Acute Care Nurses
Provide advanced nursing care for patients with acute conditions such as heart attacks, respiratory distress syndrome, or shock.
Bachelor's degree
Healthcare Practitioners & Technical
Registered Nurses
Also called: Charge Nurse, Emergency Department RN (Emergency Department Registered Nurse), Operating Room Registered Nurse (OR RN), Staff Nurse
- Typical education
- Bachelor's degree
- 56% of workers surveyed
- Preparation needed
- Considerable Preparation Needed
- Job Zone 4 of 5
- Programs in this directory
- 723
- that lead to this career
What registered nurses do
Assess patient health problems and needs, develop and implement nursing care plans, and maintain medical records. Administer nursing care to ill, injured, convalescent, or disabled patients. May advise patients on health maintenance and disease prevention or provide case management. Licensing or registration required.
Typical tasks
- 1Record patients' medical information and vital signs.
- 2Administer medications to patients and monitor patients for reactions or side effects.
- 3Maintain accurate, detailed reports and records.
- 4Monitor, record, and report symptoms or changes in patients' conditions.
- 5Provide health care, first aid, immunizations, or assistance in convalescence or rehabilitation in locations such as schools, hospitals, or industry.
- 6Consult and coordinate with healthcare team members to assess, plan, implement, or evaluate patient care plans.
- 7Direct or supervise less-skilled nursing or healthcare personnel or supervise a particular unit.
- 8Monitor all aspects of patient care, including diet and physical activity.
- 9Instruct individuals, families, or other groups on topics such as health education, disease prevention, or childbirth and develop health improvement programs.
- 10Modify patient treatment plans as indicated by patients' responses and conditions.
Key skills
- Social Perceptiveness4.1/5
- Active Listening4.0/5
- Coordination4.0/5
- Critical Thinking4.0/5
- Service Orientation4.0/5
- Speaking4.0/5
- Judgment and Decision Making3.9/5
- Reading Comprehension3.9/5
Importance rated by workers in this career (1–5).
Knowledge areas
- Psychology4.6/5
- Customer and Personal Service4.4/5
- Medicine and Dentistry4.4/5
- English Language4.2/5
- Administrative3.5/5
- Mathematics3.4/5
Importance rated by workers in this career (1–5).
Technology used
- Apache Spark
- Epic Systems
- Google Docs
- Henry Schein Dentrix
- Kronos Workforce Timekeeper
- MEDITECH software
- Microsoft Access
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Office software
- Microsoft Outlook
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Project
How to become one
- Education
- The most common level among workers surveyed is a bachelor's degree (56%). Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
- Experience
- A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
- Training
- Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Where to study
Subjects that prepare for this career:
Showing 12 of 723 matching programs.
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Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses
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Some college courses
This page includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. We have modified some of this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. Programs are linked with the CIP–SOC crosswalk from the U.S. Department of Education (NCES). Education levels and preparation describe the United States and may differ in other countries.