Ambulatory Care Nurse – Career and Education Profile

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Ambulatory care nurses typically work in outpatient care facilities, seeing as many patients as possible as quickly as possible. This is a great nursing field to consider if you like a fast-paced work environment that changes from day to day.

Job Responsibilities

In ambulatory care nursing, your primary goal will be to help patients and their families get the care they need as quickly as possible, but without compromising care quality. Ambulatory nurses can work promoting health and wellness, can provide triage in emergency situations, and more. A large part of your job, in many cases, will be working directly with patients and their families to teach them home care. In this job, you’ll work with a variety of patients, from children to senior citizens, dealing with many different kinds of illnesses and injuries. Depending on the facility where you work, you could be in charge of a specific task, moving from patient to patient to complete this task (such as checking vital signs or recording patient history), or you could work patient-by-patient, serving as their nurse for their entire treatment process.

Salary and Career Options

The salary you can expect as an LPN working in ambulatory care is around $40,000 annually. If you go back to school to become an RN, that figure jumps to $55,000 to $60,000 annually. You can also choose to become an advanced practice nurse by getting a master’s degree. In ambulatory care, the highest paid advanced practice nurses are nurse anesthetists, who make an average of nearly $130,000 annually.

Educational Requirements

While you can work in ambulatory care as an LPN, it makes sense to become an RN for most nurses, as this allows you to make more money and have more job opportunities. Since you’ll work with such a wide variety of patients as an ambulatory care, your education will focus on teaching you how to deal with as many problems as possible. You’ll take classes ranging from emergency first aid to triage, as well as participate in hands-on clinical learning.

LPN to RN College Programs

With some additional schooling, a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) can become a registered nurse (RN), opening doors to more job opportunities and higher salaries. The following is a list of schools with the best online LPN to RN degree programs offered by accredited colleges. You can request information by clicking the college's logo.

LPN to RN (BSN)	Indiana State University—ISU’s LPN to BSN degree program is the only online LPN to RN training program in the United States. LPNs and LVNs who complete this program can earn their NLNAC-approved Bachelor of Science degree in nursing entirely online. Upon completion, graduates should meet all of the prerequisites for becoming an RN. Read an in-depth review of Indiana State University.
LPN to RN LPN to ADN LPN to BSN	The College Network—Earn your LPN to RN (ADN) degree completely online with no campus attendance and no wait list. Learn from the convenience of home at your own pace, and earn an NLNAC-accredited associate’s degree in less time and for less money than traditional campus programs. Read an in-depth review of The College Network.
	Select a subject and degree level, then click "Find My Degree" to browse 100+ online nursing schools offering relevant accredited programs.
BS in Nursing RN to MSN MSN in Nurse Education MSN in Nurse Informatics MSN in Nurse Management	Walden University—Founded in 1970, Walden University is dedicated to providing education for a higher purpose. The Nursing School confers degrees at the bachelor’s and master’s level, which provides further study in health informatics, nursing education, and nursing leadership/management. Walden is one of the biggest providers of online master and doctorate programs with over a hundred degrees offered at each level.
RN to BSN MS in Nursing (MSN) MSN in Adult Health RN to MSN in Nurse Education Accelerated RN to MSN	South University—South University’s College of Nursing offers numerous degree programs for aspiring nurses. Those looking for a BSN degree can enter into the RN to BSN and complete it within 18 months. South also offers the following master’s degree-level programs: MS in Nursing (MSN), MSN in adult health nurse practitioning, MSN in nurse education, and an accelerated RN to MSN.
RN to BSN RN to MSN MSN in Nurse Administration MSN in Nurse Education	Kaplan University—Kaplan University’s RN to BSN and RN to MSN programs feature curriculums that provide registered nurses with the tools to graduate with BSN and MSN degrees. The MSNs in Nurse Administration or Nurse Education feature curriculums that teach methods in management and education in order to prepare students for leadership and educator positions with in the nursing field.