Blogs by Author: Moira McGhee

Besides government-driven agendas, the nation’s capital is a beautiful city featuring impressive architecture and spectacular scenery enhanced by four distinct seasons. Washington, D.C., can be an exciting place to live and work, with tons of iconic historical attractions, renowned museums and unique cafes, boutiques, farmer’s markets and other shopping and dining venues. It also boasts a thriving nightlife and a fantastic variety of art, cultural, food and music festivals every year. While the largest employers in Washington, D.C., are government entities (obviously), healthcare employers are also plentiful. Nurses and allied health professionals working in Washington, D.C., find much to love about this compact city on the Potomac River.

Medical-surgical nursing, or med-surg for short, is one of the most demanding nursing specialties and requires an extensive skill set and nursing knowledge. Med-surg nurses make up the largest group of practicing nurses. As such, they typically earn a competitive wage but less than registered nurses (RN) working in certain specialties. In this guide, we explore med-surg nursing salaries for staff and travel nurse roles, salaries by location, various factors that can impact med-surg nursing pay and how med-surg salaries compare to other nursing specialties based on Vivian’s salary data during the last week of 2022.

From mountains to shores, Virginia is a breathtaking state with unbeatable southern hospitality, named the 7th best state to live in nationwide by U.S. News & World Report in 2021. As one of the original 13 colonies, Old Dominion has a long and storied history. Tributes to the past can be found throughout the state, including Arlington National Cemetery, the United States Marine Corps War Memorial, the George Washington Masonic National Memorial and historic homes that were the birthplaces of eight former Presidents. Virginia also teems with natural beauty, including 1,000s of miles of coastline, four major rivers flowing into the Chesapeake Bay, 217 miles of the Blue Ridge Mountains and 555 miles of the Appalachians. Whether you’re a history buff or nature enthusiast, nurses and allied health professionals find lots to love about working in healthcare in Virginia.

Known as the Prairie State or the Land of Lincoln, Illinois has four distinct seasons and a landscape marked by farmland, rolling hills, wetlands, forests and waterways, including Lake Michigan in the north and Shawnee National Forest in the south. With everything from big bustling cities to charming small towns, this Midwestern state boasts a broad economic base and a wide array of attractions and fun things to do and see, including 309 state parks and recreational sites, numerous museums and cultural institutions, botanic gardens, theme parks, snow and water skiing, hiking and biking, shopping venues and a piece of the historic Route 66. Illinois is also a foodie’s paradise with cuisine from around the world and the self-proclaimed best hot dogs and deep-dish pizza in the nation. These are just a few things that registered nurses in Illinois love about this great state.

Registered nurses who’ve become comfortable in their healthcare roles often continue their education and training to specialize in advanced practice registered nursing (APRN) fields. By pursuing post-graduate studies and advanced training and experience, you open the door to various APRN roles with their own set of specialties. No matter their specialty, APRNs typically earn much more than RNs, which appeals to nurses with financial growth as one of their primary objectives. Vivian Health compiled salary data to find the APRN specialties typically among the top 10 highest-paid positions in the field.

The nursing field is constantly evolving, so more than 100 RN specialties are currently available. Many only require a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), but sometimes even an associate degree in nursing (ADN/ASN) will suffice. Every specialty has unique attributes, so registered nurses (RNs) can often combine their career goals and personal passions to find the ideal fit. If financial growth is a primary objective, some RN specialties pay more than others. Although salaries can significantly vary based on education, experience, facility and location, Vivian Health compiled salary data to find the nursing specialties typically among the top 10 highest-paid positions for bedside nurses.

Deciphering travel nursing pay and tax rules is one of the most complicated aspects of being a travel nurse or any travel healthcare provider (HCP). Tax homes, tax-free stipends, hourly wages, bonuses, benefits, housing and per diem reimbursements are all vital in understanding your travel nursing pay package and your taxes. With 2022 coming to a close and tax season right around the corner, many travelers have questions that Vivian hopes to answer with some help from a couple of tax professionals.

Texas is famous for its BBQ, longhorn steers, iconic live music events, scorching summers with pleasant winters (in most parts of the state) and massive size. The state’s famous slogan – Everything is Bigger in Texas – applies to lots of things, including healthcare job opportunities. Nurses and other medical professionals are in high demand and have loads of job options at top medical facilities throughout The Lone Star State. With so many nursing jobs and allied health jobs available in Texas, it might be overwhelming to try and balance employment options with personal desires when trying to choose the ideal place to live. This guide gives you a starting place in the great big State of Texas.

