When most people think of remote work, nursing isn’t usually the first thing that comes to mind. After all, nursing is viewed as a very hands-on profession. However, there are a variety of remote nursing jobs available that provide flexibility and freedom while offering excellent salaries or the chance to act as your own boss.
So, what kinds of jobs can nurses do from home and which companies are hiring remote nurses?
What Jobs Can Nurses Do From Home?
There are many RN work from home jobs available that are legitimate and offer great perks. Some of the top remote positions for nurses include:
Telehealth Nurse Jobs
The most obvious choice for remote nurses is a telehealth nursing position. As a telehealth nurse, you continue to help people in need while enjoying the convenience and flexibility of working from home.
Due to a shortage of nurses, many companies are offering welcome bonuses of up to $4,000 in some cases.
Telehealth nurses:
- Provide patient education
- Assess patients
- Provide counseling
- Offer crisis intervention
- Provide triage over the phone
Many telehealth positions require experience, so it may not be as easy for new nurses to enter this type of position. For example, you may be required to have three years as an RN delivering direct patient care and five or more years of experience in ER, ICU, CC, telehealth or telephonic triage.
Legal Nurse Consultant
A legal nurse consultant works with paralegals, lawyers and other legal professionals to provide expertise on law-related medical issues, such as:
- Worker’s compensation
- Medical malpractice
- Personal injury
Duties and responsibilities vary and may include:
- Interpreting medical records
- Coordinating medical exams
Legal nurse consultants may work as independent contractors, or they may be employed by a firm or insurance company.
General Nurse Consultant
Nurses can also provide consulting services for insurance companies, health care providers and for individuals. For example, they may review medical care plans for individuals or provide health and safety consultations.
Nurse consultants should have their BSN, RN and a few years of experience under their belt. Some nurse consultants have specializations that require additional experience or credentials.
RN Case Manager
Case managers are in charge of coordinating care for patients, and they usually work for insurance companies, home care centers and hospice. They may also provide an evaluation of personal treatment plans.
Nurses in this position can often work remotely, at least part-time, but you will likely need at least some experience with case management to enter this position.
While RN case managers can do most of their work remotely, many will also visit patients in their homes to keep an eye on their progress.
Those who work in this field typically need a BSN and RN. In addition, excellent communication skills are a must.
Telephone Triage Nurse
Busy health care facilities often run triage over the phone. Highly qualified nurses work with patients to assess their symptoms and provide recommendations on what to do before coming into the facility.
Telephone triage nurses can often answer questions and provide recommendations that prevent unnecessary visits. Reducing or eliminating these visits will help keep the facility’s staff and doctors from being overburdened and improve the quality of care for patients.
Nurses working triage should have a BSN and RN, although some facilities will hire ADN nurses.
Medical Call Center
Those in the nursing field can work remotely for medical call centers. A call center position may not require much nursing experience. Rather than providing direct patient care, your role may only require you to direct calls to the appropriate health care professional.
Utilization Review Nurse
A utilization review nurse evaluates patient records to ensure they are receiving the appropriate services. While most of these nurses work for insurance companies, you can also find them working for health care facilities and hospitals.
To work as a utilization review nurse, you will likely need a BSN and a few years of experience in patient care.
Online Instructor
Many nurses are working from home who are acting as online instructors. Nurses with teaching experience can easily transition into a remote position as an instructor.
As an online instructor, you may be working for a traditional school that offers online courses, or you may be working for a private company that supplies courses and training materials for nurses.
At a minimum, online instructors should have a master’s degree, but a Ph.D. is usually preferred.
Recruiter
RNs looking for remote jobs may work as a health care recruiter. Staffing is a crucial issue for hospitals and other health care facilities. As a recruiter, you will help health care facilities find and hire ideal candidates.
Some hospitals actually hire their own nurse recruiters, while others will use third-party services.
The job of a nurse recruiter is to interview potential candidates and serve as a liaison between the health care facility and the applicant.
Nurse IT
If you have experience in tech and nursing, you can combine these skills to work in health IT. Nurses can learn the IT skills they need to transition to this position and start working remotely, either part-time or full-time.
Some in-office IT experience may be required for a position like this one.
Those who work in this position may also provide consulting services. For example, they may provide a nurse’s perspective on technology systems. Others in this position may take a more hands-on approach by helping develop platforms or databases that track patient outcomes.
For this job, you’ll need at least a bachelor’s degree. However, many employers prefer master’s degrees or a doctor’s or nursing practice degree.
Nurse Evaluator
A nurse evaluator plays a vital role in the hiring process. As the name implies, these nurses review the experience and skills of applicants. They may also provide in-home evaluations to clients. For example, they may create healthcare plans for individuals or review their medical histories.
Remote nurse evaluators must have an RN and at least a few years of experience working in the field. They also require state licensure and a Master of Science Nursing.
