Nurse practitioners are registered nurses who hold advanced positions in medical establishments and facilities. While they perform the same duties as registered nurses, they concentrate more on admin and supervision work, as well as assistance in treating rather complex medical conditions. Because of the advanced work requirements and responsibilities, nurse practitioners are thus provided with highly comfortable compensation for their service.
What They Do
- Maintains the functionality and efficiency of the whole nursing staff in a medical establishment.
- Serves as the overseer of the nursing force and among the tasks under this role is to see to it that all member nurses are doing their job properly and effectively during their shift.
- Checks schedules, maintains reports, and evaluates the performance of subordinate nurses whenever required.
- Serve as lead nurses when handling special tasks in the hospital.
- Assist doctors in treating severe medical conditions.
- Handles patients in ICU or those who are admitted due to their complex medical situations.
- They can prescribe medication without consulting an MD.
- They can also teach and perform medical research.
Earning Potential
The average annual salary of nurse practitioners ranges around $86,486. Nurse practitioners are among the most stable and in demand jobs in the health care industry today and hiring for such positions will continue to increase rapidly in the next five years.
Salary packages of nurse practitioners vary on the employment setting, geographic location, educational background and levels of experience. Nurse practitioners are mostly full-time, thus they are entitled to standard benefits, such as life insurance, retirement pension, paid leaves, vacation leaves and other perks depending on the establishment they work for.
Annual Nurse Practitioner Salary by State
| State | Annual | State | Annual |
| Alabama | $98,000 | Missouri | $92,000 |
| Alaska | $77,000 | Montana | $92,000 |
| Arizona | $81,000 | Nebraska | $77,000 |
| Arkansas | $92,000 | Nevada | $87,000 |
| California | $100,000 | New Hampshire | $96,000 |
| Colorado | $82,000 | New Jersey | $98,000 |
| Connecticut | $99,000 | New York | $109,000 |
| Delaware | $89,000 | North Carolina | $89,000 |
| District of Columbia | $106,000 | North Dakota | $89,000 |
| Florida | $89,000 | Ohio | $87,000 |
| Georgia | $98,000 | Oklahoma | $84,000 |
| Hawaii | $71,000 | Oregon | $87,000 |
| Idaho | $81,000 | Pennsylvania | $82,000 |
| Illinois | $97,000 | Rhode Island | $98,000 |
| Indiana | $97,000 | South Carolina | $83,000 |
| Iowa | $87,000 | South Dakota | $77,000 |
| Kansas | $82,000 | Tennessee | $87,000 |
| Kentucky | $86,000 | Texas | $87,000 |
| Louisiana | $72,000 | Utah | $87,000 |
| Maine | $90,000 | Vermont | $94,000 |
| Maryland | $95,000 | Virginia | $94,000 |
| Massachusetts | $107,000 | Washington | $86,000 |
| Michigan | $85,000 | West Virginia | $95,000 |
| Minnesota | $86,000 | Wisconsin | $76,000 |
| Mississippi | $112,000 | Wyoming | $99,000 |
Updated April 2012
Career Opportunities
Nurse practitioners are mostly employed in hospitals and large-scale medical and health care facilities. They are likewise present in nursing homes for the elderly, urgent-care centers to private practice. There are nurse practitioners some who serve as aides of physicians that specialize in family medicine. Nurse practitioners work for full 8-hour shifts, and are usually subject to regular daytime schedules due to their advanced positions in the nursing staff hierarchy. In these establishments, nursing practitioners may earn as much as $95,000 per year. Earnings may be higher when they are assigned in ICU departments and other special divisions in the health care establishment.
The specialization of the nurse practitioner is also a factor in determining salary figures. Nurses who take on diagnostic responsibilities such as checking for the presence of chronic diseases and conditions, provide first aid medications and prescribe medications are said to be in more advanced positions and may earn around $84,000 to $87,000 per year. On the other hand, nursing practitioners who focus on rather advocacy duties such as providing prenatal care and family planning services, well-child care and immunization may earn around $75,000 per year.
There are places in which nurse practitioners are able to earn the most due to their high demand. Nurse practitioners may earn most when they tend to work in states such as Alabama, California, District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Mississippi and New York. The increase in demand for nurse practitioners has been due to the growth of retirement homes and elderly care facilities during the past few years.