What’s the Next Growing Position for PNs?

Nursing is a rewarding career that is on the rise. With a growth rate of 16%, the demand for licensed practical nurses is increasing much faster than the U.S. average. As providers of basic care, the demand for a practical nurse, or PN, can come from many areas in the healthcare industry. Explore some of these in-demand industries expecting to hire many PNs in the future.

Palliative Care

A field that is often misunderstood, palliative care is designed to keep patients comfortable. Palliative care teams generally consist of a doctor, nurse, and therapist or spiritual advisor. For those suffering from chronic illness, palliative care offers a bridge between acute hospital treatments and end of life hospice. Examples include patients recovering from dramatic surgeries or chemotherapy, or patients who simply need supportive care. Most palliative care is conducted outside the hospital, improving patient quality of life at home.

Specialty Care Clinics

People value expert knowledge when it comes to everything from food to clothing fads, and medical professionals are no different. Specialty care clinics continue to increase in popularity as people move away from multicare practices and primary care physicians to treat their outpatient issues. Some examples of specialty care may include plastic surgery, orthopedics, rehabilitation, pain management and optometry.

Elderly Care

Elderly care can include in-home support, long-term care facilities, and also hospice care. It's no secret that the large population of Baby Boomers is aging, and with that age will come the increased need for nursing including PN care. Care for this population may including regular check-ins to review vitals and help administer treatments in relatively healthy populations.

Hospice care typically involves pain management, but may also include wound and injury care such as changing dressings. Facility care, often referred to as a nursing home has many positions for a licensed PN, assisting with daily round the clock care from bathing to blood pressure and more.

Night Nursing

Night nurses can provide much-needed respite care for tired families. While many of these programs request job-specific training, skilled nurses are in demand to help care for sick babies or children with developmental disabilities. Families work with skilled nursing professionals to monitor vitals and administer medication overnight as needed, letting tired parents rest so they can provide their full attention to their child during the day.

A PN career opens the door to one of the hottest job markets in the United States. These specialties are only a few of the areas that can provide an opportunity for a fulfilling career in this high-demand industry.

Travel Nursing

Travel nursing is another growing field. While the name may sound like a nurse who travels with patients on vacation (that's a private nurse), a travel nurse is a little different. Travel nurses provided service for a limited amount of time in different locations around the country. Often these locations are smaller clinics that need a temporary leave of absence covered, but don't want a permanent hire. One of the best benefits of travel nursing is your limited expenses -- housing is typically provided for travel positions.

If becoming a PN sounds like a fit for you, there's no better time to get started. Learn more about nursing education, including PN studies, with the expert educators at Athena Career Academy.