Nursing Job Description

Nurses are employed in many different settings from hospitals, nursing homes, government facilities, schools to private care. Read more to find what type of job you can expect with each level of nursing degrees.


Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) Job Description:



Certified nurse assistants (CNA's) serve as a support structure for the rapidly growing nursing sector. They have been called the nurse's "eyes and ears," providing patients with the basic daily care that nurses normally do not have time to provide like taking vital signs, applying dressings, conducting range of motion exercises, filling out patient information charts, and communicating medical instructions. They become familiar with their patients, keeping the nurse informed on the patient's status and allowing the nurse to perform the higher-level duties only they can perform.

CNA's jobs can be found in most any setting that employs nurses, including adult day health centers, hospitals, nursing homes, private clinics, public schools, university medical centers, government public health agencies, military hospitals and in personal homes, or in any facility that provides basic nursing care. Back to top

Read More About: Certified Nursing Assistants

Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN)/ Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) Job Description:



The title of LPN or LVN depends on the state where you are employed. Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) or Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVN) are responsible for caring for patients while under the direction of Registered nurses (RN) and doctors. LPN's/LVN's provide bedside care by monitoring the patient's vital signs and charting the data, administering injections, and feeding the patients if they need assistance with eating. Working a standard 40 hour week in mainly hospitals and Nursing Home facilities, LPN nurses may also have to provide care for patients around the clock, extending their usual working hours.

Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN)/ Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) work in many settings, including nursing homes and extended care facilities like rehabilitation centers, hospitals, physicians' offices, and private homes. Back to top

Read More About: LPN Licensed Practical Nurses / LVN Licensed Vocational Nurses

Registered Nurse (RN) Job Description:



Registered nurses (RN's) provide and coordinate patient care. Besides supervising LPN's, they educate patients and the public about various health conditions, and provide advice and emotional support to patients and their family members.

Registered nurses work in hospitals, physicians' offices, home health care services, and nursing care facilities. They also work in correctional facilities, rehabilitation centers, schools, summer camps, and with the military. Back to top

Read More About: RN / Registered Nurses

Advanced Degree Nursing (ADN) Job Description:



Being the highest level of education in the nursing field, these advanced degree nursing jobs also earn the highest income and offer a wide variety of job settings. Back to top


Nurse Practitioner (NP) Job Description:



Certified Nurse Midwives are nurses who have special training in obstetrics, specifically in childbirth. Nurse midwives care for pregnant women and assist them during and after the delivery.

They are most commonly employed by birthing clinics or found in private practice. Some hospitals devoted to women and children also have CNM's on staff. Back to top

Read More About: NP / Nurse Practitioners

Certified Nurse Midwives (CNM) Job Description:



Certified Nurse Midwives are nurses who have special training in obstetrics, specifically in childbirth. Nurse midwives care for pregnant women and assist them during and after the delivery.

They are most commonly employed by birthing clinics or found in private practice. Some hospitals devoted to women and children also have CNM's on staff. Back to top

Read More About: CNM / Certified Nurse Midwives

Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) Job Description:



Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS) are often responsible for assessing and overseeing a health care facility's nursing practice and its impact on patient outcomes. They provide clinical directions to the nursing staff in the delivery of patient care programs and ensure that the nursing staff maintains an established level of clinical competency.

Most places employing CNS's require a master's degree plus at least five years of experience in their specialized field or in a related area. They must be familiar with a variety of concepts, practices and procedures in their specialized area because they rely on their extensive experience and judgment to plan and accomplish goals. They must also be equipped to perform a variety of nursing tasks and be able to lead and direct the work of others. Typically, they report to a manager or head of a unit or department.

Because their area is so specialized, they can be found in most any institution that caters to medical information including hospitals, universities, government facilities, public health care facilities and nursing homes. They are rarely employed by private physicians or private employers. Back to top

Read More About: CNS / Clinical Nurse Specialists

Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA) Job Description:



Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists, or CRNA's, are some of the most advanced and highest paid of all nurses. CRNA's administer anesthesia during surgery, when an anesthesiologist physician is not available to do so. In fact, CRNA's actually predate anesthesiologists (physicians who administer anesthesiology).

Most CRNA's are employed by hospitals, and work in a surgical environment, such as an operating room. CRNA's also may work in outpatient surgery centers and medical offices. According to the American Nurses Association, CRNA's are responsible for delivering over 65% of all anesthetics administered to patients in the US. There are over 30,000 CRNA's practicing in the US, and just over half of them are men, based on information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the ANA. Back to top

Read More About: CRNA / Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists