Are you considering a career change, or pondering what to study in college? Then you should consider a nursing career. Nursing is one of the most in demand job skills in America. If you need proof, pick up the help wanted section of the classified ads in the Sunday newspaper from any town or city, no matter how big or small. Even small town weekly papers are likely to have a few ads for nursing positions, and in large cities there will be columns and columns of institutions hiring nurses. Did you know that there aren’t nearly enough trained and qualified nurses available to fill these job? It’s true. There’s already a severe shortage of qualified nurses to fill all the available positions, and that shortage is only going to get worse. Far worse. Presently, the shortage is somewhere between 100,000 and 150,000 nurses nationwide. Experts say that in less than 15 years, the situation will be so severe that 800,000 nursing positions across America will go unfilled.

There’s no way that the health care industry can fill all their open nursing jobs now, and more nurses are needed every year in every city. Hospitals and medical offices compete vigorously to hire nurses, and wages, benefit package, and hiring bonuses are increasing all the time. And because of the coming wave of baby boomers reaching retirement age, and with people living far longer than ever before, and with millions more people coming to America every year, it’s not hard to see why nurses will continue to be in such demand. So qualified nurses need never worry about being unemployed. If you’re looking for job security, there’s probably not a better career option than nursing.

Nursing

How many other jobs are you aware of where you can pick and choose between multiple job offers? Where, if you decide you want to move to a different city, finding a new job won’t be a problem at all? Where you don’t even have to ask if there’s a good benefits package, because that’s a given? Where employers are so glad to have you that in many places you can set your own schedule? There aren’t many. And not only are job opportunities wide open for nurses, but the variety of kinds of jobs nurses do is also amazing. You can have your pick from all sorts of nursing specialties. You can work part time if you wish, and if you want overtime there’s almost always lots of that. If you like to travel you can pay for your trips by working for nurse staffing agencies in the cities you visit. Many nurses do this very thing, spending part of the year at home, and the rest of the year in a popular travel destination. If you decide you want to go back to school, or open a small business, you can choose to work only weekend.

Besides the job opportunities and benefits of a nursing career, there’s also the element of personal satisfaction to consider. Nursing is one of the most respected occupations in America, and rightly so. Nurses are the crucial link between patients and doctors in our nation’s health care system. Depending on the circumstances, many patients spend far more time interacting with a nurse than they do with a doctor. Physicians diagnose and prescribe, nurses administer. Doctors may practice medicine, but it’s nurses who perform medicine. As a Licensed Practical Nurse or a Registered Nurse, you’ll be making a real day to day difference in the lives of innumerable patients and their families. You’ll be on the front lines of the war on disease and injury, ministering to the wounded, comforting family members, operating critical life saving technology, monitoring patients, being the go between for doctors and patients. You’ll need compassion, a big heart, good people skills, and the ability to think on your feet. You’ve heard of “an army of one”? There are many times you’ll be “a health care system of one.” Nursing can be a tough, demanding and stressful job, but it’s more than worth it if you’ve got the skills and aptitude for it.

Many nurses wouldn’t trade it for any other job in the world. And on this site you can find out everything you want to know about nursing-what training is involved, the difference between an RN and an LPN, paying for nursing school, nursing as a second career, the growing number of men in nursing, nursing pay, nursing benefits, etc. It’s all here, and we’ve compiled it in order to help you make an informed decision about attending nursing school and choosing nursing as an occupation. So take your time, and explore all the resources we’ve put together. You just may find out that a nursing career is right up your alley.