Future of nursing: Key trends to watch in 2025 and beyond
It’s a new year and with it comes the anticipation of new perspectives, new innovations and new solutions likely to impact the nursing profession and the delivery of nursing care. Keeping abreast of these dynamics can help you prepare for the changes and opportunities these factors will likely bring in 2025 and beyond. Read on to learn about key trends to watch this year and their potential to impact the future of nursing.
What to expect in 2025
Artificial intelligence (AI)
As artificial intelligence (AI) revolutionizes the way we use computers and other electronic devices, it is also impacting all aspects of healthcare. “There are numerous types of artificial intelligence. A very common form of AI that has been utilized for years across healthcare is AI to support clinical decision-making within electronic healthcare records (i.e., sepsis protocols, smart order sets based on diagnosis and even voice to text translation for clinicians),” said Oriana Beaudet, DNP, RN, PHN, Vice President of Nursing Innovation, American Nurses Association (ANA) Enterprise.
When used appropriately, AI has the potential to help prioritize patient needs, automate administrative tasks and facilitate efficient communication among the members of a healthcare team. It has evolved as a tool that can help nurses spend more time on patient care and their role in the delivery of healthcare services.
“We started to see the integration of large language models focused on generative AI emerge in care settings in 2024. These tools are not widespread yet across organizations and institutions—but they are coming. What’s important to note is generative features require nurses and clinicians to choose and verify all information before it’s submitted to the patient record. AI will never replace nurses—period,” said Beaudet.
While the potential benefits of AI are broad, a 2024 American Nurse Foundation survey of nurses around AI found that nurses want AI tools that ensure accuracy, privacy, quality and safety without interfering with human interactions. The responding nurses also said they desired more AI-related education, said Beaudet.
Guidance from the ANA’s position statement can help ensure that emerging AI tools complement rather than compete with the heart of nursing. The ANA’s position statement on “The Ethical Use of AI in Nursing Practice” states, “The appropriate use of AI in nursing practice supports and enhances the core values and ethical obligations of the profession. AI that appears to impede or diminish these core values and obligations must be avoided or incorporated only in such a way that these values and obligations are protected. Nurses must ensure that advanced technologies do not compromise the nature of human interactions and relationships central to the nursing profession.”
Telehealth
While the use of telehealth has changed since its peak during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the use of virtual healthcare continues to impact the delivery of services and reshape the roles of nurses and all healthcare providers. In response to the broad applications of telehealth services, nurses have assumed many new roles.
“Telehealth services are widely utilized across healthcare and have truly become an extension of basic services offered by healthcare organizations. Telehealth should be viewed and funded consistently like other critical medical services (i.e., ambulatory, observation, outpatient, surgical and inpatient care),” said Beaudet.
In an overview of telehealth nursing in “The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing,” authors reported that nurses often perform a variety of telehealth roles to meet patients’ needs. The authors categorized these roles as involving program development and implementation, direct patient/family contact and nurse to healthcare professional collaboration, all of which can often overlap. “For example, a nurse might review the data delivered via the remote patient monitoring, then collaborate with the patient’s PCP [primary care provider] and finally have a videoconferencing session with the patient to coordinate care,” reported the authors.
Changing societal needs
Changing and diverse societal needs are driving demands for nursing care that addresses more specialized types of care, such as geriatric nursing, mental health, home health and virtual care. “The way in which we provide care mirrors the societal trends around us. In the United States, we have an aging population, an increasing need for mental health services, a transition to care being provided within the home and telehealth and virtual care models while we simultaneously navigate care variances across our country as health policy varies by state,” said Beaudet.
Nursing care has always included a focus on societal determinants of health, such as health, education and socioeconomic status. Despite systematic changes, the profession will continue to play an important role in helping to improve health inequities to support well-being. “Currently, the United States is not keeping pace with our peers as it relates to health outcomes. Wherever nurses work, they are advocates for the people and communities they care for. The work, advocacy, knowledge and care of nurses across our country is more important than ever,” said Beaudet.
In 2025 and beyond, nurses can make an impact that extends beyond the bedside and patient care. “Let’s double down on the “World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025” citing leadership and social influence as a major area of opportunity through 2030. Nurses influence the care and outcomes of individuals, patients and outcomes every day through our work. Nurses work to find real world solutions to system complexity. As the world feels more uncertain and change continues to unfold, the leadership and social influence of nursing as the most honest and ethical profession nationally will be more important than ever. The public trust nurses. The public believes in our profession. As nurses we need to believe in our ability to lead and influence health nationally and globally.”
Continued job growth
Job projections indicate that nurses can look toward sustained growth in the profession for the long-term. Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and U.S. News and World Report identify nurses and nurse practitioners among the top 10 U.S. jobs with the most projected job growth through 2034. In addition to high job growth, these positions also have above-median pay.
Keeping in tune with areas of continued growth can help you develop the skills and mindset necessary to succeed in the profession. For example, the increasing older population is creating more demand for the types of specialized services commonly used by people as they age. Look for expanding opportunities in practice areas such as telehealth, home health, long-term care and rehabilitation and end-of-life care.
“Nursing and nurse practitioner roles along with other healthcare jobs are expected to grow significantly over the next five years. The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025 highlighted top areas of growth by industry and the medical and healthcare sectors were identified key areas of growth including creative thinking; resilience, flexibility and agility; technology literacy; artificial intelligence and big data; technology literacy; leadership and social influence; networks and cyber security; and curiosity and lifelong learning. Nurses need to bring their creativity and innovation to center stage as we navigate into the future!” said Beaudet.
A focus on continuing education
While continuing education has always been the foundation for maintaining excellence in patient care, the integration of new technologies and other innovations creates additional educational needs. Rapid changes in healthcare are reshaping the landscape of nursing and emphasizing the need for nurses stay current in areas such as AI and telehealth.
“The education nurses pursue is dependent on where they are in their individual and professional journey. The foundational education received in nursing schools are the building blocks that set the base for all other knowledge, education and experiences to grow from. The world at large is changing very quickly, and we will continue to see advancement in the science, tools, materials and technologies used,” said Beaudet.
In addressing how to best educate nurses for the future, the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine writes that nursing schools have an obligation to ensure that nurses are prepared to care for more diverse populations, engage in new professional roles and continue to adapt to new technologies. Flexible options in nursing education, including improved simulation training and expanded options for online learning, give working professionals the access and flexibility they need to achieve these educational goals.
As nurses continue to expand their skills, their focus on patient care remains at the core of their roles. “…how nurses deliver care to individuals, families, and communities will continue to be deeply rooted in compassionate care, honest communication and authentic interactions to bring about the best possible outcomes for every person across their health journey. Our profession will grow and advance with the world and communities around us, which requires us to adapt, learn new things, move in new directions and push into the emerging fields and areas where care is delivered, ultimately to provide necessary and critical health care resources when needed,” said Beaudet.