The wind comes sweeping down the Plains, but nurses and allied health professionals in Oklahoma also enjoy a diverse array of other geographic features. Forests cover approximately 24% of the state and water covers about 1,224 square miles with more man-made lakes than any other state. Oklahoma also has parts of four different mountain ranges within its borders, including the Ozarks, Arbuckles, Wichitas and Ouachitas. Besides an amazing topography and tons of outdoor adventures, Oklahoma offers numerous attractions, unique events, delicious southern cooking, a relatively mild climate and one of the lowest costs of living in the nation.

If you’re passionate about the work you do as a nurse, but your daily routine has become stale, it might be time to consider whether a travel nurse career is right for you. Travel nurses fill in temporarily when hospitals and other healthcare facilities experience staffing shortages for various reasons. They may work in one community for an extended period or move around to different cities or states every few weeks. Travel nursing can be highly lucrative and professionally rewarding, not to mention you get to travel essentially for free, but that doesn’t mean it’s right for you. We’ll help you answer this question and other frequently asked questions about travel nursing with a little help from an experienced traveler.

Like the entire healthcare industry, the nursing field is constantly evolving. Medical advances, emerging regulations, technological innovations and expanding patient care needs drive these changes and lead to new trends in nursing. Many shifts in the healthcare industry are ongoing changes that have been impacting nursing for years and are anticipated to continue shaping healthcare into the future. Here are five trends that are impacting the nursing profession today.

Geriatric nursing is a subspecialty for nurses trained to understand the unique needs of elderly patients. Registered nurses (RNs) and nurse practitioners (NPs) who specialize in caring for older adults have always been in demand. As the aging population continues to grow, the demand for geriatric nursing staff could outpace supply, and you may find your career opportunities expanding even quicker than before.

Hearing loss, cognitive decline and other issues related to the aging process sometimes make it challenging to communicate with elderly patients effectively. Communicating is essential in building a good relationship with your patients, no matter their age. However, it’s imperative to learn suitable techniques to overcome communication challenges if you regularly work with elderly patients. Improve how you communicate and help ensure your elderly patients hear and understand what you’re saying with these 12 tips.

Nurse organizations are devoted to their members’ personal and professional development and the overall advancement of the nursing profession. Joining a reputable organization offers you numerous networking opportunities that provide beneficial professional connections, potentially leading to new career pathways. Many professional nursing organizations also have mentorship programs, continuing education opportunities, certification discounts, online forums, professional and/or peer-reviewed journals with practice-related information and other valuable resources that might only be available to members. Consider these 11 professional nurse organizations to enhance your career development and access valuable perks.

UPDATED 10/5/2022 – After months of deliberation in the White House, nurses may have a new option for seeking debt relief on their student loans. This week, current and former students around the nation celebrated following the announcement that the Biden Administration was going forward with its Student Loan Debt Relief Plan. Although it was a slimmed-down version, the Plan could potentially help millions of student loan borrowers.

Travel nursing offers an excellent opportunity for nurses seeking diverse career opportunities and a bigger paycheck while also exploring new places around the country. If you travel nurse with family members, it also provides a chance for everyone to go on an amazing adventure. Whether you’re traveling with a spouse and/or children, or just some four-legged family members, use these tips to make the most of the experience.

Travel nurse salaries are typically higher than average staff salaries, but many factors are involved in getting the most compensation. The different components of pay packages can be very confusing, especially for new travelers, but even veteran travel nurses sometimes have difficulty understanding it all. Companies also tend to structure their pay packages slightly differently, compounding the confusion. Hourly wages, tax-free stipends, housing and permanent tax homes, per diem reimbursements, overtime, extra hours, and blended rates are just some of the many terms you’ll hear and need to comprehend when negotiating your travel nursing pay. The following explanations may help you understand travel nursing salaries better.

Salaries for travel nursing jobs vary greatly based on location, role, experience, and other factors individual facilities might throw in the mix. However, life just keeps getting more expensive. Rising inflation rates and the looming possibility of a recession drive home the importance of earning the highest salary possible. If your current travel salary doesn’t cover everything you’d like, consider these tips for finding high pay travel nursing jobs to help put more money in the bank.

A travel nurse agency helps guide travel nurses through their careers as they move from one position to another across the country. To ensure you get the best jobs, pay, and benefits package at your desired locations, it’s essential to compare agencies to find one that works hard to get you everything you want. Travel nursing agencies are more than just go-betweens. A good agency has your best interests at heart. Whether you’re new to travel nursing or a travel nurse veteran, you should weigh several factors to find a reliable agency you can trust to support your travel nurse career endeavors.

