Career Resources / Top 5 Reasons for Nurses to Love Portland, Oregon
Tell people that you’re a nurse and you will instantly see yourself boosted in their estimation. Nurses are universally acknowledged as special, skilled, kind, and caring. Your commitment and dedication are respected, and your knowledge is unquestionable. Most people who’ve had more than passing exposure to healthcare recall the nurses who cared for them with greater clarity and appreciation than all other healthcare professionals, noting the more personal and compassionate attention that seems to come with the professional title.
Of course, being a nurse is more than what you do while you’re on the clock. Your work environment and the way that you feel about your job is impacted by external factors, and the city where you live and work plays a major role. For a high energy, eclectic, eccentric town, there are few places that shine like Portland, Oregon.
- Portland is Home to World-class Healthcare
While Portland, Oregon’s official population is just under 650,000, the larger metropolitan area – which includes Vancouver, Washington — accounts for 2.5 million people, and most are served by the hospitals in the city. Portland has two nationally recognized children’s hospitals affiliated with their two largest hospital systems, Legacy Health and Oregon Health & Science University. These two systems and the other facilities in the area offer nearly a dozen options for patients, as well as for professionals, and as an academic research institution, OHSU adds to global knowledge about healthcare best practices.
- Oregon’s Government Is Reaching Out to Solve Staffing Shortage
Like many other areas of the country, Portland area hospitals have been hit hard by the nursing shortage. In response, two important agencies, the Oregon Health Authority and the Department of Human Services have asked the state legislature for $40 million in emergency funding. Nurses have also encouraged hospital leaders to offer greater financial incentives to attract and retain qualified staff.
A larger factor impacting nursing shortages in Oregon is the large pool of aspiring nurses being denied entry to nursing programs due to the lack of adequate nursing faculty. OHSU has been approved for a nearly $4 million grant to increase the number of nursing faculty and preceptors to mentor recently graduated nurses and nursing students.
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- There are Several High-Quality Nursing Programs in Portland
Aspiring registered nurses and nurses who are interested in advancing in their careers by pursuing advanced degrees have plenty of options in Portland. From Mt. Hood Community College’s LPN to RN program to DNP and PhD programs at Oregon Health & Sciences University, you’ll be sure to find the right fit for your educational needs and schedule.
- Portland’s Nurses See Pay and Benefits Boosts Driven by Nursing Shortages
Nurses working for Portland’s top healthcare facilities are rewarded for their education, experience, and skill with generous compensation that include comprehensive and creative benefits packages. Many facilities are offering sign-on bonuses, retention incentives, and relocation assistance for registered nurses moving into the Portland area, and nurses benefit from additional wellness and flexible scheduling initiatives.
- Quality of Life for Nurses in Portland
When it comes to choosing a place to live and work, there are some elements you can put a number on and others whose value is more subjective. Portland has so many of these invaluable qualify-of-life aspects that the U.S. News & World Reports named it the 22nd Best Place to Live in America, and the 42nd Best Place to Retire. Contributing factors to this rating range from Portland’s outstanding mass transit system, its remarkable biking culture supported by nearby Nike, its arts and culture, and its innovative food scene.
Perhaps best of all is Portland’s cornucopia of outdoor activities. Winter sports on Mount Hood, camping under the stars, and watersports on the Willamette River are among the most active available, but Portland also has flower-filled parks and urban forests appropriate to its reputation as one of America’s greenest cities, and waiting to be explored and enjoyed.
Portland is one of America’s friendliest and most interesting cities. A center of innovation and environmental awareness, this wonderful city has much to offer nurses looking for new opportunities. To learn more about the possibilities that await, start with Incredible Health’s innovative job search platform and get multiple job offers from top Portland employers.