Nurse Clinician
Most remote nurse clinicians work as independent contractors. Their job is to:
- Create materials used to identify problems in patient care
- Develop guidelines for evaluating the effectiveness of patient care
- Educate the nursing staff
Like other nursing positions, nurse clinicians may have specializations. For example, some may focus on intensive care, while others may focus on cardiological nurse units.
To work as a nurse clinician, you will need an RN as well as:
- Leadership skills
- Excellent communication skills
- Teaching skills
Remote nurse clinicians act as educators, so it’s crucial to possess the skills needed for teaching.
Companies For Online Nursing Jobs
Now that you know which remote nursing jobs are available, you may be wondering which companies are actually hiring for these positions. Several companies hire nurses to work in remote positions, and many of these companies are big players in the health care field.
Aetna
A leader in health insurance, Aetna provides a wide range of insurance products and services. Along with medical insurance, they also provide coverage for prescriptions, behavioral health, group life insurance plans and disability insurance.
The company serves individuals across the country and has more than 50 million members in their network.
Aetna’s remote nursing positions include:
- Case managers
- Nurse consultants
- Clinical consultant
- Utilization management
CVS Health
CVS Health fulfills more than 1 billion prescriptions each year. The company is a leader in pharmacy and health care services.
Remote nursing positions at CVS Health include:
- Case managers
- Health management
- Telehealth RN
- Clinical trainer
- Nurse consultant
- Nurse educator
- Care manager
- Nurse scheduler
- Clinical consultant
Anthem, Inc.
Anthem is one of the largest companies in the for-profit managed healthcare industry. They have more than 73 million members across the country.
The company’s remote nursing positions include:
- Case management
- Complex care licensed utilization review
- Nurse reviewer
- Medical management
- Remote care manager
- Clinical review nurse
- Remote behavioral health call center manager
- Nurse appeals
Healthfirst
Healthfirst is a nonprofit organization that offers managed care in New York. The company has more than one million members throughout New York City and Long Island.
Remote nursing positions from Healthfirst include:
- Case managers
- Per diem care
- Pediatric care manager
EK Health Services
EK Health Services focuses on workers’ compensation management solutions for government agencies, third-party administrators, employers and insurance carriers. In addition, they provide a variety of services, including case management, medical bill management and more.
Remote nursing positions with EK Health Services include:
- Case managers
- Temp triage nurses
Humana
A leader in health care, Humana provides insurance, health and wellness products. The company has more than 13 million medical members across the country.
Work-from-home positions at Humana include:
- Care manager
- Nurse auditor
- Compliance nurse
- Utilization management
- Preauthorization
- Appeals nurse
- Senior nursing educator
NAPA (North American Partners in Anesthesia)
For more than three decades, NAPA has been providing anesthesia management services. The company works with physician groups, hospitals and surgical centers across the county to improve outcomes and efficiency.
Remote nursing positions with NAPA include:
- Quality nurse
- Quality improvement
- Reconciliation specialist
- Regional APA director
- Director of travel nursing operations
- HCM analyst
- Quality administrative coordinator
UnitedHealth Group
UnitedHealth is another major insurer offering healthcare coverage and benefits services across the world. They serve the entire U.S. as well as 125 countries across the globe.
UnitedHealth’s remote nursing positions include:
- Prior authorization RN
- Inpatient authorization RN
- Telehealth RN
- Per diem nurse practitioner
- Clinical grievances
- Medical claims review
- Night call center
- Clinical trainer
- Senior clinical admin nurse
Oscar Health Insurance
Oscar Health Insurance provides patient-centric health insurance solutions. In addition to individual plans, they also offer business, family and Medicare Advantage plans.
Remote nursing positions include:
- Utilization review nurse
- Case manager
- Virtual urgent care
- nurse management
- Clinical trainer
- Clinical appeals liaison
- Complaints grievances appeals
- Virtual primary care
Cigna
Cigna is a health service company that serves individuals across the world. The Connecticut-based company has more than 74,000 employees.
Cigna’s remote nursing positions include:
- Telephonic nurse
- Case manager
- Utilization review
- Health coach
- Customer service representative
- Critical support nurse
- Care coordinator
- Home infusion nurse
How Much Do Remote Nurses Make?
Remote nurses earn similar salaries to their in-person counterparts. According to ZipRecruiter, remote nurses make:
- $73,374/year
- $35/hour
High-paying positions for remote nurses include:
- Remote clinical nurses: $92,707 per year
- Call center RNs: $89,836 per year
- Remote travel nurses: $93,291 per year
- Remote operating room registered nurse: $96,542 per year
Remote nursing positions give nurses the freedom and flexibility to work from home. They also offer nurses the opportunity to use their credentials in a new capacity. Whether it’s an administrative role, management, education or direct patient care, nurses have many options for remote work.
Best of all, nurses are in high demand right now. Employers are offering generous sign-on bonuses, and some nurses are working as independent contractors for some positions to gain more control over their income.