Survey shows more than 290,000 NPs practicing in the U.S., accounting for more than 1 billion patient visits annually.
The nation's nurse practitioner workforce grew by 20,000 in the past year, with more than 290,000 full-time NPs accounting for more than one billion patient visits, according to an annual survey by American Association of Nurse Practitioners.
"Millions of patients — of all ages — choose an NP as their health care provider each year," AANP President Sophia Thomas, DNP, said in a media release. "As the number of seniors increases and the demand for health care access grows, NPs are meeting that need in rural and urban areas across the nation."
AANP estimates that NPs accounted for 1.06 billion patient visits in 2018,
Although NP compensation can vary widely based on location, specialty, experience and education, including type of certification, the survey found the median base salary for full-time NPs was $110,000 and the median total income (including bonuses) for full-time NPs was $115,000.
Full-time, psychiatric mental health NPs had the highest median base salary ($125,000), while emergency NPs had the highest median hourly rate ($70.00)
Four of the top five certifications reported were in primary care: family (65.4%), adult (12.6%), adult-gerontology (7.8%) and pediatrics (3.7%).
NP administrators reported a higher median base salary of $120,000. NPs who held a clinical role made a median base salary of $108,000.
Most NPs described their administrative role as "professional-level," such as director, manager or supervisor, and one-in-seven NPs held an "executive-level" position such as CEO, CNO or owner.
The weighted results of the electronic survey were based on the responses of 5,770 NPs.
“Millions of patients — of all ages — choose an NP as their health care provider each year.”
AANP President Sophia Thomas, DNP
John Commins is a content specialist and online news editor for HealthLeaders, a Simplify Compliance brand.