Nursing is an incredibly fast-paced field that challenges your endurance, tests your knowledge, and pushes your stamina to the limit. Despite this, it is one of the most rewarding fields, allowing you to help others and have a well-paying job for yourself. As a nurse, you’re a fundamental pillar in the healthcare sector, without whom the gears of this industry may halt.
The 21st century has brought many changes to multiple sectors, including medical care. As a result, this industry is becoming increasingly multifaceted while enhancing healthcare providers’ different roles and evolving positions.
So what are the trends that govern the future of nursing? Here’s what you need to know:
1. An Increase In Demand For Nurses
Nursing is one of the most significant healthcare careers in the US. There are roughly 4 million American registered nurses who have successfully obtained their licenses, among which more than 80% are employed and working within the sector. These numbers will increase to keep up with the demands of the population.
Family nurse practitioners are in high demand to help fill the current gap. Increasingly, authorities are considering giving FNPs the right to run their standalone practices, which would improve healthcare access for residents of rural areas.
Nurse practitioners can provide primary care services such as exams, diagnoses, and medication prescriptions to patients who might otherwise have to wait for an appointment or go without medical care due to a lack of accessibility to physicians.
2. Online Studies
With the rise in online education trends, nurses can also obtain their degrees by turning to online rather than traditional schooling. By looking into online RN programs, nurses can fast-track their careers and earn their licenses in a shorter time.
As a prospective nurse, if you’re in a rush to start building a successful career, registering in an online nursing school can help you achieve your dream in no time. The self-paced learning environment gives you the space to learn, explore and practice until you’re ready to appear for your exams.
3. A Chance To Make Good Money
Before choosing any career, it is natural to focus on the money you make and decide accordingly. As much as you want to dedicate your life to serving humanity, you also have bills to pay. However, after 2020 and to date, nurses can enjoy making above-average wages, motivating them to work harder and apply for more senior positions.
The average annual salary of a registered nurse in the US is between $59,390 and $106,520, much more than most workers earn in entry-level jobs. However, states like California can also land you an impressive $124,000, making it the highest-paying location for registered nurses. As the need for more nursing professionals persists, you should expect your wages to increase.
4. Greater Support for Telemedicine
Following the pandemic of 2019, healthcare shifted to provide patients with safer channels to connect them with medical professionals. These were the very roots of telemedicine and encouraged patients to sign up online and use hospital portals to book an appointment or see their doctor virtually. In 2020 more than 20% of medical visits were carried out digitally, which will only continue to increase.
In 2022 hospitals began integrating telemedicine on a much larger scale which automated several nursing tasks, including transferring patient information between departments without the need for intervention.
Virtual platforms also give you more accessibility to your patients without needing them to visit the hospital. It is particularly useful if you’re checking on routine patients, want to discuss test results, or approve prescription refill requests. As a nurse practitioner, you can work with a greater patient body, especially those far from hospital grounds.
5. The Opportunity To Travel
As the United States deals with a nursing shortage, you have more opportunities to travel and extend your expertise outside your state. It allows you to grow and prosper as a medical professional giving you exposure and experience that will reflect well on your resume.
As a travel nurse, you will work in different environments, learn about the barriers in nursing care, and receive adequate compensation that covers the cost of moving from one state to another. If you’re an extroverted nurse and enjoy exploring new destinations that allow you to test your knowledge and skills, you will enjoy working as a travel nurse.
A key question for many travel nurses can be how does travel nursing work with taxes; travel nursing income is taxed the same as regular income, so it’s important to keep track of location specific tax laws when moving from place to place.
6. Technologically Charged Environment
Concepts like big data and AI are becoming mainstream in the healthcare sector. These have led to innovations such as automated electronic health charts and smart devices which track a patient’s vital base signs without the need to strap them to machines like the EKG. Healthcare technology will be a part of your profession permanently. Using these tools will make it much easier to do your job.
For instance, you no longer have to manually schedule appointments or fill out patient charts.
Equipment like smart IV can be controlled by software that automatically starts and stops the pumps, giving the patient the required dosage they need. Laptop carts simplify your tasks by allowing you to look up patient information on the go, use the online database to read forms, or document the treatment accurately.
Having a laptop close by also allows you to search for diseases when you need to do a quick verification preventing you from making a mishap.
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Final Thoughts
Nursing is a rapidly growing sector that is immensely popular as a career option to date. The nursing sector is expected to grow to add new jobs and openings at least till the next decade. It inevitably leads to better salaries and an increment in the amount you make per hour.
There is also a massive development in telehealth which can catalyze the process of checking up on patients and prevents hospitals from overcrowding. You can also combine your love for traveling and your nursing profession, which looks good in your healthcare profile. Finally, technology has also become a significant part of this sector.
So you may find it easier to balance your workload and deal with patients in an informed manner with fewer repetitive tasks and disruptions.
