Nursing Process, an independent group of educators and health care professionals that provide information on the medical industry, has released its rankings of the happiest nursing jobs in America for 2023. From legal nurse consultant to outpatient case management, the list features a number of high-paying jobs that offer high levels of satisfaction and lower levels of stress.
According to a 2023 AMN Healthcare report, nurse career satisfaction has dropped by as much as 14% throughout the pandemic. Only 15% of nurses actively employed in hospitals this year want to “continue working as I am” in one year. Many nurses are thinking about leaving their jobs.
“I don’t think any of us were prepared to see just how drastic the drop was in career job satisfaction, mental health and well-being, and what the overall feeling of the nurse profession today was,” Christin Stanford, vice president of client solutions for AMN Healthcare, told CNN.
Nearly a third of nurses surveyed said they will likely leave the profession, a 7% increase since 2021. According to Nursing Process, there are 11 broad-term categories that determine a nurse’s satisfaction at work. Ranging from appreciation to empowerment, these categories determined each nursing career’s satisfactory ranking.
Here are the five specialties with the happiest nurses:
1. Outpatient case management
Nurse case managers work alongside physicians and patients to coordinate patient care, often by focusing on how to save the client from costly expenses. These clients can range from insurance companies to the hospitals themselves. With over $80,000 in annual earnings, case managers earn more money than the average nurse and report good benefits and supportive management.
2. Office nurse
Office nurses provide direct care to patients for chronic and non-urgent conditions, often from physician or outpatient office. Despite making lower wages than many other kinds of nurses with an average salary of $45,677, many office nurses report lower levels of stress.
3. NICU nurse
NICU nurses work in a hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit. With an average salary of $94,616, they are some of the highest earners among nurses. While the job is often described as challenging, it is also a preference for many nurses that love babies and love helping growing families prepare for their newborns.
4. Informatics nurse
An informatics nurse utilizes data to improve health care, which can include aiding in the development of new policies and procedures. Informatics nurses also earn a staggering average $101,628 a year for a role considered low stress and perfect for tech-savvy health care heroes.
5. Legal nurse consultant
As a medical expert on legal cases, a legal nurse consultant works alongside attorneys during complex cases that involve chronic illnesses or injuries. For those that value autonomy and normal working hours, this career path offers high satisfaction ratings and an average salary of $81,195.
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