Nurse vs. Doctor

Doctors may specialize in one area of medicine or have a more general title, like a physician. A doctor observes patients' symptoms and forms a diagnosis. They also develop treatment plans for ill patients. Doctors work in hospitals, individual offices, urgent care clinics, and other medical environments.

Here are the key differences between a nurse and a doctor:

• Nurses may specialize but their duties are typically more general medical care

• Doctors may be specialized in a wide array of medical areas

• Nurses tend to have far more interaction with patients than doctors

• Doctors develop treatment plans and oversee their implementation

• Nurses can perform non-medical tasks, such as helping patients out of bed, etc

• Doctors almost exclusively perform medical tests

• Nurses can begin to work as a professional nurses after just two years of education

• It takes a doctor many years of education and training to start working professionally

• Doctors have considerably higher salaries than most nurses