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

health care heroes

Nurses deserve all the love. Photo by Patty Brito on Unsplash

With a global pandemic in the rearview and an aging workforce reaching retirement in larger proportions, strong healthcare is becoming increasingly crucial in the United States.

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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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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Nurseify is an on-demand platform that allows nurses and health care organizations to take part in the gig economy. Photo via unsplash.com

Houston-based gig platform for nurses to launch app next month

help in health care

Health care executive Benjamin Foster knows that nurses are essential — especially in times of crisis.

In 2017, when Hurricane Harvey struck Houston, he watched as local health care organizations struggled to find nurses who could meet the desperate need at hard-to-reach facilities. And as Regional Chief Human Resources Officer at HCA Houston Healthcare, he had also grown accustomed to the high costs and inefficiencies of traditional medical staffing agencies.

In 2020, in response to the demand for nurses in the pandemic, he decided it was time to act, launching Nurseify in May of that year.

Nurseify is an on-demand platform that allows nurses and health care organizations to take part in the gig economy.With guidance from Rama Walker, Nurseify’s Chief Nursing Officer and Chief Operating Officer with a background in ER administration, the platform uses AI to match nurses with facilities looking to fill short-term assignments.

Nurses are able to set their rates and schedules through the app. Health care facilities can directly vet applicants through their profiles and ratings. The platform also can predict when there might be a higher demand for contract nurses at various facilities based on vacancies and increased patient volume.

“We hope to empower nurses and help individuals take control of their careers by offering transparency and a way to create schedules to better fit their lifestyles,” says Foster, CEO of Nurseify, in a statement. “In this gig-economy, it’s imperative to have an easy and effective way for nurses and healthcare facilities to communicate directly about opportunities, and Nurseify provides a place where they can do just that.”

Additionally, the platform features educational, financial, and support resources for nurse users, as well as options to work with entrepreneurial mentors and wellness coaches with the goal of empowering nurses in what's proven to be a demanding field, especially since the onset of the pandemic.

“As nurse advocates, we prioritize an honest hiring process and nurses’ work-life balance and overall wellbeing,” Walker adds in a statement.

According to the Nurseify team, more than 5,000 nurses have created profiles on the platform at press time; and 60 healthcare facilities have access to Nurseify.

Through the Nuresify mobile app, which launches in May, the company aims to attract more users and health care facilities.

Currently the company is focused on its operations in Texas, Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina, which were pilot states for Nurseify. But the company aims to expand nationally and internationally in the future.

Houston-based acute care startup Kare Technologies launched a similar platform for staffing within the senior living facility and caregiving realms in 2021. Read more about that company here.

In the latest round up of Houston innovation news you may have missed, student startups selected for a summer program, Texas might be among the best states for nurses, and more. Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images

Houston innovator joins ESG roundtable, Rice names cohort of student startups, and more innovation news

short stories

It's been a busy season for the Houston innovation ecosystem, and for this reason, local startup and tech news may have fallen through some of the cracks.

In this roundup of short stories within Houston innovation, a software startup is focusing on diversity and inclusion, an angel network has a new partner organization, a Houston innovator is playing a major role in ESG, and more.

GoCo hosts its first-ever DEI Hackathon

GoCo is hosting its first hackathon. Photo via Getty Images

GoCo.io, a Houston-based human resources software-as-a-service company, is hosting its first hackathon for diversity, equity, and inclusion begining today, May 6, and continuing through tomorrow, May 7.

GoCo's entire staff is going to work for over 36 hours to build solutions aimed at promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion for small businesses.

"Building technology to help HR make a difference in the workplace is what we're all about at GoCo," says Allie Collins, head of GoCo's DEI Task Force, in a news release. "HR professionals are being called upon to make profound and meaningful changes to combat racism and inequities. We're hosting this event because our whole team is passionate about creating apps and resources to facilitate that change."

The competitors will be on teams and will present their projects on Monday, May 10, for a panel of judges.

Rice Alliance backs diversity-focused angel investment network

Maria Maso, CEO of baMa, has announced Rice Alliance as a partner organization. Photo courtesy of Nijalon Dunn

The Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship has become a baMa champion of diversity for angel network baMa, or the Business Angel Minority Association.

"Rice Alliance aims to foster an innovative and entrepreneurial culture that not only values differences, but also elevates them as sources of strength and innovation," says Rice Alliance's managing director, Brad Burke, in a news release.

According to the release, baMa will help to introduce Rice to more diverse businesses. The angel network has already tapped into Rice's ecosystem with the $50,000 investment prize baMa awarded during the Rice Business Plan Competition in March.

"Diversity and education go hand by hand so counting with the support of Rice Alliance is a huge step in order to accomplish baMa's goal: close the investment gap in minority-led startups," says baMa CEO, Maria Maso.

