The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that there are over 2.5 million nurses practicing in the United States. This number is expected to grow as nursing jobs become increasingly specialized. There is also the fact that there is a huge population of aging and retiring nurses. Nursing jobs are very rewarding, but all the different specializations might make it harder for nurses to choose a career path that best suits them. These specializations are often distinguished by the educational qualification of a nurse and below we will look at some of the most common nurse specializations.

Becoming a Nurse

To become a nurse, you must have gone through medical school and attained one of the few nursing degrees available. They may be called different names, but all these degrees lead to fulfilling nursing careers. Next, a nurse has to pass certification exams so they can become certified to work in any of the different types of healthcare facilities available. If a nurse wants to specialize, they might have to go back to school to attain more specializations for the particular field they are interested in.

Nurse Researcher

As the name suggests, a nurse researcher involved in research into:

• Health

• Illness

• Healthcare

Part of their job includes:

• Identifying research questions

• Designing studies

• Conducting these studies

• Collecting, interpreting and analyzing data

• Reporting their findings

These types of nurses can also decide to go into academics where they could write papers and reports on their research in journals and publications.

Psychiatric Nurse

These nurses work with patients who have been diagnosed with various mental illnesses like schizophrenia. They are also trained in behavioral therapy so they can teach patients and their loved ones on how to overcome challenges that often accompany mental illnesses.

If you choose this career path, you might find yourself working with:

• Occupational therapists

• Psychologists

• Physical therapists

• Psychiatrists

• Neonatal Nurses

These nurses can assist mothers before, during and after birth. They work very closely with neonatal doctors and midwifery nurses. Some of their work includes:

• Handling labor

• Delivery

• Monitoring mothers and babies during the whole birthing process

Some of these nurses also work in neonatal intensive care units where they provide continuing care to premature or ill babies.

Nurse Midwife

These nurses are the primary providers of midwifery services. They are highly trained and their job is the most in-demand among all the different nurse specializations. To become one of these nurses, you must:

• Have a degree in nursing

• Have a master’s degree in nurse-midwifery

• Pass licensing certifications mandated by the state they would like to work in

Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS)

CNS is a universal term that is used to describe advanced nurses who have many different specializations. They sometimes oversee whole floors and supervise other nurses. CNSs establish standards of quality of care and work with other nurses to ensure these standards are met and maintained. Because they are specialists and can often go into managerial positions, they must hold a master’s or doctoral degree in a specialized area of nursing practice.

Because they have diverse specializations, they can be experts in:

• A specific population (women, children, geriatrics, etc.)

• A disease (cancer, diabetes, etc.)

• A specific type of care (for example rehabilitation)

• A type of health issue (for example stress, wounds)

• A specific medical setting (emergency room, critical care, etc.)

Clinical nurse specialists are given a leeway to provide direct patient care, help propose policies that improve health outcomes or even offer consultation services.

Family Nurse Practitioners

Family Nurse Specialists are advanced practice registered nurses who are highly-trained to provide family-focused care. They can work with other professionals or independently. These nurses are trained in clinical family medicine which means they can:

• Diagnose illnesses

• Treat complex illnesses and diseases

Due to their advanced training, they can also work as policymakers and hospital administrators. Nurses who already hold nursing degrees can enroll in an online DNP-FNP program if they would like to switch over to family nursing.

Family Nurse Practitioners can work in different settings including:

• Schools

• Private homes

• Clinics

• Doctors’ offices

• Hospitals

Orthopedic Nurses

Orthopedic nurses work with patients who have musculoskeletal ailments like:

• Diabetes

• Joint replacement problems

• Arthritis

They can also prepare appropriate treatment plans for their patients.

Geriatrics Nurses

These nurses are registered nurses who offer specialized and individualized care to elderly patients. They must hold a degree or certification that specializes in geriatrics. Their main work is much like a doctor’s because they can:

• Diagnose illnesses

• Conduct exams

• Prescribe medication

Geriatrics nurses work with their patients in the long term and might provide assessment and progress reports to their patients’ families. The most important quality they must have is a good bedside manner because they work closely with elderly patients who need a lot of patience.

Critical Care Nurse

Critical care nurses work in areas where urgent and critical help is required. These include places such as trauma floors or even intensive care units. Because of this, they often define themselves according to the departments in which they work.

Critical care nurses must have valid Registered Nurse licenses. Although most hospitals require them to have Bachelor's degrees in nursing, some hospitals employ those with associate degrees as well.

Dialysis Nurses

Patients suffering from kidney failure need dialysis services that help remove toxins from their blood. Because this is a very delicate process, these patients need the care of specialized dialysis or renal nurses.

Dialysis nurses:

• Assess patients before every procedure

• Ensure the process is as safe as possible

• Assess the patients when the process is done

These nurses can choose between working in specialized dialysis centers and hospitals.

