To the person considering nursing as a possible career, one of the many questions they may ask has to do with what their chosen profession might look like in the near future. A recent report issued by The University of Miami attempted to answer that and many other questions about nursing.

For example, it is predicted that by the year 2020, a majority of practicing nurses will have received at least their bachelor’s degree. It is also considered likely that many nurse practitioners will be able to practice without a physician being present. Especially encouraging is the prediction that those same nurse practitioners will also be paid more fairly and also directly by insurance companies. This is great news, in part because there is such a large influx of nurse practitioners entering the nursing field due to the attractive nature of the work done by this emerging and highly-trained nursing contingent.

The report also made mention of the fact that there are almost 3 million nurses now at work in the United States, which makes nursing the largest health-care profession in the country. The report stressed the importance of giving this critical group of medical professions a voice in the future of their industry.

The report estimated that roughly 50% of nurses now have at least a bachelor’s degree. The trend of that number rising is a positive one, the report noted. Nurse practitioners have at least a master’s degree and now do many of the things that a doctor does in diagnosing and treating patients. 15 states currently allow nurse practitioners to see patients without a doctor present.

This is widely considered to be an essential step toward these nurses being able to also be paid directly for their services by the insurance companies, just like doctors. The report called upon state legislators to force insurance companies to pay practitioners the same as doctors. They believe this will improve nursing and medical care generally.