In September 2021, all 50 states saw travel wages increase, with more than half having an increase of greater than 10%. Healthcare travel wage trends in late 2022 have been vastly different, with September 2022 seeing a continued drop in travel nurse pay. As individuals throughout the United States adapt to the “new normal” of ongoing but typically less severe COVID-19 infections, hospitals are seeing fewer Covid patients. Fewer cases mean hospitals aren’t grappling with overflowing waiting rooms and capacity issues as last year, and exceptionally high travel pay has become a thing of the past, at least for now. Despite many healthcare facilities facing continued shortages of staff nurses without the benefit of extra pandemic dollars to pay for temporary personnel, travel nurse wages are still falling in most areas of the country.

Like staff home health nursing jobs, travel home health nurses work in a non-traditional setting, generally within the patient’s home or a residential care setting. Home health care is one of the fastest growing specialties in the nation as more people choose to receive their care outside of hospitals. However, staffing shortages have hit home health the same as other segments of the healthcare industry. Lower home health nurse wages and common myths surrounding home health make it even less appealing, especially to younger clinicians. Travel home health nurses may take up the slack.

Skilled nursing facilities that achieve a five-star rating with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) presumably offer above-average quality, while those with only one star likely provide a much lower quality environment. Staffing plays a key role in achieving a higher rating. However, like other healthcare facilities, skilled nursing also suffers from staffing shortages, making it challenging to excel in this portion of the rating criteria. Vivian shares some tactics to improve hiring in skilled nursing facilities to help you achieve a five-star rating.

News outlets around the nation are full of stories about the cooling of travel healthcare wages, primarily for nurses. Travel nurse pay has indeed stabilized, dropping significantly since the pandemic highs. What a difference a year makes. All but seven states saw healthcare wages increase during July 2021, while July 2022 travel healthcare trends saw only Alabama post a slight increase of 0.3%, landing it on the unchanged list. August has an even bigger distinction. Stay ahead of wage trends by exploring how healthcare wages fared in all 50 states this month.

Many people prefer receiving healthcare within the comfort of their homes instead of in an institutional setting. Hence, the popularity of home health care. Like every corner of the healthcare industry, staffing shortages abound in home health, which was further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and recruitment and retention problems. When comparing the salaries of permanent staff in traditional healthcare roles and perm home health nurse wages, home health nurses often earn slightly less overall. Like all nursing roles, home health salaries differ by state, facility and travel nursing agency.

Traveling health professionals, primarily nurses, have been around for decades but have never been as popular or as well paid as they were during the COVID-19 pandemic. After seeing record highs in healthcare wages for travel nurses throughout most of the pandemic and demand that significantly outweighed supply, flourishing travel wages seem to be coming to an end. The drop in healthcare travel pay isn’t limited to just a few states. Travel nursing trends have seen steep declines nationwide, with healthcare wages following suit.

Nurse practitioners are one type of advanced practice registered nurse (APRN). Each state’s Nurse Practice Act usually defines NP/APRN practice, but its Board of Nursing (BON) governs this practice. Other laws and regulations may also impact NP practice. The scope of practice (SOP) of nurse practitioners can significantly vary by state, making it challenging for NPs who work in more than one or move from one to another. NPs who inadvertently practice outside their scope of practice risk disciplinary action by their state BON, endanger their nursing licenses and could face a malpractice suit. To ensure you don’t do anything that might put you in a bad spot, you must know and understand the scope of practice in the state(s) in which they practice.

Over the past decade, the delivery of long-term services has increasingly shifted from institutional settings like skilled nursing facilities to private homes. Thus, increasing the need for home health professionals, especially nurses. The largest group of professional home care employees comprises registered nurses and licensed practical nurses, representing more than 80% of professional home care workers. The median age of registered nurses in 2020 was 52 years old, and home health has historically attracted older nurses. With the ongoing nursing shortage felt industrywide and an aging workforce, home health facilities must attract and recruit younger talent to fulfill their ever-increasing workloads.

Travel healthcare wages throughout the pandemic closely followed the rise and fall of COVID-19 surges nationwide. Travel nurses were in particularly high demand because they serve critical roles in delivering care to Covid and non-Covid patients. Now, they’re part of the decline in travel healthcare trends nationwide. Learn more about the uncertainty surrounding travel wages in June 2022.

Finding the advanced practice professionals your facility needs begins with recruitment. The onboarding and orientation process is a vital step between recruitment and retention. Some healthcare institutions have formalized onboarding models with detailed phases and activities critical to helping new hires successfully transition to their advanced practice roles. Others have very little, if anything, in place to make this transition smoother.

Home health nurses work one-on-one with patients outside a medical setting, in the comfort of the patients’ homes. They still tackle many of the same duties as nurses in traditional healthcare settings, with the added perks of having greater autonomy, schedule flexibility and closer relationships with their patients. There are several perks in home health nursing and probably just as many myths. Nurses frequently have an outdated misconception about home health, so we’re debunking five of the most common myths about this segment of the healthcare industry.

