According to the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics, employment of registered nurses is projected to grow by 22 percent between 2008 and 2018. More than 581,000 nursing jobs in all fields of health care are projected to surface as a result. Correspondingly, more and more nurse education opportunities are becoming available online. If you are a licensed registered nurse (RN) or licensed practical nurse (LPN), you'll find a variety of online training for nurses to enhance your career.
Nursing Webinars
Many nursing and health-care resource websites offer nurses continuing education courses by way of "webinars." Webinars are either broadcast live and in real time on the Internet, or recorded and made available through the website for 24/7 access. Websites such as "Rn.com" and "Advance Your Profession" offer scheduled live and prerecorded webinars on a variety of nursing topics -- such as "An Overview of Alternative and Complementary Medicine for Healthcare Professionals" -- that can count toward as many as 30 credit hours of continuing education. Webinars allow you to study in a "virtual classroom" setting from the comfort of your home.
Online Certification Programs
If you are already a practical or registered nurse, participating in self-paced online continuing-education courses can help you stay current with advanced medical technologies to enhance your career. Numerous universities offer such nursing certification programs to qualified health-care professionals. The University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill offers a course in Medical Surgical Nursing to registered nurses online. The Delmar Learning Center provides licensed nurses with distance continuing education in blood and blood-product administration. If you'd like to expand your administrative nursing skills, University of Phoenix offers a course in financial management for nursing managers (as well as a variety of undergraduate and graduate degrees in nursing).
Free Online Nurse Training
Practical and registered nurses -- as well as other medical professionals -- can find a number of online resources for continuing nursing education, including exams at no cost. The "NurseLearn" health-care website offers a constant flow of new and updated continuing education courses for nurses where they can view self-study CDs online and complete exams for credit hours. Medscape -- a similar nurse's resource website -- offers a plethora of free continuing education courses for nurses in numerous areas of interest. Concentrations in Medscape's 2011 online course catalog include Pancreatic Endocrine Tumors, Managing HIV, Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentives and Comprehensive Diabetes Care. All courses are accredited by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation, and are free to professional health-care providers. Site registration is also free.
Online Forensic Nurse Training
RNs and certified phlebotomy technicians (CPTs) who are interested in careers in the criminal justice field can take a variety of online courses in forensic nursing through the American Institute of Forensic Education (AIFE). The Institute's AMRN program offers medical personnel continuing education courses in phlebotomy, sexual assault examination, forensic nursing, and identification of injuries and evidence of abuse. Most courses include instructional reference guides and DVDs. Certain online courses -- such as the Sexual Assault Examination course -- may require an on-site clinical internship for completion.
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