Topl named to ESG council

Kim Raath will serve on CNBC's ESG Council. Photo courtesy of Topl

Kim Raath, CEO of Houston-based blockchain company, Topl, has announced that she has been invited to join the CNBC's ESG Council. She was selected among execs from large corporations like companies such as The HEINEKEN Company, Nestlé, IHG Hotels & Resorts, Nissan Motor Corporation, Bain & Company, Credit Suisse, and more.

"As a young startup, this is one of our most exciting milestones. Sitting at the table with industry leaders is great momentum for both Topl's success and our larger ESG mission," Raath writes in Topl's newsletter. "Traceable transparency in supply chains is a game changer for global commerce, and now Topl can learn from and collaborate with multinational corporations. This opportunity will help position our purpose-built blockchain as a solution to solve some of the biggest and most critical problems our world faces, and as we strive to build a more sustainable future for all."

The council is a roundtable of 30 business leaders across industries focused on the challenges posed by sustainability — and the strategies needed to overcome them, according to Raath.

Is Texas a good state for nurses?

A new report ranks states based on their opportunities and friendly environment for nurses. Photo via Getty Images

The Lone Star State's nursing industry was put to the test for a new report from WalletHub, a personal financial website. The study compared all 50 states based on opportunity and competition and work environment. Texas ranked No. 12 overall.

Ranked solely on opportunity and competition — which included evaluating salary, schools, nurses per 1,000 residents, and more — Texas came in at No. 11.

The top states on the list were Arizona, Washington, and Nevada, respectively.

Rice University announces OwlSpark's ninth cohort

Meet the 10 student startups that are joining the OwlSpark family this summer. Photo courtesy of OwlSpark

Rice University's student startup accelerator has named 10 startup teams to its ninth cohort, which kicks off later this month. OwlSpark's 2021 cohort includes teams from across industries — hospitality, sports, oil and gas, consumer, staffing, automotive and more. According to a release from Rice, these are the companies selected:

  • Capybara - a networked platform that facilitates the company-to-company transfer of IT employees with similar skill sets (for example, software developers)
  • ChckMate – a data-driven platform designed to improve customer dining experiences, drive loyalty and increase revenue
  • GatherX Analytics – an AI software platform that predicts location and quantity of hydrocarbon liquid dropout for use by the upstream oil and gas industry
  • HARK – an easy-to-use app designed to significantly enhance the way in which neurodivergent or cognitively impaired individuals communicate real-time with caregivers and loved ones
  • Home Maintainer - a comprehensive solution for homeowners to manage and simplify home maintenance and efficiency
  • OneLab - a robust cloud-based repository designed for effective organization and easy access to a body of data on a specific area of research
  • Oversox– waterproof, durable, sock-like coverings designed to easily slip over the outside of a shoe for use by the serious hiker
  • rutd – an enterprise software and mobile application that provides immediate, actionable, suicide prevention resources to military veterans and family members
  • Tailer – a training platform and sales tool for electric vehicle dealerships and sales personnel
  • Yellow Saffron Labs – a risk analysis platform that gathers datasets from peer-reviewed scientific publications for use by organizations to observe industry trends or upcoming scientific disruptions or discoveries

A report found that Houston has only 3.35 health care workers for every 100 residents. Getty Images

Report finds Houston is short on health care workers

what's up docs

Houston may be home to the world's largest medical center, but a new study indicates the region is also home to one of the lowest rates of health care workers among major U.S. metro areas.

The study, released by credit-building loan platform Self, shows the Houston metro area has 3.35 health care workers for every 100 residents. That places Houston at No. 10 on the study's list of the major metro areas (at least 1 million residents) with the lowest share of health care workers per capita, including doctors, nurses, and therapists.

The only other major metro area in Texas sitting toward the bottom rung of the ladder is Austin, with 3.17 health care workers per 100 residents. That puts Austin at No. 4 for the lowest rate of health care workers among major metro areas.

Houston's ranking in the Self study is juxtaposed with the city's status as a world-famous health care hub. Over 106,000 people work at the more than 60 institutions within the Texas Medical Center, which includes the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Texas Children's Hospital, and the Baylor College of Medicine.

The 1,345-acre medical complex pumps an estimated $25 billion a year into the regional economy.

Despite Houston's stature as a medical magnet, the metro area is witnessing an escalating shortage of doctors and nurses.

A 2016 report from the Texas Department of State Health Services envisions the supply of registered nurses (RNs) — the largest group of nursing professionals — will climb 38 percent from 2015 to 2030 in the Gulf Coast public health region, compared with a 60.5 percent surge in demand. That equates to a projected shortage of 13,877 RNs in 2030. The Gulf Coast region includes the Houston area.