Healthcare wages, especially compensation among travel nurses, remain among the most talked-about topics in the medical field. During the COVID-19 pandemic and amid staffing shortages that worsened as the coronavirus spread, mutated, and spread again and again, travel nurses’ pay doubled, sometimes tripled. As the pandemic begins to wind down, for now at least, travel nurses and other traveling healthcare workers who’ve pitched in wherever facilities needed them nationwide are feeling the pinch of declining wages.

Healthcare professionals of every level remain in high demand, with many health systems scrambling to fill multiple vacancies with qualified clinicians. As the degree of training and expertise required for a role increases, finding advanced practice professionals becomes another challenge to hurdle. Recruiting AP professionals has become a priority for many health systems, with supply much lower than demand. Consider these best practices to find and keep the professionals your health system needs to thrive.

The significant spikes and dips in healthcare wages seen in early to mid-2021 didn’t plague Houston towards the end of the year, likely due to COVID-19 cases finally leveling off. Between September and December 2021, Houston healthcare wages remained essentially unchanged. The city had an average weekly pay rate of $1,758 in September compared to $1,764 in December, a difference of only about 0.35%. However, this steady trend in Houston wages changed in January when a tremendous surge in COVID-19 cases hit the Greater Houston area and the entire Lonestar State. Houston healthcare wages during the first quarter of 2022 experienced a lot more movement compared to the close of 2021.

After nearly two months of declining COVID-19 cases and relaxed vigilance, numbers have begun to rise again in almost every area of the country as April 2022 drew to a close. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated that more than half of all new coronavirus cases in the United States were likely attributed to the BA.2 subvariant of Omicron, also known as the “stealth” variant. Health officials considered the highly contagious original Omicron variant responsible for the widespread surge in cases that peaked in January 2022 when 43 states reported increases in healthcare wages.

Healthcare workers across the nation have faced an unrelenting foe throughout their battle against the novel coronavirus dubbed COVID-19. From January 20, 2020, when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified the first COVID-19 case in the United States, through the end of 2021, medical staff have been repeatedly rocked with multiple waves of infections resulting in hospitals filled to capacity, and sometimes beyond. As 2021 drew to a close and 2022 began with yet another COVID-19 surge, the promised return to normal has yet to fully materialize. Manning the frontlines over the last two years has caused resilient healthcare professionals to question their careers and/or the state of healthcare now and in the future.

Travel nurses were in high demand throughout 2021 as COVID-19 cases rose throughout the country, including nurses in Florida. While their assistance helped healthcare facilities in a pinch, Miami healthcare facilities and facilities throughout the state and nation need to fill permanent nursing positions to help curb their ongoing staffing shortages. While there are many pros of taking permanent staff nursing jobs, numerous travel nurses aren’t ready to make the switch and become perm nurses in Miami or elsewhere.

Healthcare wages across Florida saw a lot of ups and downs throughout 2021, especially for nurses. Florida’s fluctuating wage trends were reflected in Miami, the second-most populated city in the state. Like the rest of the country, Miami nurse wages were often influenced by surging and waning COVID-19 cases. Compensation is the highest factor impacting many nurses’ decision to either stay in their current job or move to greener pastures. Combined with the added stress of the ongoing health crisis, it may not be a surprise that many nurses are considering leaving the field altogether. Finding the right employer may help mitigate factors causing workers to leave nursing. Permanent nursing jobs in Miami are on the rise and there are some great Miami employers in the healthcare field.

After a major spike in COVID-19 cases about mid-January, cases have steadily dropped across the nation. The daily average number of cases on the first day of March was 58,503, which had fallen to 27,845 by the last day of the month. This new average is exceptionally mild compared to the high of 805,062 average daily cases recorded on January 15. The extreme drop in cases may have prompted March’s consistent decline in healthcare wages. March marked the first time since February 2021 that all 50 states reported a drop in healthcare pay rates. The uniform decrease was vastly different from September 2021, when all 50 states recorded an increase in healthcare wages, but further confirms the usual trend of wages mimicking COVID case counts.

After more than two years on the frontline combating COVID-19 and entering what was shaping up to be the third year battling the pandemic, cases finally began to wane in February. By about mid-month, a 71% drop in cases had been recorded over the previous three weeks putting the daily case average nationwide at the lowest point since Christmas. As February faded and the nation entered March, virus activity continued to fall with case reports reaching the lowest levels since the summer of 2021. Covid-related hospitalizations had also fallen by more than two-thirds from the January peak and nearly every state continued to see significant drops in daily cases. However, with COVID cases dropping, it provided an opportunity to seek treatments that some had put off due to the pandemic. Increases in non-COVID patients added to capacity issues, keeping hospitals hopping but healthcare pay rates were on the decline.

