Nurse Practitioner jobs

Nurse Practitioner jobs: frequently asked questions

(Updated Dec 2024)

Welcome to our Nurse Practitioner jobs page, featuring all the latest roles throughout the UK, as well as frequently asked questions below.

What is a Nurse Practitioner?

Nurse Practitioners, often referred to as Advanced Nurse Practitioners, are specialist nurses who undertake additional nursing training in order to provide advanced nursing care, make diagnoses and prescribe medication.

Nurse Practitioners provide treatment for problems which patients may have seen a doctor for in the past.

They have the qualifications and training to make referrals to hospitals and specialist doctors.

In terms of where you might work, this can vary as much as if you’re a General Nurse.

Nurse Practitioners are found in hospitals, GP surgeries, and all across community settings.

What are the daily duties of a Nurse Practitioner?

Nurse Practitioners carry out a number of daily duties including:

• Conducting patient screenings and assessments

• Checking and updating patient records

• Analysing test data

• Consulting doctors for advice on complex issues

• Giving a diagnosis for certain conditions

• Planning treatments and prescribing medication

• Referring patients to specific doctors or hospitals for further treatment

Nurse Practitioners can work a variety of shift patterns depending on their place of work, from standard 9-5 hours to night-shifts and weekend work.

How do you become a Nurse Practitioner?

First and foremost, you’ll need to complete a nursing degree.

You can complete a degree in any of these four core areas: adult, child, mental health and learning disabilities.

Courses typically last three years and are available at universities all over the UK.

You normally then need at least three years’ experience as a Registered General Nurse.

From this point, you’ll be able to apply for a Master’s Degree in advanced nursing practice.

This course is typically completed on a part-time basis for between two and five years, allowing nurses to continue to earn a good salary.

The most important part of this is gaining a qualification in Independent Prescribing.

However, the NHS now often subsidises these programmes having recognised the huge value that Nurse Practitioners add.

What’s the difference between a Nurse Practitioner and a Doctor?

This is a very common question now that the profile of Nurse Practitioners is growing.

All in all, it’s a bit of a grey area.

The role of a Nurse Practitioner is still relatively new, so inevitably they’re less well known and established than Doctors.

After all, Nurse Practitioners often go by other titles such as Clinical Nurse Specialists.

But, with the ability to provide diagnoses and prescribe treatments, in many ways the roles can be very similar.

It is however important to note that Nurse Practitioners do tend to have limits on who they treat.

Patients with serious conditions or situations that escalate into emergencies are normally passed on to a Doctor.

How much do Nurse Practitioners get paid?

Nurse Practitioners sometimes start at Band 6 on the NHS pay scale (around £37,000 a year to start), but these roles are often advertised at Band 7 or 8 levels with higher rates of pay.

However, because Nurse Practitioners’ experience can vary greatly, salaries can vary too.

Nurse Practitioners can also work in the private sector, where pay is even more unpredictable.

But the benefits package is unpredictable too – something that should be noted when considering job offers, given how reliable the NHS benefits package is.

Find your next role today

View our latest Nurse Practitioner jobs above, or if you can’t find what you’re looking for, create an account and register your CV here, and we’ll send you the latest roles as soon as they arise.