Post job

What does a resident do?

Updated January 8, 2025
7 min read

A resident, often known as a resident physician, is a medical doctor who just graduated from medical school and pursued the residency program for further training. Residents work with health care team members to provide direct medical care by diagnosing medical problems and devising appropriate treatment plans. Depending on their medical specialty and training, residents may assist in performing surgeries to patients but are supervised by senior residents and physicians. Residents must also have an in-depth understanding of ethical, socioeconomic, and medical-legal issues surrounding patient care.

On this page

Resident responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real resident resumes:

  • Manage pediatrics emergencies, indoor & outdoor patients, neonatal & intensive care units.
  • Document daily reports, administer medication, experience with first aid, CPR, and strategies for crisis intervention.
  • Perform full mouth surgical dental rehabilitation for mentally and physically disable patients (children and adults) under general anesthesia.
  • Work up surgical patient for surgery, under supervision.
  • Assist in LINAC and TPS commissioning with LandauerMP commissioning team.
  • Involve in commissioning of new skin HDR program using Valencia applicators.
  • Perform daily and quarterly HDR QA on gammame and Varisource systems.
  • Collaborate with other RCA s regarding instructions for care of residents.
  • Conduct routine laboratory tests, request x-ray and electrocardiogram (EKG).
  • Participate in acceptance testing and annual QC on GE and Siemens MRI scanners.
  • Connect the electrodes to the body of the patient and operate the electrocardiogram equipment.
  • Perform emergency first-aid procedures when appropriate including basic first aid, CPR, Heimlich maneuver, etc.
  • Assist residents with ADL's such as dressing, feeding, routine therapy, activities and showering.
  • Job duties consist of conducting computer diagnostics and troubleshoot to investigate and resolve problems and provide technical support.
  • Have assisted in upgrades and have scrubbed PCs and rebuild them to be re-use in the contact center.

Resident skills and personality traits

We calculated that 20% of Residents are proficient in Home Health, Patients, and Rehabilitation. They’re also known for soft skills such as Organizational skills, Problem-solving skills, and Time-management skills.

We break down the percentage of Residents that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Home Health, 20%

    Assist in all aspects of billing for Independent Living, Assisted Living, Home Health & Skilled Nursing Facility.

  • Patients, 15%

    Author and document patient informed consents for the study and procedures, accompany patients for procedures and thorough documentation of study-procedures.

  • Rehabilitation, 13%

    Conducted psychological assessments and counseling in the Rehabilitation Center at the Veterans Administration for active duty soldiers returning from combat.

  • Customer Service, 6%

    Provide excellent customer service with parents and incoming students alike while providing persuasive commentary to promote Illinois State University.

  • CPR, 4%

    Completed Lawn work as needed, and became CPR certified due to the nature of the work that was being done.

  • Residency Program, 3%

    Engaged in full spectrum family practice including an emphasis on obstetrical and pediatric care in this unopposed residency program.

Common skills that a resident uses to do their job include "home health," "patients," and "rehabilitation." You can find details on the most important resident responsibilities below.

Organizational skills. One of the key soft skills for a resident to have is organizational skills. You can see how this relates to what residents do because "social and human service assistants must often complete lots of paperwork and work with many different clients." Additionally, a resident resume shows how residents use organizational skills: "contribute organizational skills and sharp attention to detail in coordinating medication administration and providing support with all daily living activities. "

Problem-solving skills. Another essential skill to perform resident duties is problem-solving skills. Residents responsibilities require that "social and human service assistants help clients find solutions to their problems." Residents also use problem-solving skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "resolved all customer service issues with timely follow up and documentation, resulting in increasing facility customer satisfaction. "

Time-management skills. residents are also known for time-management skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to resident responsibilities, because "social and human service assistants often work with many clients." A resident resume example shows how time-management skills is used in the workplace: "monitored her vital signs and ensured her medications was taken on time. "

Compassion. For certain resident responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "compassion." The day-to-day duties of a resident rely on this skill, as "social and human service assistants often work with people who are in stressful and difficult situations." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what residents do: "provide compassion and emotional support to resident and family. "

Interpersonal skills. Another common skill required for resident responsibilities is "interpersonal skills." This skill comes up in the duties of residents all the time, as "social and human service assistants must make their clients feel comfortable discussing sensitive issues." An excerpt from a real resident resume shows how this skill is central to what a resident does: "backed by excellent interpersonal skills and a commitment to customer service. "

Communication skills. Another skill commonly found on resident job descriptions is "communication skills." It can come up quite often in resident duties, since "social and human service assistants talk with clients about the challenges in their lives and assist them in getting help." Here's an example from a resume of how this skill fits into day-to-day resident responsibilities: "formulate customer service talking points and script to guide team in optimal patient communication and service. "

