Nursing Career Careers in Nursing

Nursing Career Careers in Nursing There are a variety of careers available in the nursing world that can provide a fulfilling and monetarily rewarding life for the right individuals. Before embarking on any such career or the educational path that will enable a nursing career, however, it is important to come to a better understanding of exactly what such a career would entail, and the demands on and expectations of nurses working in today's medical community.

The American Nurses Association defines nursing as, "the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and populations" (ANA 2010). This is far more broad and much more critical than many people might think of when they think of nursing, and understanding this is imperative before one decides to shoulder the responsibility of becoming a nurse.

As with other functions in the medical community, nursing is also becoming much more highly specialized; while alleviating suffering and promoting health and well-being generally throughout families and larger communities, many nurses also practice within highly specified disciplines (Gannet 2010).

Almost any imaginable branch of medicine or major treatment option has a field of nursing attached to it, from AIDS care to neonatal nursing; pediatric nurses, school nurses, infection control nurses, and a plethora of other niche specialization exist, allowing the dedicated nursing student and practitioner to develop even greater efficacy in their job performance by pursuing their specific interests and talents (Gannett 2010).

The increasing specialization is creating a greater demand for nurses, and at the same time there is a major shortage of nurses graduating from nursing schools at the present, making the job market for new nurses entering the field very encouraging and with ample room for growth and advancement (Johnson & Johnson 2009).

The shortage of nurses is expected to reach eight-hundred-thousand by the year 2020, and this number could potentially be even longer as the populations in much of the world are leading increasingly longer lives and requiring more medical care for longer periods of time (Johnson & Johnson 2009).

Coupling this with the high degree of respect that the nursing field consistently receives in public evaluations and increasingly competitive compensation and benefits packages being offered due to the increasing shortfall of available nurses makes now a very exciting and worthwhile time to begin a journey towards a nursing career (Johnson & Johnson 2009). Not all of the many fields within nursing are quite as secure or as lucrative as others, however, and these are factors that must be taken into account in any practical consideration of a nursing career.

Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists are among the most highly-paid nurses, and are in great demand; unlike most positions, these nurses have very little patient interaction but are instrumental in the conducting of successful surgeries (Santiago 2010). Nurse practitioners are one of the most common types of nurses, providing general primary care in a variety of settings, with earnings near those of CRNAs but with greater patient contact, making it a more rewarding career for many (Santiago 2010).

After choosing a specialty and receiving the necessary education, which takes years of academic learning as well as practical application and practice, the final step in achieving a career in nursing is finding the right job. There are near-constant openings for short-term and long-term nurses, traveling nurses, in-patient nurses for hospitals, home care nurses on a live-in or live-out basis -- just as almost any imaginable medical scenario provides an opportunity for nurse specialization, almost every conceivable employment arrangement also exists for nurses (Nursing Jobs 2010).

Because nurses are so in demand, tit is very likely that a position tailor-fit to almost any individuals preferences can be found, so long as that individual is willing and able to put in the amount of work and dedication that the standards and ethics of the nursing profession requires (Nursing Jobs 2010). Nursing a not easy, and though it can be both personally and financially rewarding.