Acute Care Nurses Career, Salary and Skills
Acute Care Nurses have a BLS-reported national median annual wage of $97,550 based on the 2025 OEWS dataset, with reported national employment of 3,379,720. Wage data is published for 433 locations.
Occupation description
Provide advanced nursing care for patients with acute conditions such as heart attacks, respiratory distress syndrome, or shock. May care for pre- and post-operative patients or perform advanced, invasive diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.
O*NET code
29-1141.01
Job zone
4
Typical education
Bachelor's Degree
Experience
None
National salary and employment
Median annual
$97,550
Hourly median
$46.90
Employment
3,379,720
Data year
2025
National salary distribution
Top skills
| Skill | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Speaking | 4.12 | 4.00 |
| Critical Thinking | 4.12 | 4.00 |
| Reading Comprehension | 4.12 | 4.88 |
| Service Orientation | 4.12 | 4.25 |
| Writing | 4.00 | 4.00 |
| Social Perceptiveness | 4.00 | 4.75 |
| Monitoring | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Active Learning | 4.00 | 4.25 |
| Active Listening | 4.00 | 4.12 |
| Coordination | 4.00 | 3.88 |
Typical tasks
- Diagnose acute or chronic conditions that could result in rapid physiological deterioration or life-threatening instability.
- Perform emergency medical procedures, such as basic cardiac life support (BLS), advanced cardiac life support (ACLS), and other condition-stabilizing interventions.
- Assess urgent and emergent health conditions, using both physiologically and technologically derived data.
- Set up, operate, or monitor invasive equipment and devices, such as colostomy or tracheotomy equipment, mechanical ventilators, catheters, gastrointestinal tubes, and central lines.
- Document data related to patients' care, including assessment results, interventions, medications, patient responses, or treatment changes.
- Administer blood and blood product transfusions or intravenous infusions, monitoring patients for adverse reactions.
- Interpret information obtained from electrocardiograms (EKGs) or radiographs (x-rays).
- Discuss illnesses and treatments with patients and family members.
Technology
- Allscripts Professional EHR
- Amkai AmkaiCharts
- Bizmatics PrognoCIS EMR
- Cerner Millennium
- ChartWare EMR
- e-MDs software
- eClinicalWorks EHR software
- GE Healthcare Centricity EMR
- IBM Lotus Notes
- Medscribbler Enterprise
- MicroFour PracticeStudio.NET EMR
- Microsoft Access
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Office software
Acute Care Nurses salary by location
Areas with the highest reported employment for this occupation.
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in CAMedian $140,270 · Employment 338,940
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in TXMedian $95,970 · Employment 271,380
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in FLMedian $84,190 · Employment 229,940
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in NYMedian $109,440 · Employment 205,810
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in New York, NYMedian $119,720 · Employment 197,740
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in PAMedian $96,430 · Employment 146,520
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in OHMedian $82,510 · Employment 143,730
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in ILMedian $95,990 · Employment 138,910
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in NCMedian $84,350 · Employment 111,120
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in Los Angeles, CAMedian $135,560 · Employment 109,360
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in MIMedian $94,300 · Employment 104,950
- Acute Care Nurses Salary in GAMedian $93,550 · Employment 100,950
Related careers
- Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation PhysiciansNational median $265,930
- Family Medicine PhysiciansNational median $244,180
- Nurse AnesthetistsNational median $236,590
- Orthopedic Surgeons, Except PediatricNational median $358,550
- General Internal Medicine PhysiciansNational median $256,560
- AnesthesiologistsNational median $391,490
- Pediatric SurgeonsNational median $559,030
- CardiologistsNational median $496,010
Career and skills data: O*NET 31.0 (onetcenter.org). Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, 2025 (bls.gov/oes). Figures are published survey estimates, not real-time market data.