It is possible the sales price of the life estate however much will go to the nursing home and the ex-owner will qualify for aid once the money is gone.  

Also keep in mind though- owning a house could interfere with your financial aid- I'd speak to an expert about that. 

Would like advice on markets to focus on - my key hypothesis is to focus on markets with decent employment rates, growing population and presence of contemporary industries such as tech, healthcare, finance, etc and not relying on manufacturing/agriculture.

You can find some terrific tenants in the healthcare industry, as well as respectable "working class" professionals. 

A sweet spot can be a Rite Aid with a vintage lease in a good location that Walgreens purchased.

I think about éxiting healthcare every minute of my life as hospital work can be atrocious regardless of the high pay.

I might suggest you work to up your reserves and then pull the band-aid off.

That won't get you more financial aid. 

Most of my projects include healthcare, higher education, and corporate offices.

https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/2020/01/23/university-louisville-health-hire-nearly-400-nurses-and-doctors/4534848002/Always great to have an influx of jobs, especially high paying jobs and better healthcare of course.