To become a dialysis nurse, you need a valid RN license and a Bachelor's degree in nursing if you want better opportunities and a higher salary. To make things even easier for yourself, you might want to have a few years of nursing experience before applying to become a dialysis nurse.

Health Policy Nurse

Health policy nurses are concerned with the ways healthcare policies can affect their patients. These nurses are often very experienced and have a deep insight into the healthcare system. Health policy nurses do not treat patients directly. Instead, they work for nonprofits, government or other organizations with their work there focused on advocating for policies that better serve patients.

To become a healthcare nurse, you need:

• A Bachelors in Nursing

• Several years of experience

• An optional degree in healthcare administration or public policy - both of these degrees make them better positioned in the job market

Informatics Nurse

The nurses work where healthcare and technology intersect. They use their nursing experience to investigate how emerging technologies will affect patients and the healthcare nurses and other healthcare providers provide. They also work closely with practitioners, hospitals, and companies that develop healthcare technologies. To get one of these positions, you must have excellent computer skills including networking and big data.

Nurse Anesthetist

These are advanced practice nurses who provide support and anesthetic services during procedures such as:

• Trauma care

• Surgeries

• Obstetrical procedures

These nurses can work in every type of practice and provide care for almost any type of surgery or procedure. They have the luxury of working with a diverse number of healthcare specialists including:

• Doctors

• Surgeons

• Other anesthesiologists

• Podiatrists

• Dentists

• Any other healthcare providers as may be required

These nurses work with total autonomy and are some of the most respected nurses in healthcare. Their salaries are also some of the highest.

Nurse Educator

Nurse educators are specialized nurses who train other nurses. They work with universities and hospitals to develop education programs. They leverage their extensive experience and knowledge of the healthcare system to do the work they do.

Some of these nurses teach in universities and can also create education courses for practicing nurses who would like to extend their knowledge.

Nurse Advocate

Although all nurses advocate for their patients, nurse advocates do just this one thing. They liaise between the patients and their healthcare institutions to ensure any problems that arise are solved in the best way and as fast as possible.

Patient relation skills and a lot of bedside experience are two of the things required for this position in addition to a valid Registered Nurse certification.

Pain Management Nurses

These nurses deal with patients who have:

• Undergone surgery

• Been in an accident

• Acute or chronic pain

Some states allow them to prescribe pain management drugs and, because of the number of people living with chronic pain, these nurses are always in demand.

In addition to their Registered Nurse license and a Bachelor's or associate degree, they must also earn additional certifications such as those offered by the American Society for Pain Management Nursing.

Travel Nurse

This is a relatively new type of specialization, but these nurses are always in demand. As the name implies, travel nurses move from one place to another providing their services wherever they may be needed. They can work in:

• Hospitals

• Private clinics and practices

• Clinics

• Outpatient centers

In some cases, especially for patients who are bedridden or who do not want to stay at the hospital, they can visit patients’ homes. These nurses have the option of being specialists in a particular area or general practitioners.

Pediatric Nurses

These nurses work with children who are too young to be attended to by other nurses and who are too old to be taken care of by neonatal nurses. They work in a variety of settings, mostly in areas where children receive treatment. Some of these areas are:

• Pediatric wings in hospitals

• Specialized pediatric hospitals

• Private practices.

To become a pediatric nurse, you need to have a Bachelor of Science in nursing plus other certifications that make you a specialist in pediatric care.

Oncology Nurse

These nurses work exclusively with patients receiving cancer treatment. They assist in the in-patient care of these patients and can check up patients receiving outpatient treatments, such as those receiving chemotherapy.

Why Should You Specialize?

There are several reasons why nurses decide to specialize.

1. Better pay - Most of these specializations come with a salary bump. Nurses who want better pay can either wait to get promoted or get additional certifications that make them specialists in specific areas.

2. Job satisfaction - Some nurses are not satisfied with completing tasks they are not interested in. Because of this, they can decide to specialize so they can do what they love.

3. Work where you work best - Every nurse has an area they love working in. Some like caring for children while others have the bedside manner to care for geriatric patients. If you want to work in an area you like, it would be a good idea to socialize.

4. To earn a promotion - Almost all specialized nurses get promoted to better positions once they get their certifications and specializations.

5. To switch careers - Say you do not want to keep working with patients - you can change your career path to something like informatics or research, for example.

6. To get more freedom - Some nurse specializations, for example, a nurse anesthesiologist, let nurses work wherever and with whomever they want, within reason. This gives these types of nurses the freedom that most other nurses do not get.

Get Your Certifications in Order

Most nurse specializations require that you have specific certifications and degrees. Before looking for a job in a specialized field, ensure that you have the right certifications. Also, do your research to ensure that you are following the laws of your state and that you get the certifications from the right institutions as required by your state or hospital.

Nurse specializations are too many to count. They are starting to be defined by education levels and the differences between the tasks different nurses do are razor-thin now. Before specialization, you have to find out where you work best. This will ensure that once you have your certifications, you will be able to work in an area that you are most interested in and happiest at.

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