All resident skills

The three companies that hire the most residents are:

Choose from 10+ customizable resident resume templates

Build a professional resident resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your resident resume.
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume
Resident Resume

Compare different residents

Resident vs. Social work internship

Social work interns are students who chose to do their on-the-job training in the field of social work. They apply for an internship at social services facilities. They are usually assigned to do administrative or clerical activities such as sorting through files, updating records, organizing documents, and filing reports. Aside from clerical tasks, they also get exposed to program or project management by working on program-specific initiatives. They get exposed to planning, resource managing, implementing, and evaluating. They may also join their supervisors during field activities.

If we compare the average resident annual salary with that of a social work internship, we find that social work interns typically earn a $23,411 lower salary than residents make annually.Even though residents and social work interns are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require patients, mental health, and crisis intervention in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between residents and social work internship. For instance, resident responsibilities require skills such as "home health," "rehabilitation," "customer service," and "cpr." Whereas a social work internship is skilled in "social work," "intake assessments," "community resources," and "discharge planning." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Social work interns really shine in the government industry with an average salary of $40,948. Comparatively, residents tend to make the most money in the non profits industry with an average salary of $67,437.social work interns tend to reach similar levels of education than residents. In fact, social work interns are 3.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 17.0% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.

Resident vs. Program coordinator

Program coordinators are mid-level employees who are assigned to work on a program of a specific department. They handle the communications between their department and any other department that they may need to collaborate with. They coordinate action plans and activities to ensure that the departments are aligned. They are present during the planning stage for the program so that they will be familiar with action items. They are directly involved in the implementation by liaising with the involved departments. Program coordinators should have good communication skills, interpersonal skills, and organization skills.

A career as a program coordinator brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of a resident. In fact, program coordinators salary is $15,521 lower than the salary of residents per year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Residents and program coordinators both require similar skills like "patients," "customer service," and "cpr" to carry out their responsibilities.

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, resident responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "home health," "rehabilitation," "residency program," and "compassion." Meanwhile, a program coordinator has duties that require skills in areas such as "social work," "powerpoint," "excellent organizational," and "professional development." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Program coordinators earn a lower average salary than residents. But program coordinators earn the highest pay in the government industry, with an average salary of $51,387. Additionally, residents earn the highest salaries in the non profits with average pay of $67,437 annually.In general, program coordinators achieve higher levels of education than residents. They're 8.1% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 17.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Resident vs. Volunteer

Volunteers are usually unpaid individuals who render their service to a company or organization. Most of the time, volunteers are skilled in specific areas needed by the organization but prefer to provide free service. They may be employed in another organization, but they lend their time and talent to another organization or company to give back to the community. They raise funds, create awareness, and work on the ground. Volunteers usually choose a cause or advocacy close to their heart, such as teaching children, taking care of the elderly, coaching sports teams, cleaning up communities, and caring for animals.

On average, volunteers earn lower salaries than residents, with a $29,362 difference per year.residents and volunteers both have job responsibilities that require similar skill sets. These similarities include skills such as "cpr," "front desk," and "emotional support," but they differ when it comes to other required skills.

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a resident is likely to be skilled in "home health," "patients," "rehabilitation," and "customer service," while a typical volunteer is skilled in "child care," "patient charts," "patient care," and "community outreach."

Most volunteers achieve a similar degree level compared to residents. For example, they're 2.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 16.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Resident vs. Liaison

A liaison is a middle person responsible for collaborating different institutes, managing professional relationships to create benefiting results that would help a business' meet its goals and objectives. Duties of a liaison include facilitating communications, establishing partnership contract plans and procedures, managing conflicts, providing immediate resolution for concerns, and evaluating collaboration parameters. A liaison must be highly knowledgeable about the subject matters of the represented organization, handling inquiries, and coming up with strategic solutions to make the project successful.

Liaisons average a lower salary than the annual salary of residents. The difference is about $6,852 per year.While both residents and liaisons complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like home health, patients, and rehabilitation, the two careers vary in some skills.Each job also requires different skills to carry out their responsibilities. A resident uses "cpr," "residency program," "compassion," and "emergency situations." Liaisons are more likely to have duties that require skills in "social work," "patient care," "veterans," and "powerpoint. "In general, liaisons earn the most working in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $77,941. The highest-paying industry for a resident is the non profits industry.The average resume of liaisons showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to residents. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 3.5% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 15.8%.

Types of resident

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

What a resident does FAQs

Search for resident jobs

Browse community and social services jobs