Why Choose a Career in Nursing?

CAREER PATHS

Why Choose a Career in Nursing?

Why Choose a Career in Nursing?

Nurses have many different motivations for choosing their career, but the majority say it is their love for working with people and their desire to care for others that makes nursing a great fit. If you want a rewarding career, where every day can bring a different challenge and you have the opportunity to improve patients’ lives, then nursing is a great choice.

As we look deeper into the role of a nurse and into factors affecting the healthcare industry, it is clear that there are many additional reasons to choose a career in nursing, besides caring for others. Continue reading to explore some of the lesser-known benefits, and hear what established nurses have to say about their own career choice.

Growing Demand Results in Higher Wages, Job Security, & Job Satisfaction

It’s well known that nursing is one of the fastest-growing professions in the United States. Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts a 15% increase in projected employment, which is greater than any other occupation in the healthcare industry. A combination of factors are contributing to these bold estimates:

Retiree Vacancies

According to supply and demand analyses conducted by the Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce, approximately 880,000 job openings will be created by 2020 as a result of retirements, and nearly 1.1 million baby-boomer nursing professionals are expected to retire or reduce their volume of clinical work over the next two decades.

Population Growth

Studies project that the economy will create upwards of 1.6 million job openings for nurses, with an estimated 700,000 newly-created opportunities generated by population growth and a wave of aging baby-boomers who will require elderly care.

Rural Healthcare Needs

Nurses are increasingly being looked to as a solution to a nationwide shortage of primary care physicians, whose impact is felt most significantly in rural areas where it is difficult to attract qualified MDs. Nurse practitioners, in particular, are expected to fill the void, because of their ability to handle more than 80 percent of the tasks associated with primary care.

With demand expected to be consistently high for the next two decades, it’s natural to expect that nurse employment will follow basic principles of economics – that the price or value of any commodity is driven by the demand and supply for it. In practical terms, this means better outcomes for nurses, as hospitals respond with higher wages and benefits, better work environments, and improved nurse staffing.

Diverse Career Paths, Patient Populations, and Work Environments

Nurses have many different motivations for choosing their career, but the majority say it is their love for working with people and their desire to care for others that makes nursing a great fit. If you want a rewarding career, where every day can bring a different challenge and you have the opportunity to improve patients’ lives, then nursing is a great choice.

As we look deeper into the role of a nurse and into factors affecting the healthcare industry, it is clear that there are many additional reasons to choose a career in nursing, besides caring for others. Continue reading to explore some of the lesser-known benefits, and hear what established nurses have to say about their own career choice.

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