People become nurses for a multitude of reasons, but one reason cited most frequently is the desire to help people. This may be difficult for your family and friends to understand, especially if they've never had any desire to go into medicine. From your nursing code of ethics to well-deserved acknowledgement, here are seven things your family should know about nursing.

Collaborating with a nurse mentor can be a valuable tool in your career development. Nursing mentorship brings together a more experienced nurse who acts as a guide and role model with a less experienced nurse looking for daily guidance and help with important career decisions. Although it’s common to look for a nurse mentor when you’re new to nursing, even seasoned pros can benefit from the relationship of a nursing mentorship. Consider all the reasons why you need a nurse mentor, and determine your mentorship goals to find the ideal nursing professional to fill the role.

Nurses are the second largest group of licensed professionals in the country. According to the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, the purpose of a nursing license is to set minimum qualifications and competencies for entry-level nurses in order to protect the public from harm. Before you can practice nursing, you must earn a license issued by the Board of Nursing (BON) in your home state by passing the NCLEX-RN licensing exam and fulfilling any other requirements set forth by the state. Once you earn your license, you must also meet certain requirements for RN license renewal. Here are some important things you should know about renewing your nursing license to ensure you meet these requirements.

Emergency departments are fast-paced, stressful work environments. Medical staff members are often unfamiliar with each other’s skills and work styles, but everyone must quickly learn to work together to ensure the best patient outcomes. Decisions must be made at lightning speed, often with limited information about the patient. During hectic emergency room nursing shifts, you might also experience limited support with an unpredictable patient load. On the flip side, being an emergency room nurse can be quite rewarding and an excellent learning experience. If you think you’d thrive in ER nursing, learn more about the pros and cons of the working environment to decide whether it’s right for you.

Nurses make up the largest group of healthcare professionals in the nation, with nearly 3 million nursing professionals across the country. Despite the large numbers of nursing professionals, there’s still a severe shortage of skilled nurses, and this demand means plenty of opportunities in all kinds of locations. Travel nurses who prefer spending their days off enjoying the great outdoors have plenty of options in fun-filled cities around the United States.

When your career goal is to become a nurse, your first step is nursing school where you’ll complete an accredited registered nurse program. Many students lack the funds to pay for their higher education and count on financial assistance to help cover the cost. Nursing school is an investment in your future, so it’s important to evaluate the many types of financial aid for nurses to find what works for you and your unique situation. Get the 411 on the abundant resources available that make paying your way through nursing school more affordable.

Night shift nursing schedules can really disrupt your daily routine, not to mention your sleep cycle, social life and home/work balance. Juggling your nursing night shifts and being a parent can be even more challenging, especially when you’re a new mom. Getting sufficient sleep is vital to your health, and learning to adapt to a different sleep schedule is one of the hardest obstacles a night shift nurse must overcome. When you’re struggling, these five tips may be just what the doctor ordered.

Nursing has traditionally been a female-dominated field, but male nurses are slowly entering the workforce. The notion that caregiving is a job only for women is outdated, but a stigma persists about men who pursue a nursing career. Some of the biggest pet peeves of male nurses are stereotypes and the assumptions that they're either gay or medical school dropouts. Although a gender gap in nursing is readily apparent, nursing is a rewarding career, whether you’re a man or a woman. Here are just five reasons why men who enjoy caring for others should give a nursing career serious thought.

A study conducted by the University of Maryland’s School of Nursing found that 55 percent of the female nurses they surveyed were overweight or obese. Many participants cited similar reasons for weight fluctuations, including job stress and disrupted sleep and eating schedules, unhealthy snacking and inability to schedule regular exercise due to working 12-hour shifts. Although you may feel like you’re too tired to fit in a workout after a long nursing shift, even limited amounts of intense exercise can increase your energy level at work and improve your focus and your mood.

Nurses often work in high-stress environments, which may include life and death situations. According to Healthy Nurse Healthy Nation, this can make nurses twice as likely to experience depression compared to people in other professions. Depression impacts a nurse’s well-being, but a new study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine also found a significant link between depression and increased nursing medical errors. Nearly half of the nurses surveyed reported having medical errors in the previous five years and about a third of the nurses in the study said they had some degree of depression. To help minimize medical errors in nursing, it’s vital you understand the signs of depression and find techniques to help combat it.

Nursing can be a rewarding and lucrative career, but getting there requires higher education that can leave you with substantial student loan debt. Luckily, there are numerous nursing student loan forgiveness resources to help you get most, if not all, your loans forgiven. However, there are at least five things to keep in mind when exploring your options.

