Education and regulation

The nursing career structure varies throughout the world. Typically there are several distinct levels of nursing practitioner distinguished by scope of practice. The major distinction is between task-based nursing and professional nursing. Nurses throughout the world are increasingly employed as registered nurses, advanced practice nurses, clinical nurse specialists and nurse practitioners. At the top of the educational ladder is the doctoral-prepared nurse. Nurses may gain a PhD or another doctoral degree, specializing in research, clinical nursing, and so forth. These nurses practice nursing, teach nursing, and carry out nursing research. As the science and art of nursing has advanced, so has the demand for doctoral-prepared nurses.

In various parts of the world, the educational background for nurses varies widely. In some parts of eastern Europe, nurses are high school graduates with twelve to eighteen months of training. In contrast, Chile requires any registered nurse to have at least a bachelor's degree.

Nurses are the largest group of providers in the health care system--there are over two million registered nurses in the United States of America (U.S.) alone, comprising about 13% of the fifteen million workers in the health care and social assistance category tracked by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Nursing is one of the most female-dominated occupations, but the number of males entering the profession is increasing. For example, in 2000 only 5.4% of registered nurses in the U.S. were male, however, that percentage represents a 226% increase over the previous two decades. In 2007, internationally, 10.7% of registered nurses and 10.4% of licensed practical nurses were male. Although the rise in the number of males entering and working in the nursing profession is an ongoing trend, females continue to predominate in nursing, as well as in the health care sector as a whole.

Governments regulate the profession of nursing to protect the public.

Other healthcare workers

Health care settings generally involve a wide range of medical professionals who work in collaboration with nurses.

Examples include:

• Nursing assistants, orderlies, auxiliary nurses, medical assistants. These types of health care workers work both in acute and primary settings, with the supervision of registered nurses or licensed practical nurses (in the US). They assist nurses by giving basic care, taking vital signs, administering hygienic care, assisting with feeding, giving basic psychosocial care, housekeeping, and similar duties. See also hospital volunteers.
• EMTs and Paramedics work closely with emergency and critical care nurses to stabilize life-threatening trauma and medical emergencies and to provide a seamless transfer of care from incoming ambulances to awaiting medical/surgical teams.
• Technicians: for example, certified medication aides in the US, are trained to administer medications in a long-term care setting. There are also phlebotomy technicians, who perform venipuncture; surgical technologist (US), and technicians trained to operate most kinds of diagnostic and laboratory equipment, such as X-ray machines, electrocardiographs, and so forth.
• Medical practitioners rely on nurses' ability to follow orders to ensure a continuity of patient care.
• Pharmacists are responsible for the safe dispensing of medicine and offering of expert advice on drug therapies.
• Allied health professionals such asrespiratory therapists, medical technologists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, nurses operating department practitioners (UK) and physical therapists work with nursing staff.