Nurses vs. Doctors

by: Tyler Frasher

Obviously both nurses and doctors are important to the medical industry, however, one provides opinions and diagnosis while the other offers aid and physical treatment. Basically, they are complementary to each other in order to run a smooth, successful medical facility.

Each profession has multiple fields in which the main occupation can be differentiated into. For nurses, some of these positions include licensed practical nurses, registered nurses, administrative nurses, head nurses and advanced practice nurses. For doctors, they include positions such as  primary care doctors, dentists, surgeons, and specialists of a variety of departments in healthcare.

Doctors are limited to their specialized field whereas nurses are able to work across several wards or units depending on their job descriptions. In order to fully asses the roots of a problem, a doctor needs to be specialized where as the work of a nurse is different. Nurses' work is more task or patient oriented.

The education required between the two occupations are clearly different. Doctors need to read a lot, therefore, taking a longer time to acquire new and accurate knowledge and skills whereas nurses rely more on experience with some study to provide the best treatment possible. That being said, this does not mean that the education behind nursing is much more simple than that of being a doctor. In fact, nurses can go as far as a Doctorate degree in nursing.

One of the largest differences is the wage. Nurses have one of the most diverse salary ranges because of the many different levels within the profession. The average salary ranges from $39,000 for staff nurses to $57000 for RNs while a nurse anesthetist can make up to $157,000 yearly. The pay for doctors is much higher. These range from $160,000 for general doctors to $240,000 for physicians and specialized doctors.

Sources:
http://www.nursingdegreeguide.org/articles/general/the_differences_between_a_nurse_and_a_doctor/