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Clinical Nurse Specialist

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All About Clinical Nurse Specialists

Clinical Nurse Specialist Example Plan, direct, or coordinate the daily patient care activities in a clinical practice. Ensure adherence to established clinical policies, protocols, regulations, and standards.

What Do Clinical Nurse Specialists Do On a Daily Basis?

  • Prepare reports to document patients' care activities.
  • Present clients with information required to make informed health care and treatment decisions.
  • Develop nursing service philosophies, goals, policies, priorities, or procedures.
  • Direct or supervise nursing care staff in the provision of patient therapy.
  • Participate in clinical research projects, such as by reviewing protocols, reviewing patient records, monitoring compliance, and meeting with regulatory authorities.
  • Teach patient education programs that include information required to make informed health care and treatment decisions.

What Skills Do You Need to Work as a Clinical Nurse Specialist?

When polled, Clinical Nurse Specialists say the following skills are most frequently used in their jobs:

Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Service Orientation: Actively looking for ways to help people.

Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Coordination: Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

Types of Clinical Nurse Specialist

  • Community Health Clinical Nurse Specialist
  • Nephrology Nurse
  • Critical Care Clinical Nurse Specialist
  • Quality Management Nurse
  • Intensive Care Unit Nurse

Clinical Nurse Specialist Employment Estimates

In the United States, there were 2,955,200 jobs for Clinical Nurse Specialist in 2016. New jobs are being produced at a rate of 14.8% which is above the national average. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 438,000 new jobs for Clinical Nurse Specialist by 2026. The BLS estimates 203,700 yearly job openings in this field.

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The states with the most job growth for Clinical Nurse Specialist are Arizona, Utah, and Colorado. Watch out if you plan on working in Rhode Island, Wisconsin, or Connecticut. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.

Do Clinical Nurse Specialists Make A Lot Of Money?

The typical yearly salary for Clinical Nurse Specialists is somewhere between $50,800 and $106,530.

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Clinical Nurse Specialists who work in Hawaii, California, or Oregon, make the highest salaries.

Below is a list of the median annual salaries for Clinical Nurse Specialists in different U.S. states.

State Annual Mean Salary
Alabama $59,470
Alaska $89,310
Arizona $77,000
Arkansas $60,780
California $106,950
Colorado $74,240
Connecticut $81,220
Delaware $74,800
District of Columbia $92,350
Florida $66,210
Georgia $68,950
Hawaii $98,080
Idaho $67,110
Illinois $73,890
Indiana $64,860
Iowa $59,130
Kansas $61,030
Kentucky $63,100
Louisiana $63,970
Maine $67,610
Maryland $76,820
Massachusetts $92,140
Michigan $71,330
Minnesota $78,920
Mississippi $58,490
Missouri $65,130
Montana $67,450
Nebraska $64,470
Nevada $85,620
New Hampshire $72,760
New Jersey $82,750
New Mexico $71,730
New York $85,610
North Carolina $64,850
North Dakota $65,740
Ohio $66,820
Oklahoma $63,080
Oregon $91,080
Pennsylvania $70,390
Rhode Island $78,420
South Carolina $64,940
South Dakota $58,340
Tennessee $61,320
Texas $72,890
Utah $65,670
Vermont $69,160
Virginia $69,790
Washington $82,670
West Virginia $61,780
Wisconsin $71,470
Wyoming $67,360

What Tools do Clinical Nurse Specialists Use?

Below is a list of the types of tools and technologies that Clinical Nurse Specialists may use on a daily basis:

  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft Word
  • Microsoft Office
  • Microsoft PowerPoint
  • Web browser software
  • Email software
  • GE Healthcare Centricity EMR
  • Bizmatics PrognoCIS EMR
  • eClinicalWorks
  • e-MDs software
  • SOAPware EMR
  • Allscripts Professional EHR
  • ChartWare EMR
  • NextGen Healthcare Information Systems EMR
  • MicroFour PracticeStudio.NET EMR
  • Cerner Millennium
  • SynaMed EMR
  • Texas Medical Software SpringCharts EMR
  • Amkai AmkaiCharts
  • StatCom Patient Flow Logistics Enterprise Suite

Becoming a Clinical Nurse Specialist

What education or degrees do I need to become a Clinical Nurse Specialist?

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How Long Does it Take to Become a Clinical Nurse Specialist?

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Where Clinical Nurse Specialists Work

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Below are examples of industries where Clinical Nurse Specialists work:

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Other Jobs You May be Interested In

Those thinking about becoming a Clinical Nurse Specialist might also be interested in the following careers:

References:

Image Credit: Aleksahgabrielle via Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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