If you are looking to enter the field of nursing, or if you are a nurse presently looking to enhance your career experience, the new millennia has brought about significant changes. Leaps in professional expansion and higher pay rates have attracted many a new nursing staff, wishing to also be of service to the public. Bridging the gap between medicine and other disciplines has exhilarated and inspired many existing nurses to enter specialized fields.

It is common knowledge that the medical service industry has some of the highest needs for employees and presently is understaffed by 6-10%. This means that there are a lot of job opportunities available. According to the Bureau of Labor’s most recent statistics, by the year 2012, there stands a chance to be short by nearly 12%. With advances in medicine and people living longer lives, new areas of expertise are now being regulated and promoted for nursing opportunities. To name a few: traveling nurses, clinical information specialists, ACNP’s (Acute Care Nurse Practitioners), Home care and End-of-life specialists.

Traveling nurses are just that…nurses that travel. It is an excellent opportunity to travel for free, while also filling temporary niches at clinics, medical facilities or even magnet hospitals. A position as a traveling nurse provides opportunities to add research facilities and high-end medical facilities to one’s resume, a large pro for someone looking to advance quickly in the medical field.

Clinical information specialists are nurses who specialize in retrieving medical information through electronic databases, and can interpret possible errors in recording or research data from a patient’s history. This type of specialist is particularly needed in times of natural disasters, like tornados or hurricanes, when the retrieval of critical medical information is needed the most. Clinical information specialists also can use this type of specialized training to expand their careers. Many positions lead to research and development positions, as well as sales for large pharmaceutical companies. Someone with this type of degree is also valuable as a teacher, or an information specialist for hospitals.

Acute Care Nurse Practitioners are the critical care specialists for patients with acute and chronic illnesses. This particular profession can also specialize in genetic mapping: looking at genetic markers within a family’s history and be able to predict potential problems for patients. They are responsible for being able to take the specialized information from the genetic labs and present them in a more simplified and generally more understood manner.

Home care specialists and End-of-life specialists are two occupations where licensed nurses assist those at the end of life, or patients who are home bound, deal with illnesses with as much comfort as possible. They are responsible for assisting not only the patient, but their families as well. In dealing with an expected loss of a loved one, or the insurmountable pressure of a family member going through a drastic lifestyle change, the Home care specialists help to consult family members through some rough situations.

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