The work nurses do isn’t always well understood, which creates a vast gap between what skilled nurses really do and what people think they do. Whether it’s related to something seen on television or a long-standing misconception, nurses are not recognized enough for the positive impact they have on the lives of the patients in their care.

Home health nursing is one of the fastest growing areas in the healthcare industry, but this increased demand faces ongoing shortages in trained professionals, including qualified nurses. Many patients prefer receiving quality care in their own homes because it’s a familiar domain that’s more comfortable and less likely to lead to any outside infections. From private duty shift work to intermittent home healthcare, providing care in patients’ homes is the place to be, but not everyone knows this is a growing industry or why.

After being stuck indoors for hours on end, outdoor enthusiasts who love to hike discover some of the best trails in a wide variety of travel nursing locations. Enjoy breathtaking views in locales around America on easy walking trails for beginners or strenuous trails for expert climbers. Many of the stellar hiking spots are within or near some of the best cities for travel nurses, which offer the best of both worlds — fantastic job opportunities and exciting outdoor adventures. If one of your favorite leisure activities is hiking up the side of a mountain or along a meandering stream, consider one of these five travel nursing locations full of amazing hiking destinations.

Nurses lead busy lives at work, and often at home, and have a lot of demands on their time. Simplify your life with online organizing tools that keep you on top of your game by keeping things organized. The ability to quickly locate information, schedules, to-do lists and reminders is one of the biggest time-savers for nurses who rely on effective time management to juggle tight schedules and a heavy workload. Free online organizing tools sometimes require a paid subscription to unlock all the features, but some are completely free of charge. Here are seven online organizing tools that could help keep you sane by making your tasks easier to track and manage.

Learning new skills and updating previous ones is crucial in the medical field, but did you know that it can also improve your mental well-being? Pursuing formal and informal education helps boost your self-confidence and self-esteem, improves your sense of purpose, enhances professional and personal satisfaction and connects you with others. When you combine the many perks of learning, it’s no wonder it’s touted as a great way to improve mental health for nurses and frequently came up among healthcare professionals discussing four ways to keep your mind sharp and improve nurse mental health.

Although job opportunities for nurses are expected to rise with faster-than-average employment growth, the number of new nurses entering the field has increased. The result is heightened competition for the best nursing jobs, so it’s vital you and your nurse resume stand out from the rest. A nursing resume with vague details and poorly highlighted skills and experience, coupled with an uninspiring cover letter, won’t get you noticed by hiring managers. Make sure your nurse resume grabs their attention by including these five things hiring managers always want to see.

When choices need to be made concerning ethical issues, but the “best” course of action isn’t clear and the treatment options aren’t ideal, nurses are often faced with an ethical dilemma. In today’s healthcare environment, ethical issues in nursing are becoming increasingly complex. The American Nurses Association developed the Code of Ethics for Nurses to establish the ethical standard for nurses and the ethical obligations and duties of everyone in the nursing profession. Applying the nursing code of ethics in difficult patient-care situations guides you through common ethical issues nurses face every day.

If diminished nurse job satisfaction and feelings of disrespect have you thinking you should have chosen a different career path, you’re not alone. Medscape’s annual survey on nurse career satisfaction reported the opinions of 10,523 nurses on numerous topics, including the best and worst aspects of the profession. While it’s not surprising that helping people and making a difference in people’s lives topped the chart as the best aspect of nursing for many nurses, the percentage of nurses feeling disrespected may come as a shock.

Looking for helpful nurse gadgets to make your job easier? Technology plays an important role in healthcare by providing much needed improvements in medical equipment that aid in patient monitoring, diagnosis and treatment. Nurses also benefit from technological advances like electronic health records, which electronically gather and store patient records, allowing for quick access throughout the facility. Many nurses embrace technology to help make their jobs easier and provide better patient care. If you’re looking for the latest nurse gadgets to streamline your daily tasks, check out these five tech tools you’ll want to buy.

Probably from the day you started, you knew nursing wasn't an easy profession and there were going to be days when your emotions would get the best of you. Whatever emotions you're feeling, for whatever reason, keeping it bottled up inside isn't good for your mental health and well-being. Everyone handles feelings differently, but one of these four ways to release emotions after tough nursing shifts might work for you.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has had its hands full combating the COVID-19 pandemic, but it's still doing everything possible to raise awareness about the importance of nurses and midwives in the global healthcare system. Nurses, along with the entire medical community, have been on the front lines throughout the grueling battle against the novel coronavirus. As medical personnel fall victim to the virus, it further emphasizes nursing shortages that are estimated to only get worse. Getting the world's attention about the need for more skilled nurses is just one of the many things the WHO is doing for nurses.

