Hospice Nurse Salary In The United States
Hospice nurses are trained health care professionals who direct, initiate and implement different patient care plans in hospice environments. These professionals usually assist physicians during different procedures and examinations, they prepare all the necessary equipment, change the dressings following a surgical procedure and they also monitor the patients. Hospice nurses may also need to administer oral and injectable prescribed medications, and in order to get certified they usually need an associate’s degree in the field. The median yearly wage for a registered hospice nurse in the United States of America is of $62,000.
Pay Scale In Different Parts Of The United States
Registered hospice nurses are paid differently across the United States of America, and approximately 10% of all nurses earn a salary that is above the national average described earlier. Generally speaking, these professionals earn more than $75,000 a months, especially in the states of New York, California and Hawaii. As a matter of fact, hospice nurses who live and work in New York City have an average median income of around $91,000, which is very encouraging.
Hospice Nurse Job Description
Hospice nurses are trained professionals who usually work with dying or terminally ill patients, and their main job responsibility is to ensure their comfort and to help them improve their life quality. These professionals are usually hired in hospice facilities or in the residential home of a terminally ill patient who has a short life expectancy. Hospice nurses usually provide medical care to those who do not respond to medical treatment and they provide comfort both to the patients and to their families, helping them understand the medical situation.
These are registered nurses who are an important part of the medical team and they deal with providing and monitoring different health conditions, as well as with using advanced medical equipment and administering the medications. Moreover, it is also the duty of the registered hospice nurses to advise the patients and their families on the prognosis of the disease their patients are suffering from.
Working as a hospice nurse takes more skill than training usually, as not every nurse is suitable for this position. It is extremely important to have good communication skills and to be extremely compassionate with the patient. Also, critical thinking skills are very important as well, given the fact that these health care professionals need to assess the situation of the patient, to detect changes in the symptoms as soon as they appear and to administer the medications correctly.
A great attention to detail is required as well, as the hospice nurses usually help doctors administer medications and keep an eye on the vital signs and any changes that may occur in the patient’s health. Hospice nurses must keep calm under pressure and they must possess good organizational skills as well, as they work closely with patients who have different needs and different stages of health. These health care professionals must be prepared to deal with unexpected or emergency situations.
How To Become A Hospice Nurse
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Becoming a hospice nurse requires great attention to detail, and this involves a good educational background as well. It is important to have a degree in nursing and to have in-depth knowledge in some of the most important medical fields, from health assessment and anatomy physiology to nursing skills and pharmacology. Moreover, a good registered hospice nurse must have impeccable pain management skills and they must be good listeners as well, given the fact that as mentioned above, these health care professionals usually work with terminally ill patients. It is important for the hospice nurse to know when to encourage the patient and how to put away their frustrations, this is why it is highly recommended for future registered hospice nurses to take classes in psychology as well in order to help their patients cope with all the confusion, the loneliness and the anger that their patients might be going through at a certain phase of their illness.
In addition to the Bachelor’s Degree which is of utmost importance for every hospice nurse, these health care professionals must also complete a Master’s Degree program or a Post Master’s program in palliative care and they must get their certification as well. These professionals must always stay up to date with the latest medical discoveries and they should constantly try to improve both their skills and their general medical knowledge, in order to provide their patients with the best medical care possible.
Certification
Once you have completed the Master’s degree program you have opted for and you got your degree, it is important to enroll in a certificate program in palliative care. Once you do that, you will be given your credentials by the National Board of Certification of Hospice and Palliative Nurses. These certificate programs usually result in what is known as the ACHPN credential, ACHPN being an acronym that stands for Advanced Certified Hospice and Palliative Nurse credential. At the end of the training session, the students have to sit and pass a rigorous exam.
Registered Hospice Nurse Salary In Canada, Australia And The United Kingdom
Registered hospice nurses who work in the United Kingdom have a mean yearly salary of around 23,000 pounds, although the salary can grow exponentially if these health care professionals are hired by the families of terminally ill patients and they work at their private residence. At the same time, registered hospice nurses who work in Australia have a median yearly wage of around AU$52,000, although the salary tends to increase with experience. Last, but not least, hospice nursing professionals who live and work in Canada earn around C$65,000 per annuum.
Verdict On The Salary Of Hospice Nurses
Hospice nursing is by far one of the most demanding and difficult areas of nursing, mainly because these health care professionals need to be extremely compassionate to comfort their patients. However, the salary is certainly rewarding for this position, no matter if you choose to work independently or part of the team of a hospice facility.
