healthcare industry leaders

Texas earns healthy rating as 2nd best state for nurses, Forbes says

Nurses deserve all the love.

Photo by Patty Brito on Unsplash

As the United States emerges from a global pandemic and watches its workforce reach retirement in larger proportions, strong healthcare is becoming increasingly crucial.

Nurses are in great demand throughout the nation and can make significant impacts in a state like Texas, which was just named the No. 2 best state for nurses in a study by Forbes Advisor.

Texas currently employs more than 231,000 nurses, the second-highest number in the country behind California's 325,620 nurses. Florida rounds out the top three with more than 197,000 nurses employed.

There are several factors to keep in mind when considering a career as a nurse, but one has been in a lot of recent discourse: the salary. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) says nurses in the U.S. earn a median salary of $81,220 per year. While healthcare company Trusted Health places a Texas nurse's annual salary at $74,540 - lower than places like Florida and California, adjusted cost of living can make Texas more attractive.

"Salary is a significant factor in any professional’s career decisions, but it’s not the only one to weigh when deciding where to work," the report's author wrote. "You should also consider job availability, economic demand, and licensing processes before settling on a place to grow your career."

Regarding job availability, Projections Central estimates there will be a demand for more than 16,000 nursing positions in Texas between 2020 and 2030 - the second-best job outlook in the U.S.

Texas is also part of the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC), which can help nurses transfer their licenses from other states.

"NLC members grant RNs multi-state licenses, which allow them to practice in any NLC-participating state without jumping through the hoops of meeting a new state’s specific licensing guidelines," the report says. "NLC nurses can offer their skills to another compact state in the event of a crisis and provide telehealth services across compact states."

The full report can be found on forbes.com.

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in good hands

13 Dallas-Fort Worth hospitals deemed best in Texas by U.S. News

Photo courtesy of UT Southwestern Medical Center

UTSW is celebrating a decade of being the best hospital in Dallas-Fort Worth.

UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and a dozen more North Texas hospitals have earned bragging rights in U.S. News & World Report's newly released rankings of the Best Hospitals for 2026-2027.

Every year, U.S. News annually evaluates nearly 4,500 U.S. hospitals to determine which meet the publication's rigorous standards and offer the best care for patients across 14 adult specialties and 23 procedures and conditions. New to this year's batch of rankings, U.S. News introduced regional rankings in cancer; cardiology; heart and vascular surgery; orthopedics; and rehabilitation.

UT Southwestern ranked as the No. 2 best hospital in Texas for the 10th consecutive year, and it remains the No. 1 hospital in Dallas-Fort Worth.

The hospital also shines among the nation’s best in 11 specialties, more than any hospital in Texas:

No. 9 – Neurology and Neurosurgery
No. 13 – Cardiology, Heart, and Vascular Surgery; Geriatrics (tied); Pulmonology and Lung Surgery
No. 20 – Gastroenterology and GI Surgery
No. 21 – Diabetes and Endocrinology
No. 22 – Cancer
No. 25 – Rehabilitation
No. 26 – Urology
No. 30 – Obstetrics and Gynecology
No. 38 – Orthopedic

"This decade of distinction is a testament to the teamwork, expertise, and commitment of our physicians, nurses, advanced practice providers, and other care team members and support staff who work daily to provide the very best care possible to our patients," said UT Southwestern president Daniel K. Podolsky, M.D. in a press release. "It reflects a standard of excellence that extends across all aspects of our institution, from advancing discovery to educating and training future generations of physicians, other healthcare professionals, and scientists."

Elsewhere in Dallas-Fort Worth, Baylor University Medical Center continued its streak as the No. 2 best hospital in the Metroplex and No. 3 best hospital in Texas. The hospital also earned top-50 rankings in four specialties: Pulmonology and Lung Surgery (No. 31); Obstetrics and Gynecology (No. 45); Orthopedics (No. 46); and Gastroenterology and GI Surgery (No. 48).

The 11 additional Dallas-Fort Worth hospitals that ranked among the best in Texas for 2026-2027 are:

No. 12 – Baylor Scott and White All Saints Medical Center - Fort Worth
No. 16 – Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas (tied with Ascension Seton Medical Center Austin)
No. 19 – Medical City Dallas and Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Southwest, Fort Worth (tied)
No. 21 – Baylor Scott and White Medical Center-McKinney; Texas Health Huguley Hospital Fort Worth South, Burleson; and Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Plano (also tied with six more Texas hospitals)
No. 30 – Baylor Scott and White Medical Center-Irving and Medical City Arlington (also tied with four more Texas hospitals)
No. 36 – Parkland Health-Dallas (tied with HCA Houston Healthcare Kingwood)
No. 38 – Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth

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