Patient education is one of the most important roles nurses have in their daily activities. Patient education in nursing allows patients to better understand their condition and take a more proactive role in managing their healthcare independently. Before you can properly educate your patients, you must understand your patient's educational limitations and readiness to learn to ensure you’re providing the best patient education and counseling possible.

The United States has the largest professional nurse workforce in the world, yet there continues to be more positions open than nurses available. Recruiting foreign nurses is one of the many strategies used to address the nursing shortage throughout the country. However, the education, regulation and licensure of nurses in other countries is very diverse with considerable differences in scope and complexity. Explore nursing differences from around the globe to learn how nursing programs in other countries compare to North America's.

Establishing a good rapport with your patients through eye contact and using their names during conversations helps you connect with them quickly. Explain things clearly and concisely, especially when attempting to educate patients on complex medical conditions, and be patient while answering any questions they have. Encourage patients to go into detail about their health concerns and truly listen to them without interrupting or attempting to prod them along. These are just some of the many communication techniques that help you connect with your patients. Some of the top experts in the medical field offer five more communication techniques to work into your repertoire.

Aching muscles are extremely common after busy nursing shifts, especially long 12-hour shifts that keep you on your feet. Anthony Kouri, MD and orthopedic surgeon at the University of Toledo Medical Center, spends all day on his feet and treats people for various muscle aches several times a day. He believes one of the best ways to soothe aching muscles is to prevent them from happening in the first place.

Deciding where your next travel health assignment should take you hinges on many practical considerations, such as cost of living, crime rates and ease of transportation. However, some cities, like New Orleans, just call to you. While there are many sensible reasons to consider the Big Easy for your next assignment, New Orleans has a quirky personality all its own that you should really embrace at least once. Travel health jobs in New Orleans also provide an excellent way for you to experience the amazing Creole culture and everything it entails.

Many nursing professionals may believe they're immune from addiction, but they're in just as much danger of becoming affected by opioid dependence as the patients they treat. While popular shows like Nurse Jackie might unintentionally glorify drug addiction in nursing, opioid addiction is a silent epidemic among nurses that must be seriously addressed. Nurses with a substance use disorder have impaired judgement and slower reaction times that could comprise their performance and endanger patients' lives. It's vital to learn the signs of addiction and the many non-disciplinary programs available to help nurses struggling with addiction.

Travel nursing will take you all over the country to unique destinations and experiences you're going to want to remember for years to come. Memorializing your past nurse travel assignments also gives you something to share with friends and family when you're back home. Creating tangible memories of the places you've been can be as easy as snapping photos for your social media page, or you can get creative with locale-specific collections. If you want to have something tangible to look back on, consider these five fun ways to memorialize your travel assignments.

You're probably already familiar with agency-provided housing, but maybe you haven't explored all your housing options. Travel nurse housing typically includes private housing free of charge, but you can also choose to take a housing stipend and choose your own accommodations. One type of accommodation that's been growing in popularity is travel trailers. Travel nursing in a travel trailer can be one of the most comfortable ways to travel from one assignment to another, and it hides a surprising number of perks.

Nursing blogs, like other industry blogs, can be a great source of news, events and advancements in the field, but not all blogs are created equally. With the rise in the popularity of blogging, it's become especially difficult to recognize a good nursing blog that keeps you entertained and informed and one that's all fluff with no real substance. Separate fact from fiction by checking the nurse blogger's credentials, including their professional nurse LinkedIn profile, to ensure you're following a reputable blog. Like popular YouTube nurses, there are numerous nursing blogs you could follow, but here are seven bloggers you need to read.

Your body depends on hydration to survive because all your organs, cells and tissue need water to perform properly. Water makes up more than half of your body weight and you lose water all the time, especially while sweating when you're active. Nursing shifts typically keep you very active, and the more active you are, the faster you lose water. If you don't replace this water, you can become dehydrated. Staying hydrated is critical to your health and well-being, but it can be difficult to maintain hydration during hectic 12-hour shifts or night shifts when you're more likely to be understaffed.

Known for its warm climate and beautiful landscapes, Arizona is a favorite of vacationers, but it's also a great place to work and live. June 21 was National Arizona Day, so why not get to know the Grand Canyon state better and see what makes this nurse licensure compact locale a great place for travel nursing? Travel nursing is ideal for building your resume while finding adventure, and that's one of the many things you'll find when you apply for a job in this vibrant state.

Travel nurses can pick assignments in any of the 50 states, but some states offer more perks than others. From professional opportunities and cost of living advantages to sightseeing interests and adventures you won't soon forget, you'll discover numerous reasons to explore travel nursing. In nurse licensure compact states like North Dakota and South Dakota, you don't even need to apply for further licensure before you can begin working. This is just one of the many perks of working in the Dakotas, but there are other reasons why you might want to make them your new stomping grounds.

