thinking, time management, and organizational skills in caring for patients. "
Physical stamina. Lastly, "physical stamina" is an important element of what a registered professional nurse does. Registered professional nurse responsibilities require this skill because "nurses should be comfortable performing physical tasks, such as lifting patients." This resume example highlights how registered professional nurse duties rely on this skill: "assist in physical examinations, vaccine and medication administration. "
The three companies that hire the most registered professional nurses are:
- Medical City Arlington59 registered professional nurses jobs
- UPMC13 registered professional nurses jobs
- Tufts Medical Center7 registered professional nurses jobs
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Compare different registered professional nurses
Registered professional nurse vs. Nurse
Nurses are medical professionals assigned to a specific department in the hospital and provide their trusted department services. Nurses are in charge of taking patients' medical histories, getting vital signs, preparing patients for checkups or procedures, explaining upcoming practices, answering any questions, and communicating any concerns to the assigned doctor. Nurses should ensure that patients follow the medical advice given to them. They also assist patients in completing administrative requirements, such as filling out forms, validating details, and endorsing payments.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between registered professional nurses and nurse. For instance, registered professional nurse responsibilities require skills such as "healthcare professionals," "patient outcomes," "quality patient care," and "ventilation." Whereas a nurse is skilled in "quality care," "appeals," "medicaid," and "good judgment." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Nurses tend to make the most money working in the government industry, where they earn an average salary of $63,263. In contrast, registered professional nurses make the biggest average salary, $64,620, in the utilities industry.On average, nurses reach similar levels of education than registered professional nurses. Nurses are 2.0% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.2% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Registered professional nurse vs. Staff nurse
Staff nurses are registered nurses who are usually assigned to work in a care home, a company, or in a clinical setting. They advise the physical assessments of patients, employees, and residents. They also handle the checking of vital signs, providing basic medical procedures, giving first aid, and, if possible, providing over the counter medication. Staff nurses provide medical attention to the people in their place of assignment. They help pave the path to their patients' full recovery. Staff nurses are expected to be patient and have good interpersonal skills.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real registered professional nurse resumes. While registered professional nurse responsibilities can utilize skills like "compassion," "healthcare professionals," "patient outcomes," and "quality patient care," staff nurses use skills like "staff rn," "dexterity," "quality care," and "manual dexterity."
Staff nurses earn a lower average salary than registered professional nurses. But staff nurses earn the highest pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $58,739. Additionally, registered professional nurses earn the highest salaries in the utilities with average pay of $64,620 annually.staff nurses earn similar levels of education than registered professional nurses in general. They're 3.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for registered professional nurses in the next 3-5 years?
Lisa Rebeschi Ph.D.
Associate Dean of the School of Nursing Professor of Nursing, Quinnipiac University
Registered professional nurse vs. Head 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.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a registered professional nurse is likely to be skilled in "healthcare professionals," "nursing diagnosis," "patient outcomes," and "home health," while a typical head nurse is skilled in "clinical supervision," "medical assistants," "fte," and "staff development."
Head nurses make a very good living in the education industry with an average annual salary of $80,362. On the other hand, registered professional nurses are paid the highest salary in the utilities industry, with average annual pay of $64,620.Most head nurses achieve a similar degree level compared to registered professional nurses. For example, they're 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Registered professional nurse vs. Clinical research nurse
Types of registered professional nurse
Updated January 8, 2025