From 2017 to 2030, the supply of primary care physicians in the Gulf Coast region will increase 19.8 percent while demand will spike 27.5 percent, according to a 2018 report from the Texas Department of State Health Services. Ten years from now, the region will suffer a shortage of 694 primary care physicians, the report predicts.

In a 2019 survey commissioned by the Texas Medical Center Health Policy Institute, about 90 percent of primary care physicians across the country predicted a shortage in their field within five years. Seventy-eight of specialty physicians anticipated a shortage of specialists.

On the consumer side, the survey found 19 percent of patients reported difficulty scheduling an initial visit with a primary care physician, and 15 percent ran into trouble setting up a new visit with a specialist.

"The best way to tell if we have a doctor shortage is by asking patients whether they can easily get an appointment," Dr. Arthur "Tim" Garson Jr., director of the Texas Medical Center Health Policy Institute in Houston, said in a 2019 release. "For now, they overwhelmingly say 'yes.'"

By 2030, Texas will experience the third largest shortage of physicians among the states (20,420 jobs), according to a study published in 2020 in the journal Human Resources for Health. Only California and Florida will see worse shortages, the study predicts. The physician shortage in Texas is being driven by a growing population, an aging population and an aging pool of doctors, according to the study.

Noting the country's growing and aging population, a study published in 2019 by the Association of American Medical Colleges predicts the U.S. confronts a shortage of up to 121,900 physicians by 2032.

The looming national shortage of RNs is also acute.

The country's RN workforce is projected to grow from 2.9 million in 2016 to 3.4 million in 2026, or 15 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, the bureau predicts the need for another 203,700 RNs each year from 2016 through 2026 to fill newly created positions and to replace retiring nurses.

"With patient care growing more complex, ensuring a sufficient RN workforce is not merely a matter of how many nurses are needed, but rather an issue of preparing an adequate number of nurses with the right level of education to meet health care demands," Ann Cary, dean of the Marieb College of Health and Human Services at Florida Gulf Coast University, said in a 2019 release

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Houston bio-based materials startup breaks into footwear

cleaner shoes

A more sustainable shoe can’t be built on a single material swap. From the hard plastics hidden inside a heel to the material covering a sneaker’s upper, footwear is a collection of components—and each presents a different challenge for companies trying to move away from conventional, petroleum-based materials.

Houston-based Rheom Materials wants to change that equation. The biomaterials company has launched a sustainable footwear platform featuring two of its bio-based alternatives: Benree, a biodegradable plastic designed for hard internal components, and ShoraiDura, a durable leather alternative for footwear uppers.

“A shoe is not one material; it is multiple parts working together as a system. Substituting a single material has never moved the needle,” Rheom founder and CEO Zimri Hinshaw said in a news release. “Rheom wants to make it easier for brands to make a positive impact. By providing an assortment of bio-based materials, brands can change the system, not just a swatch of it.”

Benree is Rheom’s alternative to conventional hard plastics used in footwear construction. The company says it is a 100 percent USDA-certified bio-based, biodegradable material with performance comparable to acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), a widely used engineering plastic.

The material has passed SATRA testing for high-heel applications with Bared Footwear, an Australian footwear brand.

“At Bared, we're constantly on a journey to remove plastic from our shoes. At the same time, our brand won't compromise on quality for the end customer,” Millie Richards, Bared’s head of sustainability, added in the release. “From samples and testing, Rheom has proven to be solving both of those problems for us. We look forward to seeing how they develop as a company and would love to use them in our shoes.”

Rheom says it is also exploring Benree for additional internal components, including toe puffs and heel counters.

Rheom's Benree material was used for a high-heel prototype. Photo courtesy Rheom Materials

The company’s ShoraiDura material addresses another major part of shoe construction: the upper, which must withstand repeated flexing, friction and wear while maintaining its appearance.

Containing about 80 percent bio-based content, ShoraiDura is engineered as a durable leather alternative for footwear. Rheom says the material’s molecular structure is designed to deliver the strength and durability required for demanding applications.

To demonstrate how the material could be used in finished products, Rheom worked with a Los Angeles-based footwear manufacturer to create two prototypes: an athletic sneaker and a textured skater shoe, both featuring ShoraiDura uppers.

The two offerings reflect the company’s broader strategy. Rather than asking brands to evaluate a single material in isolation, Rheom is positioning its platform as a way to explore alternatives across different parts of footwear construction.

The next step is broader industry adoption. Benree’s testing with Bared Footwear and ShoraiDura’s footwear prototypes offer early examples of how the materials could be applied, while commercial use will depend on manufacturers’ evaluations and product-development decisions.

Rheom Materials is a Houston-based biomaterials company developing bio-based alternatives to petrochemical plastics. Its product portfolio includes Shorai, a leather alternative, and Benree, a hard plastic alternative.

