What Does a Clinical Nurse Consultant Do in Biotech and Health Tech Companies?

I didn’t hear the term “clinical nurse consultant” until I had already been a nurse for a few years. It wasn’t something that came up during nursing school or even when working at the bedside. I was about five years into my career, working in informatics, when I started meeting nurses who held this title, but not working in a hospital.

They were working for vendors we partnered with, companies that supported different parts of the EHR systems and clinical tools we were using. Some were nurses working for EHR companies like Epic or Cerner, helping hospitals with project management, workflows, building content, implementation or training.

Others were with medical device companies, like IV pumps we were integrating into the system, making sure the workflow made sense from a tech and nursing perspective. These nurses weren’t there to sell anything. They were the ones who understood what it felt like to chart during a busy shift or troubleshoot tech that didn’t fit real-life workflows.

That’s when it clicked for me that this “consultant” title could mean a lot of different things, but at the core, it was nurses using their clinical knowledge to improve tech, systems, and patient care in ways that made sense to the people doing the work.

If you’ve seen this title floating around in job listings and wondered what it really means, or if your experience could be a fit, join the club. This job title always seems like a mystery to nurses curious about nontraditional nursing jobs.

Skills You Need to Become a Clinical Nurse Consultant

Your clinical experience is important, but it’s usually just the starting point. Companies hiring for clinical nurse consultant roles are often looking for two things: your background in direct patient care, and a second set of skills that align with their specific product or service.

What that second set looks like depends entirely on the job. That’s why it’s so important to actually read the job description closely. Even if the title is the same across listings, the responsibilities and skills needed can vary depending on whether you’d be supporting a medical device, a therapy, a workflow platform, or something else entirely.

How Your Clinical Background Applies to Consultant Roles

Many companies are looking for nurses with experience that connects to their area of focus. For example:

• Worked in the OR or perioperative setting? Your knowledge of sterile technique, surgical workflows, and equipment use is a direct match for companies that make OR tools or surgical systems.
• Worked in oncology? Biotech companies that develop oncology drugs or infusion tools will often look for nurses who understand cancer staging, treatment regimens, and symptom management.

These kinds of clinical experiences build credibility with customers, especially when you’re supporting education, implementation, or field sales teams.

Transferable Skills That Set You Apart as a Clinical Nurse Consultant

Once the clinical foundation is there, employers are often looking for nurses who bring strengths in areas like:

• Comfort with technology or electronic systems
• Data analysis or interpretation
• Training or educating clinical staff or peers
• Cross-functional collaboration with other departments
• Communication: this could mean giving presentations, answering clinical questions from customers, or speaking with internal stakeholders
• Sales support or field experience (especially for customer-facing roles)
• Clinical research or quality improvement project experience
• Informatics or involvement in EHR implementations
• Project or program management skills

You don’t need all of these, but the more overlap you have with the role’s responsibilities, the stronger your application will be. If you feel like you need some additional training to polish up your skills or resume, then check out this post.

Your resume should speak directly to these transferable skills. If you’re not sure whether your background fits, start by scanning the required section of the job description. If it asks for a state nursing license and some clinical experience, and the rest is in the preferred section, that’s a good sign it might be an entry point. Then, take a closer look at the daily tasks and goals of the role to see how your current skills line up.

Real-Life Examples of Nurses in Clinical Consultant Roles

No two roles are exactly the same, but what they all have in common is this: the company is hiring you for your nursing knowledge PLUS a second specific “bucke” of skills for their specific role. You’re there to help teams that aren’t clinical understand how their product fits into their scenario of healthcare or how it impacts patient care.

As one nurse shared on Reddit after transitioning to a Clinical Specialist role:

“I had 5+ years of nurse/direct patient care experience before transitioning to a Clinical Specialist role last year and have been a CS for 1 year now.” — u/Anonymous, Reddit

Another nurse who spent nearly two decades in the ICU shared this about breaking into pharma:

“I was an ICU nurse for 19 years, transitioned to pharma by taking a temporary 9-month role with a pharma staffing agency that placed me inside a big pharma sponsor in a data management role… then applied for a research and development role after the 9 months were over at the pharma company.” — u/Anonymous, Reddit

It’s also worth noting that companies don’t always use the exact title “Clinical Nurse Consultant.” You might see the role listed as Clinical Specialist, which is a common title used by medical device and biotech companies like Mercalis or Stryker. Just a heads-up, this is not the same as a Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS), although CNS’s are sometimes hired in similar settings too. 

If you want to explore more examples of these roles and how nurses are hired into them, I break that down further in this post on biotech nursing jobs and share which companies are currently hiring nurses.

Clinical Nurse Consultant Salary: What to Expect in Biotech and Medical Device Roles

When it comes to salary, clinical nurse consultant roles in biotech, pharma, and medical device companies tend to pay more than traditional hospital-based roles. The exact number depends on the scope of the role, whether travel is required, and how the company structures its compensation (base salary, bonuses, stock options, etc.).

Many of these roles are listed under titles like Clinical Specialist, Field Clinical Consultant, or Clinical Education Manager, depending on the company.

• Typical base salary range per Glassdoor: $98,000 – $141,000 + per year
• Annual performance bonuses
• Benefits not traditionally offered by hospitals (unlimited PTO, more holiday/vacation time, paid parental leave, paid short-term and long-term disability, etc)
• Car stipend or company vehicle
• Stock options (common in biotech and publicly traded med device companies)
• Remote nurse or hybrid roles may fall slightly lower in the range, while travel-heavy field roles often land at the higher end.

Real-world salary examples from Glassdoor for Nurse Consultant Jobs in the United States:

• Takeda Pharmaceuticals Clinical Nurse Consultant – $149,000 – $204,000
• Hospira Clinical Nurse Consultant – $120,000 – $161,000
• Kaiser Permanente Clinical Nurse Consultant – $140,000 – $188,000
• Stryker Clinical Nurse Consultant – $117,000 – $166,000

These roles often come with significant autonomy and responsibility. In addition to clinical expertise, companies value nurses who can confidently work with cross-functional teams, support product rollouts, and speak to both clinical and non-clinical audiences.

Next Steps if You’re Exploring Clinical Nurse Consultant Roles

The title “clinical nurse consultant” can mean different things depending on the company, the product, and the team you’re supporting. At its core, though, it’s about using your nursing knowledge in a new way, mostly in non-traditional settings to assist non-clinical teams/departments. The key is starting with companies that align with your clinical experience, then looking at how their roles are structured and where your trasnferable job skills might fit. These jobs can be remote, hybrid, onsite, or involve travel, sometimes a mix of all of the above.

If you’re curious where to start, check out this list of companies hiring nurses in biotech and health tech, or browse current job openings using the filters for medical device, biotech, or health tech on the job board.

Premium members get early access to new job listings and a full, easy-to-filter and search directory of companies hiring for roles like these, if you’re ready to take the next step, that’s a great place to start!

Remote Nurse Connection is proudly Ad-free. All opinions are my own. This post may contain affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my link, at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read full disclosure here.

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