Nurse practitioners are named “Best Job in 2024”- I call bullsh*t!

The U.S. News and World Report Best Jobs of 2024 list recently came out and the results….. nurse practitioners are named best job in the U.S. 

And I call bullsh*t. 

For the past few years, nurse practitioners are among the top of the list for best jobs. In fact, nurse practitioners were voted #2 in 2023. 

Nurse practitioners are named Best Job

Sure working as a nurse practitioner looks good on paper. 

• Start as a registered nurse then complete an additional 3-4 years of training.
• In most cases, nurse practitioners make a six figure salary.
• Nurse practitioners may have a “better work-life balance,” generally not having to work shifts in a hospital like an RN (yayyy no more nights and weekends).
• APRNs get to further care for our patients and use critical thinking skills even more.
• A significant job growth- The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 44.5% employment growth for nurse practitioners

On paper it appears that the report is true: nurse practitioners are named Best Job in the U.S. 

But I call bullsh*t. 

Now I will admit, I am biased. 

Not only do I currently work as a full-time family nurse practitioner, but I have also been in healthcare for the past 15 years. I have worked in a variety of settings and gotten exposure to the hardships of working in healthcare. In 2015, I became burned-out while working in healthcare and then overcame the burnout.

Because of all of this, I created The Nurse Practitioner Charting School. I help nurse practitioners who are feeling overwhelmed and burned-out to improve their charting so they can create a better work-life balance and STOP charting at home. 

Needless to say, I have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly of working as a nurse practitioner. 

That is why I am calling bullsh*t to nurse practitioners are named Best Job in the U.S. 

Let’s take a look at a few of the reasons why I disagree with this statement. 

Overworked. 

Many healthcare facilities require nurse practitioners to see a ridiculous number of patients during a work shift. And there is a push to see more patients, sicker patients, in a shorter amount of time. While this is an unsafe practice and a whole different conversation, the constant work wears on the nurse practitioner. 

Seeing too many patients a day is a significant risk for nurse practitioner burnout- I have seen it time and time again. Then add on addressing the constant tasks in the electronic health record inbox. Nurse practitioners are responsible for reviewing past medical documents, refilling medications, analyzing diagnostic data, and the never ending patient messages. Is it serious nurse practitioners are named Best Job?

I have seen so many instances when the nurse practitioner takes on a role that could have been delegated to a nurse or medical assistant. For example, many nurse practitioners are scheduling patient referrals and completing prior authorizations. These time consuming tasks get in the way of nurse practitioners seeing patients and documenting the notes so the patient’s insurance can be billed.

I have also seen situations where nurse practitioners are expected to check in their own patients, give intramuscular injections/shots, or draw labs on the patient. A lot of facilities expect the nurse practitioner to take on these tasks because we can. But have you ever seen a situation when a physician has been asked to check in a patient or give an injection? Because of the increased workload, it is difficult to support nurse practitioners are named Best Job in the U.S.

Underappreciated. 

I have talked with so many nurse practitioners who feel under appreciated in their work. This can be situational to the healthcare facility, there are a lot of toxic-work environments out there! For example, some companies gave an end of the year bonus or holiday party for the employed physicians, but not the nurse practitioners. 

There is also a societal lack of appreciation for nurse practitioners. How many instances have APRNs heard, “When will I see the doctor? I don’t want to see just a nurse.” 

Often there is a lack of respect from RNs and other healthcare providers. The term “mid level” is used with a negative connotation. Many don’t trust that nurse practitioners can properly care for patients. And some how nurse practitioners are named Best Job in 2024.

I have heard of a lot of instances where the nurse practitioner completes the difficult tasks and the physician gets the praise. I see this a lot in the hospital or specialty clinic setting. The nurse practitioner will complete the entire history of present illness, review of systems, physical exam, and documentation and the physician comes by and signs the chart. The visit is billed under the physician, getting all the glory for the hard work from the APRN. 

Many insurance companies only reimburse at 85% of what the physician reimbursement is set at. This is frustrating because there have been so many studies showing the quality of care nurse practitioners provide. So one can argue the claim nurse practitioners are named Best Job in the U.S.

Underpaid.

I do not disagree, making a six figure salary is nothing to complain about. But if you look at what physicians are making, it feels frustrating. Now I know that physicians have a different training than nurse practitioners. I know they are able to bill Medicare at a higher rate whereas nurse practitioners only receive 85% of the payment. I know in many states nurse practitioners require a supervising physician in order for the APRN to practice. I know there are certain tasks and procedures that only physicians can do.

