Geriatric Nurses are In Demand

Our country is experiencing a shortage of qualified nurses across the field. To become a nurse, you do have to go to nursing school, but there are specific areas of nursing where you can specialize. One high growth area is geriatric nurses who work with our aging population.

Geriatric nurses don't just work in hospitals or nursing homes. "Geriatric nurses are needed everywhere," says Patti Cantillo-Kodzis, BSN, RN, BC, of HealthSense LLC in Winter Springs, Fla. In addition to working in hospitals and nursing homes, geriatric nurses travel to patients' homes as case managers or in other roles, and to physician offices and schools. In each of these locations, they may perform bedside, direct patient care roles or management functions. Some also become involved in research on how to better care for older adults. "Registered nurses with a BSN [bachelor's] degree or higher have the greatest variety of choices in work settings," says Cole.

You don't have to be a registered nurse, or RN, to work with older adults. Licensed practical nurses often work as geriatric specialists. The first step is to obtain nursing credentials at any level and then look for courses that focus on geriatrics. You can find these at colleges such as UAMS, conferences or online. Cole says there also are master's programs in geriatric nursing.

Online nursing school is a great option for someone looking to get in to the exciting field of nursing. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nursing is one of the top job outlooks, and geriatric nurses will be more specifically in demand as our population ages.