The company debuted Shorai at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in 2025 and showed a bio-based "leather" collection in Milan earlier this year. Read more here.

Houston's Rice University named the No. 1 best Texas college for 2027

We're No. 1

With early application season in full swing, a local university is racking up accolades on a new list of the 10 best Texas colleges for 2027.

Rice University topped the list as the No. 1 best university in Texas in WalletHub's annual "College & University Rankings" report, showing Houston students don't have to travel out of state to earn a top-notch degree.

WalletHub analyzed 738 colleges and universities in the U.S. using 30 relevant metrics, including factors like student-faculty ratios, graduation rates, and many more. Universities were ranked nationally, regionally, and across seven key dimensions: student selectivity; cost and financing; faculty resources; campus safety; campus experience; educational outcomes; and career outcomes.

Rice also ranked No. 2 in the regional comparison of best universities in the South, and appeared No. 11 nationwide.

Across the seven main categories, the university performed best for its faculty resources (No. 4), education outcomes (No. 11), and student selectivity (No. 16), and earned top-100 rankings for its career outcomes (No. 28) and campus experience (No. 58).

Rice only lagged behind in the national rankings for campus safety (No. 632) and cost and financing (No. 666), but neither category swayed the university's top-performing overall position.

Meanwhile, the University of Houston ranked 75th regionally and 339th nationally. UH's cost and financing rank among the top 200 nationally, landing 177th, and it ranked 284th for its campus safety.This is how the report ranked UH in the five remaining categories out of all 738 schools:
  • No. 306 – Career outcomes
  • No. 324 – Student selectivity
  • No. 343 – Education outcomes
  • No. 383 – Campus experience
  • No. 715 – Faculty resources
Four more local schools ranked among the best universities in the South: Houston Christian University (No. 204), Prairie View A&M University (No. 245), University of Houston-Downtown (No. 251), and Texas Southern University (No. 254).The Houston-area universities, including their graduate and online programs, have earned heaps of national and worldwide praise this year from prestigious educational reviewing authorities U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review. Rice University also topped Niche's list of the best Texas universities for 2027.

These are WalletHub's top 10 best colleges and universities in Texas for 2027:

  • No. 1 – Rice University
  • No. 2 – Trinity University
  • No. 3 – The University of Texas at Austin
  • No. 4 – Texas A&M University-College Station
  • No. 5 – Southwestern University
  • No. 6 – University of Dallas
  • No. 7 – Austin College
  • No. 8 – Texas Christian University
  • No. 9 – LeTourneau University
  • No. 10 – The University of Texas at Dallas
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This article first appeared on CultureMap.com.

UH expands Medical Center footprint with $77M research facility

breaking ground

The University of Houston broke ground on a brand new $77.5 million Medical Research Building last week that will host clinical trials and a virtual reality behavioral health suite, among other laboratories. Designed by SmithGroup, it will be the second building on the UH Medical Center campus after the Fertitta College of Medicine opened in 2022.

“The Medical Research Building was designed to foster collaboration and discovery while creating a welcoming environment for students, researchers and the community,” Kalman Nagy, higher education studio design leader for SmithGroup, said in a news release. “As the second building on the University of Houston’s medical campus, we wanted to create a strong connection to the College of Medicine and the surrounding woodlands, with outdoor terraces, shared learning spaces and natural views that inspire interaction and innovation.”

Located just behind the Fertitta building at 5150 Medical Service Drive, the 57,000-square-foot building will house wet laboratories, computational research spaces and specialized facilities for clinical research. The virtual reality behavioral health suite will use immersive technology to deliver care through manufactured audio and visual environments. It’s part of the college’s vision for developing new medical advancements in the heart of Houston’s medical community. The groundbreaking comes on the heels of the launch of the university's cross-disciplinary academic venture, UH Health, this summer.

“This groundbreaking marks an important next step in the growth of the Fertitta College of Medicine and UH Health,” Dr. Jonathan McCullers, vice president for health affairs at UH, added in the release. “We are building the research capacity to match our ambitions—bringing together scientists, physicians and experts from across the University to accelerate discovery and turn promising ideas into solutions that improve people’s lives.”

UH’s journey to establish a significant presence alongside the University of Texas and Baylor in the Medical Center started in 2009 when it became an official full institutional member. The university launched its plans for the Fertitta building in 2013, and is pursuing Health Science Center designation from the Texas Legislature in the next year’s session.

“The research that will take place here will directly benefit our community,” UH President Renu Khator added. “Diseases do not recognize disciplinary silos, and neither should our research. This building will bring together experts from across UH to break down those barriers, work across disciplines and tackle some of our most complex health challenges.”

The building is slated to open in 2028.

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