It’s A Great Time To Be A Registered Nurse

There are 3 types of nursing licenses in the US. The first is the LPN or licensed practical nurse, second is the RN or registered nurse, and lastly the NP or nurse practioner.

The educational path to become a registered nurse can involve three paths. The first is the Associate Degree of Nursing, or ADN. This is a two year degree received from an accredited nursing college.

The second type is the bachelor’s degree in nursing or the BSN. This is a four year course from an accredited nursing school. The third type is the diploma registered nurse program that is administered by hospitals themselves, and these can last around 3 years.

A registered nurse from a hospital diploma program will be no obstacle to anyone in the nursing profession.

To become a registered nurse, regardless of the path chosen, you have to pass the NCLEX-RN, which is the standardized nursing board exam administered in all 50 states. This test consists of questions about patient needs and the grasp of nursing concepts by the prospective registered nurse.

All states in the US require renewal of the registered nurse license every 2 years. Continuing education courses are required to be taken before a nurse can renew their license. The explosion in the nursing field everyone constantly hears about is not only because the aging baby boomers, but also because a large percentage of registered nurses are in that aging boomer population and are retiring.

Much of this growth will be with home health care services, physician’s offices and outpatient care centers. Hospitals are releasing patients sooner and people generally prefer the idea of convalescing at home. Physicians are performing more in office procedures as technology advances. Outpatient care centers are on the rise as a weapon against high health care costs associated with the conventional hospital setting.

This perfect storm so to speak means more job opportunities for health care in general but especially for the registered nurse.

Nurses, for seven years in a row, have been on top as far as most respected professions, according to the Gallup Poll. If fulfillment, job security, and excellent pay are important to you, then the registered nurse profession might just be for you.

Want to find out more about the exciting career of being a registered nurse? Or perhaps you are already a nurse professional? Then visit Steven Swihart’s site on how to choose the best stethoscope for your needs.