Nursing is the largest occupation in the healthcare industry, and there are nearly 3 million nurses in the United States alone. While most people have the perception that nurses are women who take care of sick people, nursing is so much more than that. Male nurses increase in numbers by the day since their physical strength is very useful for this extremely physical job. Nurses also specialize in a wide variety of different areas including: cardiovascular health, neonatology, rehabilitation, genetics, rehabilitation, and more. They can also advance to higher positions through advanced education in which they are generally referred to as nurse practitioners or clinical nurse specialists. The duties of these high-level nurses are very similar to those of physicians. If you are contemplating a career as a nurse, here are some reasons why you should enter this excellent field.
Good Pay
Salary is one of the biggest factors that people consider when deciding on taking a job. Most people prefer to be paid well since financial stability usually provides for a good life. If you are looking for a nice paying job, nursing surely does meet that condition. In exchange for their noble services, registered nurses are paid handsomely. As of 2010, average earnings range around $65,000 per year. The lowest paid nurses make about $45,000 a year, and they mainly include new graduates. Experienced nurses and those who live in certain states may earn up to $100,000 per year. In addition to pure salary, nurses usually get excellent benefits as well. A flexible work schedule, various forms of insurance coverage, paid for educational courses, and yearly bonuses are just some of the pluses of being a registered nurse.
Job Security
There is a reason why there are almost 3 million nurses currently employed in the US right now: people always get ill and injured. Disease is a part of life that affects all people. It is even considered to be a natural part of later life. Since illness is often unavoidable, there always needs to be people there to take care of the sick. With this fact in mind, you should feel confident that there will always be nursing jobs around. No matter where you go, opportunities for nursing will always be there. In the most disadvantaged areas of the world, nurses are in dire need every day in every village. The elderly also make up nearly a third of our population and usually need extensive nursing care. Just from these simple facts alone, it is clear that nursing will remain the largest health occupation for many years to come.
Save Lives
Many people want to make a difference in the world. Making a living and surviving is not enough for some because they feel useless to society. It’s this kind of person that makes a good nurse. Nurses make a huge difference in the world because they literally save human lives on a daily basis. What’s more satisfying than ending your shift each day knowing that you’ve preserved a human life? Not many people can claim to make such a massive and important impact on the society every day they step into the office. As a nurse, you will receive more job satisfaction than you could ever imagine when you see the smile on a rescued child’s face or the tear running down the cheek of a grandmother.
If you have true compassion for others, you should consider becoming a nurse. If real passion for healing the sick exists in your heart, make a career out of nursing. You will be happy to know that the pay is great, the job is stable, and you get to save lives on a regular basis. What more could you ask for?