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Staff nurse vs medical surgical staff nurse

The differences between staff nurses and medical surgical staff nurses can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a staff nurse and a medical surgical staff nurse. Additionally, a staff nurse has an average salary of $68,342, which is higher than the $67,649 average annual salary of a medical surgical staff nurse.

The top three skills for a staff nurse include patients, BLS and CPR. The most important skills for a medical surgical staff nurse are patients, CPR, and acute care.

Staff nurse vs medical surgical staff nurse overview

Staff NurseMedical Surgical Staff Nurse
Yearly salary$68,342$67,649
Hourly rate$32.86$32.52
Growth rate6%6%
Number of jobs699,636720,628
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 44%Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Average age4444
Years of experience22

Staff nurse vs medical surgical staff nurse salary

Staff nurses and medical surgical staff nurses have different pay scales, as shown below.

Staff NurseMedical Surgical Staff Nurse
Average salary$68,342$67,649
Salary rangeBetween $42,000 And $109,000Between $39,000 And $115,000
Highest paying CityBurlingame, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaCalifornia
Best paying companyWashington Hospital Healthcare SystemUniversity of California, Berkeley
Best paying industryHealth CareHealth Care

Differences between staff nurse and medical surgical staff nurse education

There are a few differences between a staff nurse and a medical surgical staff nurse in terms of educational background:

Staff NurseMedical Surgical Staff Nurse
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 44%Bachelor's Degree, 47%
Most common majorNursingNursing
Most common collegeDuke UniversityDuke University

Staff nurse vs medical surgical staff nurse demographics

Here are the differences between staff nurses' and medical surgical staff nurses' demographics:

Staff NurseMedical Surgical Staff Nurse
Average age4444
Gender ratioMale, 12.3% Female, 87.7%Male, 9.6% Female, 90.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage9%9%

Differences between staff nurse and medical surgical staff nurse duties and responsibilities

Staff nurse example responsibilities.

  • Manage and further help stabilize elective and urgent care surgical patients in their post-operative/post PACU admission to the floor.
  • Accomplish extensive critical care course with EKG interpretation and yearly critical care medication exam.
  • Manage patient pain relief and sedation by providing pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention, monitor patient response and record care plans accordingly.
  • Participate in discharge planning including teaching family members and patients wind care and medication administration process after discharge.
  • Provide direct nursing care to patients in a variety of settings with an emphasis in critical care and PACU settings.
  • Prepare patients for surgery and endoscopy procedures including initiating intravenous lines, physical assessments and administering medications.
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Medical surgical staff nurse example responsibilities.

  • Manage patient pain relief and sedation by providing pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention, monitor patient response and record care plans accordingly.
  • Provide comprehensive nursing care to a variety of in-patient medical, surgical and telemetry patients.
  • Coordinate and provide direct patient care for cardiac/telemetry, surgical, orthopedic, respiratory, geriatric and pain management patients.
  • Obtain CPR certification for the first time.
  • Assist with patients that have acute active GI bleeding.
  • Administer rapid response and cardiac arrest care as a part of resuscitation team.
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Staff nurse vs medical surgical staff nurse skills

Common staff nurse skills
  • Patients, 28%
  • BLS, 9%
  • CPR, 6%
  • Acls, 5%
  • Acute Care, 4%
  • Direct Patient Care, 3%
Common medical surgical staff nurse skills
  • Patients, 34%
  • CPR, 10%
  • Acute Care, 7%
  • Acls, 5%
  • Direct Patient Care, 4%
  • Telemetry, 4%

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