Television series based on the medical world have been around for a long time. From long-running favorites like M.A.S.H. to quirky comedies like Scrubs, some shows offer patients insight into the world of nursing, while others provide a less-than-impressive portrayal of what nurses really do. For a more reality-based look at nursing, you might turn to YouTube videos by nurses. Here you'll find millions of videos and thousands of nursing channels with content creators ranging from experienced nurse educators to nursing students sharing their knowledge and experiences in the nursing field. However, these videos are often more geared towards professionals not patients. As a patient, if you're looking for something binge-worthy, consider these popular shows available on Netflix, but keep in mind that they may or may not give you the right idea about nursing.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 2.9 million nurses in 2016 and this number was expected to grow by 15 percent by 2026. This makes nursing one of the most popular careers in the United States, which is due in part to the fact that nurses can specialize in so many areas. As technology changes, so does the nursing role and the fields of expertise available to nurses. One major field was opened by federal mandates that require healthcare providers to transition to electronic health and medical records. This is where an informatics nurse steps in, and it can be a very lucrative step in your nursing career.

If you're doubting whether you're still satisfied in your nursing career, it might be a sign that it's time for a change. Career satisfaction is extremely important in the healthcare field and greatly impacts patient outcomes. When nurses find their work unsatisfying, they suffer and so do their patients, colleagues and family. As you reflect on your goals and career satisfaction, ask yourself if you're truly ready for a nursing career change and keep in mind there are many opportunities outside the traditional nursing roles.

Travel nursing jobs can take you anywhere in the country, and while many travel nurses choose popular, big-city destinations, smaller Midwestern states have their own unique appeal. Smaller cities in these states often offer more opportunities, especially compared to larger coastal cities where you face more competition for coveted jobs. Larger cities are also prone to traffic congestion and higher crime rates that make them less appealing, despite the lovely environments. Travel nursing jobs in smaller locales can also provide you with a better sense of accomplishment because you can more easily see the impact you're having on the community. This is especially true in rural communities that find it difficult to attract skilled healthcare professionals.

The nursing profession represents the largest segment of healthcare workers in the nation. Nurses play a vital role in patient care, but the number of experienced nurses is dwindling as older nurses hit retirement age. The demand for nurse graduates to take up the slack has helped promote the growing trend of male nurses. While nursing professionals remain predominately female, men in nursing has steadily grown over the last several decades. The idea of male nurses isn't a new concept; it's simply been forgotten, but trends are setting men up for a major comeback.

Becoming a nurse can be a very rewarding career, but if you plan on moving up the career ladder later, it's critical to take steps early on to ensure you advance later. Education is a vital key in advancing your nursing career and is just as important as practical experience. Always seek opportunities to further your training, build your professional network and take on leadership responsibilities to keep your career moving forward. Focusing on your future career plans now helps ensure you reach your career goals and achieve job satisfaction.

As the country’s aging population continues to grow, the demand for nurses specially trained in geriatric nursing also continues to rise. Elderly patients make up the largest group of people seeking care at many health care facilities. These patients have unique needs and present unique challenges that require highly attentive care from skilled geriatric nurses. Provide your geriatric patients with optimal care by mastering these must-have skills.

What are the top five nursing values and why are they so important? Nursing is a caring, compassionate profession. Nurses do not just perform tasks or provide services, they develop an empathy for the needs of others and a connection with their patients. Applying nurse core values in all your actions ensures the trust put in your hands by your patients and fellow medical staff is well justified. Apply these top five professional nursing values in your everyday practices to retain the trust and confidence of your patients and fellow medical staff members.

Networking for nurses is important on a personal and professional level. Personally, it can help you connect with other nurses who face the same situations you do and understand what you're going through on a day-to-day basis — unlike those who aren't in nursing. Building a professional network is a vital tool in the advancement of your career, but it can also lead to lifelong friendships. Nurse networking may be face to face or take place in the virtual world, but it should always be mutually beneficial.

One of the biggest steps travel nurses must take is getting the right nurse license for the state they will be working in. Depending on the state, the process of application to completion can take days to weeks. It's important to know the requirements of each state's RN licensing board to understand all the legalities of working there. Working with a recruiter will help illuminate the process as well as lift the burden solely off you. Read on to learn more about the nurse licensing process and the options available to you.

A good memory is essential in a nursing career, but with the numerous nursing apps available, nurses also have valuable health care knowledge right at their fingertips. You’ll find apps for every nursing specialty that help you jump-start your nursing career. From quickly accessing medical information to expediting communication among colleagues, consider one of these seven apps to give your career in nursing a boost.