Many individuals question job security and how roles are changing in particular fields. The healthcare industry is seeing great expansion, yet medical jobs are becoming harder and harder to find. However, with the help of nursing recruitment agencies, nurses are now able to explore new jobs and revisit traditional roles.
The Importance of Education
Beginning a career as a nurse in a hospital is becoming increasingly difficult. Despite staff shortages, hospitals have stopped hiring new employees. Also, existing nurses are postponing retirement. As openings occur, facilities are searching for applicants with a high level of education. This is a direct result of the Affordable Care Act, legislation aimed at improving the quality of care patients receive at hospitals. Nurses with advanced degrees are entering specialties and leadership roles.
Shift in Job Placement
A lucky nursing graduate will receive an internship invitation into a hospital, but most graduates must seek other sources of employment. Although nursing home jobs were once populated by experienced professionals, they are the new starting point for many graduates. Since healthcare reform is trying to keep patients out of hospitals, there is a heightened need for community healthcare. Healthcare jobs are the one segment projected to grow the fastest over the next five years.
To train nurses, many home health agencies offer mentoring and orientation programs. In a similar fashion, ambulatory surgery centers are training new nursing graduates to perform tasks including wound care, behavioral health and chronic illness treatment. Nurses are also being taught to prep patients for small surgical procedures, administer sedation and perform other triage jobs.
Some graduates are receiving opportunities to work in general medical offices. Many medical groups are teaming with nursing schools to involve students with clinic rotations. Through this hands-on learning, students develop critical thinking skills and a positive bedside manner. If a candidate proves successful, it is not uncommon to be picked up on a permanent basis.
Besides new nurses, experienced nurses nearing retirement are seeking employment outside traditional hospital settings. Some are interested in nursing home jobs, and others choose hospice duties. These new roles are considered the “new natural progression” in the nursing industry, job outlook.
While working with a healthcare recruiter, a nurse is likely to find satisfactory employment that fulfills individual career goals. It is a smart way to gain benefits and a flexible schedule plus there are a lot of good reasons to join a nursing career. No matter where it leads, a person will be able to enjoy a rewarding nursing career throughout the field.
