Career Resources / Nursing Opportunities in Raleigh and Durham
If you’re a registered nurse – or a healthcare professional of any kind — working in an area that includes the “City of Medicine.” The Raleigh-Durham has a well-earned reputation as being an international center of medical care and research, and that has led to it being one of the top reasons why people move to the area. If you are interested in continuing your nursing career in the area that has one of the greatest concentrations of physicians and healthcare professionals in the country, then the three-city-area of Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill that have come to be known as “the Triangle” is the perfect place for you.
Raleigh-Durham and Healthcare
The Triangle boasts some of the country’s most recognizable and well-respected names in healthcare, including WakeMed Health & Hospitals, UNC Healthcare, and the Duke Raleigh Hospital. It is also home to the Duke Medical Center and UNC Medical Center. Both are consistently found on every list of America’s top hospitals. In addition to the area’s top-quality hospitals, Raleigh-Durham is home to many other healthcare employers who are eager to hire nurses, including positions in long-term care and rehabilitation facilities, positions working in private practices, and working in urgent care clinics. Additionally, the Triangle has attracted healthcare innovation companies that provide a variety of services and devices that are eager to add skilled, qualified registered nurses to their teams.
Types of Nursing Jobs in Raleigh-Durham
As is true throughout the United States, the Raleigh-Durham area is feeling the impact of the national nursing shortage. A recent study indicated that by the year 2033, the state will face a shortage of nearly 12,500 registered nurses. Most of these available positions will be in hospital facilities and nursing homes, and the greatest portion of the shortage will impact the Raleigh-Durham area. In response, local nursing programs are working to increase the graduate supply while hospitals are applying creative incentives and recruitment measures. Nurses at all levels and in all specialties will find their skills and knowledge in great demand and highly valued, whether they are interested in working in acute care hospitals, community hospitals, urgent care clinics, or in private practice or business.
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Duke University Hospital
In addition to being one of the top hospitals in the country and nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Reports in 11 specialty areas and 9 children’s specialties, Duke University Hospital is also affiliated with the highly respected Duke University School of Nursing. This remarkable health system and educational and research institution includes three hospitals and more than 100 specialty and primary care clinics that have received accolades includes Forbes’ “Best Large Employers,” recognition as an “LGBTQ Healthcare Equality Leader,” Magnet recognition for continued dedication to high-quality nursing practice, and another Forbes award for “Best Employer for Women.
Nurses working at Duke play an integral role in moving health forward. The facility’s mission and motivation combine innovation and collaborative care. Duke’s nurses are constantly learning, as they are at the center of technological advances that make providing service a priority while caring for the whole person in a patient-centered atmosphere. Duke’s nurses are offered significant sign-on bonuses averaging $15,000 for those with one or more years of experience, relocation assistance, generous shift differentials, and full benefits packages that include accumulated PTO from the first day of work and 100% employer-paid pension.
UNC Health Wayne
The University of North Carolina is one of the most respected academic and medical centers in the country, and its hospitals based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina have been ranked in four adult and eight pediatric specialties by U.S. News & World Reports. But not everybody who comes to Raleigh-Durham wants to be in the middle of the action. For them, a more suburban environment like the one at UNC Health Wayne offers the best of the Triangle’s offerings.
UNC Health Wayne is an affiliate of the larger system located in Goldsboro, North Carolina, a more sedate setting. This facility in eastern North Carolina has earned a reputation for high-quality, patient-centered medical care just an hour away from the heart of the Triangle. One of the largest employers in the area, this 316-bed hospital provides its staff with advanced technology, a warm setting in which to work, comprehensive benefits including tuition reimbursement and scholarships, competitive pay, and plenty of professional growth opportunities.
WakeMed Health & Hospitals
Based in Raleigh, WakeMed Health has been a community anchor in Raleigh since 1961. Today, this private, not-for profit organization’s three acute-care hospitals are the top provider of health services in Wake County, North Carolina and a top nurse employer in Raleigh-Durham. As the largest health system in North Carolina’s largest county, its almost 12,000 employees and providers are essential to the community, and this is reflected in the respect and value that is bestowed on its nursing staff.
WakeMed has won Magnet designation, and it takes this esteemed status seriously. Whether you’re a new graduate or an experienced nurse, working for WakeMed means you have a voice at the table. You are recognized for your role in patient outcomes and get the benefit of working in an environment where innovation flourishes and experience and skill are valued. While new nurse graduates are invited to participate in a one-year Clinical Nurse Residency that offers clinical and educational activities to facilitate professional development and growth, experienced nurses engage in a robust professional development program and participate in shared decision-making. Compensation includes tuition and specialty certification reimbursement, on-site bachelor’s and master’s degree programs, and generous shift differentials.
The Raleigh-Durham area offers nurses limitless opportunities combined with an amazing array of opportunities and experiences outside of work. For more information on living and working in the Triangle, start by visiting Incredible Health’s nursing job search page.
