Career Opportunities In Nursing & Healthcare

The American Heart Association has reported an increase in the number of people registering for their ACLS, BLS and PALS courses, which also shows that healthcare careers continue to be in high demand. Various statisticians have also confirmed that there are no signs of a decline in Houston nursing jobs over the coming years.

The Problem with Baby Boomers

They say that age is but a number, but biology tells us differently. As much as the baby boomers may still be young spirited, their bodies are starting to give up. The reality is that some parents of baby boomers are also still alive, and they generally need even more medical care. Some of these only require simple at home health, but others require more specialized care. Added to this, from next year, everybody will suddenly have basic health insurance, meaning they will be more likely to seek medical care when needed.

The Demand in Healthcare Careers

Unsurprisingly, there is an increasing demand for healthcare professionals. Houston nursing jobs are being left unfilled due to the high demands. Primary care is particularly in demand, but a report from AMN Healthcare stated that the entire range of medical professions is needed. AMN Healthcare is the largest staffing and recruiting company within healthcare in our country. Best of all, they even expect that the demand will grow even more in coming years.

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Bureau of Labor Statistics

The Bureau of Labor Statistics produced a list of most in demand jobs between 2008 and 2018 and six positions on there were healthcare related. It seemed that their predictions were completely accurate. In fact, they have now predicted even further growth up to 2020 expecting some 29% more jobs across the board, which is more than in any other group of occupation. Becoming an ADN with ACLS, PALS and BLS is clearly a good career choice. It has now also been confirmed that the career that is most in demand is the family physician. Their average salary has grown by no less than 6%, which makes it even more interesting. The family physician is followed by the internists, hospitalists and psychiatrists.

Changes in the Labor Market

There are interesting changes, however. Healthcare systems have had to increase the quality of their care, while at the same time cut costs. As a result, most Houston nursing jobs are now employed by hospitals, with a decrease in demand for private practice. Hospital positions are up by 11%, but it is believed that this will rise much more in the coming years.

The number of opportunities that are out there are tremendous. Hospitals are actively headhunting through family practices. In fact, those who hold a degree, particularly the ADN, are receiving emails and phone calls asking them to work for local hospitals. Interestingly, one of the greatest benefits is that this puts nurse practitioners in a position to negotiate on their careers even more. For instance, it is now increasingly common for people to be awarded four day working weeks.

Nurse practitioners are in huge demand. This is also because hospitals only have a few physicians available to them and they rely more and more on RNs to perform parts of their jobs. Older nurses are delaying their retirement and those fresh out of undergraduate school can get straight into employment. Advanced Practice Nurses, including midwives, have seen a salary increase of 30 to 35%, particularly compared to hospital staff nurses. Hence, going for these types of degrees is a very clever career move. The recession, although still global and still present, has not hit the healthcare career at all. In a Boise hospital, for instance, almost 400 positions for nurses will be added this year alone.

The current state of healthcare careers, clearly, is very good. It shows no signs of stopping either, particularly as the baby boomers age and their parents, still alive, require more and more care. Even those who are just embarking on their education to become a registered nurse, and still have several years of training to do, know that they will have a career available to them as soon as they finish their schooling. Now is the time to really think about the strength of the position you will be in if you complete this degree, making interesting demands on your remuneration packages and other working conditions. If, however, you are not interested in a hospital career, the situation may be slightly different.