But the majority of work nurse practitioners do is the same as a physician. And a lot of instances nurse practitioners make half if not a third of what physicians make. Not to mention, a lot of nurse practitioners are seeing more patients and doing more admin tasks than their physician colleagues! Hard to believe nurse practitioners are named Best Job in 2024.

I also know a lot of RNs that are making more than an advanced practice registered nurse. I know this depends on supply and demand. I know it differs in a hospital vs. outpatient setting. I know certain areas that have an over saturation of nurse practitioners. 

But in many areas RN pay is very similar to APRN. This is despite the fact that nurse practitioners have a higher level of education and a substantial increase in liability. It surprises a lot of nurse practitioners that they actually make less than when they worked as a RN.

And a lot of time nurse practitioners are putting in more hours (unpaid hours) catching up on charting at home. They are working the nights and weekends but not getting paid for that time. It is difficult to believe nurse practitioners are named best job in the U.S.

Poor work-life balance.

Which brings me to my next topic, nurse practitioners often experience a poor work-life balance. With the push to see more patients, sicker patients in a less amount of time comes the increase in computer work. So many nurse practitioners struggle to run on time during the work day and often have to stay late at the office or bring their charts home. They have to finish notes on nights and weekends. (Not to mention this is unpaid time as many nurse practitioner positions are salary, paying for a 40 hour work week). And yet nurse practitioners are named Best Job in 2024.

Charting at home causes a lack of work-life balance for nurse practitioners. Instead of spending time playing with their children, they spend the time catching up on charts. Rather than having the energy to do the self-care they know they need, nurse practitioners stress about the amount of work that needs to be done. Their thoughts are constantly consumed by the never ending amount of charts to finish. 

This is frustrating for the nurse practitioner and is a significant risk for nurse practitioner burnout. How can one argue that nurse practitioners are named Best Job in the U.S.?

Saturation of the market.

The U.S. News and World Report mentions one of the positives about the nurse practitioner profession is the expected job growth. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 44.5% employment growth for nurse practitioners.

While this is great news for some, a lot of nurse practitioners have struggled to find a job in the current market. I know it depends on the area, but some regions are currently over saturated with nurse practitioners. There are a lot of nurse practitioner schools that are generating an increasing number of new grad NPs.

A lot of nurse practitioners have a difficult time finding a job and will take jobs for less pay. This can in turn drive down salaries since some nurse practitioners become desperate and take a job for less pay. This oversaturation in the job market can cause some issues for new and experienced nurse practitioners to find a job locally. And yet nurse practitioners are named Best Job in 2024.

Another factor, there are still some healthcare facilities that have never hired a nurse practitioner. This makes it difficult for the nurse practitioner if the roles and responsibilities are not clearly defined. In some cases, nurse practitioners are not used to their full capability acting more as a scribe for the physician and taking on a lot of tasks that should be delegated.

While projected job growth looks optimistic, a lot of nurse practitioners are already struggling. This makes it hard to believe nurse practitioners are named Best Job in the U.S.

Low job satisfaction.

A lot of nurse practitioners I have talked with are not happy in their J.O.B. because of the factors listed above. I asked my followers on my Instagram pages Erica D the NP Charting Coach @npchartingschool and The Burned-out Nurse Practitioner @burnedoutnp this showed to be true.

While these are not evidence based, actual scientific studies, it does show that not all nurse practitioners are not satisfied in their current role. Which makes it hard to believe that nurse practitioners are named Best Job in 2024.

**You can read my take about job satisfaction in this article: Nurse practitioner job satisfaction- is it real?

Do you agree that nurse practitioners are named Best Job?

Now don’t get me wrong, I am very, very proud to be a nurse practitioner and I have no regrets about advancing my career. I have been well respected by my physician colleagues and coworkers. For the most part, I have had a positive experience working as a nurse practitioner.

But I have also talked with so many nurse practitioners who have not felt respected in the profession. I coach nurse practitioners who are struggling with the lack of work-life balance and consider leaving healthcare altogether.

I know APRNs who are beyond frustrated with the over saturation of the job market. I am aware that many nurse practitioners are underpaid and underappreciated in their current role. I have met nurse practitioners who provide exceptional, quality care for their patients that is overlooked to the work of a physician.

Therefore, I am calling bullsh*t that nurse practitioners are named Best Job in the U.S.

And I know so many other nurse practitioners agree! (Join the conversation in The Burned-out Nurse Practitioner Facebook Group). 

What about you?

Do you agree with nurse practitioners are named Best Job in 2024?