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Clinical Nurse Specialists

Also called: Clinical Nurse Specialist, Critical Care Clinical Nurse Specialist, Emergency Clinical Nurse Specialist, ICU Clinical Nurse Specialist (Intensive Care Unit Clinical Nurse Specialist)

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What they do:
Direct nursing staff in the provision of patient care in a clinical practice setting, such as a hospital, hospice, clinic, or home. Ensure adherence to established clinical policies, protocols, regulations, and standards.
On the job, you would:
  • Evaluate the quality and effectiveness of nursing practice or organizational systems.
  • Collaborate with other health care professionals and service providers to ensure optimal patient care.
  • Develop and maintain departmental policies, procedures, objectives, or patient care standards, based on evidence-based practice guidelines or expert opinion.

Knowledge

Health
  • medicine and dentistry
  • therapy and counseling
Education and Training
  • teaching and course design
Arts and Humanities
  • English language
Math and Science
  • biology

Skills

Basic Skills
  • listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
  • reading work related information
Problem Solving
  • noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Social
  • looking for ways to help people
  • changing what is done based on other people's actions

Abilities

Verbal
  • communicate by speaking
  • listen and understand what people say
Ideas and Logic
  • use rules to solve problems
  • make general rules or come up with answers from lots of detailed information
Attention
  • do two or more things at the same time
  • pay attention to something without being distracted
Memory
  • remember words, numbers, pictures, or steps

Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include leading, making decisions, and business.
They do well at jobs that need:
  • Integrity
  • Adaptability/Flexibility
  • Dependability
  • Leadership
  • Attention to Detail
  • Analytical Thinking

Technology

You might use software like this on the job:

Medical software
  • eClinicalWorks EHR software Hot Technology
  • GE Healthcare Centricity EMR
Presentation software
  • Microsoft PowerPoint Hot Technology In Demand
Spreadsheet software
  • Microsoft Excel Hot Technology In Demand

Education

Education: (rated 5 of 5)
master's degree
usually needed

Get started on your career:

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Job Outlook

Bright Outlook
New job opportunities are very likely in the future.
Salary
$77,600
$59,450
$120,250
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See more details at O*NET OnLine about clinical nurse specialists.