Jobs held by Physician Assistants have reached record highs according to the latest figures released by the American Academy of Physician Assistants. The group’s 2010 survey findings show a 100 percent increase during the last 10 years with more than 30 percent of PAs practicing in primary care. There are now more than 83,000 practicing PAs in the United States.

“The Physician Assistant profession is growing rapidly and it is key to expanding access to quality healthcare for millions of Americans”, said Robert Wooten, president of the AAPA. “PAs are the only healthcare providers educated and credentialed with a primary care focus, providing a strong foundation for any specialty in which they may choose to practice.”

According to the AAPA website, PAs perform a wide variety of duties including conducting physical exams, diagnosing of and treating illness, ordering and interpreting tests, counseling on preventative care, assisting in surgery and prescribing medication. PAs can be licensed to practice and prescribe in all states. New York and California were tops in the nation as far as the number of PAs holding jobs. Rhode Island, South Dakota and Missouri were tops in salary increases with a nine percent increase in 2010 from the year before compared to an overall 2.8 percent increase for the entire profession.

The AAPA survey also showed that:

1. 40 percent of PAs had been in their current primary specialty for at least six years.
2. Two-thirds expressed satisfaction with their career.
3. Nearly two-thirds of all PAs are women.
4. PAs work in private practices and clinics, hospitals, HMOs and in federal government agencies including the military.

Just last month Oregon passed the Physician Assistant Practice Modernization Act which streamlines the licensure process in that state and deleted old language that required a PA’s scope of practice and supervision requirements to be determined by the medical board. Oregon’s Governor is a former emergency room physician. And a few weeks prior to Oregon’s action, Vermont also passed several improvements to their PA Practice Act.

“Physician-PA teams are extremely effective in the clinical setting and it’s great news to see (the Oregon) model in action in advocacy,” Wooten said.

There are more than 150 PA education programs in the United States which typically last between 24-32 months. They also require a four-year degree and some healthcare experience prior to admission. The median salary is $90,000 a year and the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts the number of PA jobs will increase by 27 percent between 2006 and 2016.

Hospital Dream Jobs is your source for finding healthcare jobs including careers as a Physician Assistant. If you are interested in the PA profession check here often for more information as well as job postings.

If you’re looking for a career in healthcare you’ve come to the right place – now and in the future. According to a 24/7 Wall St. article, healthcare jobs rate quite favorably for being the best paying jobs during the decade of 2008-2018. Much of this is accredited to the Baby Boomer crowd (the first Baby Boomers turn 65 this year) whose large number will increasingly need more healthcare professionals to care for them.

The jobs reviewed were taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ National Employment Matrix which provides projected growth between 2008 and 2018 for 750 major job categories. The study identified jobs that are going to add the largest number of new positions (greater than a 20 percent increase) and then selected those with a median annual income of at least $60,000.

Of the top 10 jobs identified, dental hygienists rank #9 on the list. Dental hygienists work alongside of dentists, clean teeth and assist in surgery. Total new jobs expected between the years of 2008-2018 are just under 63,000 (a 36.1 percent increase) and the position has a median income of $68,250. Those who live in Michigan, Idaho and Utah will have a leg up as these are the states with the most dental hygienist jobs per capita.

Coming in at #5 are physicians and surgeons. This career path is exploding not only from the expected increase in population (several million a year) but a high number of physicians and surgeons are also expected to retire during the 2008-2018 period. The increase in demand has been calculated at nearly 22 percent and the median income for this position is between $94,000 and $153,000. It was noted that the level of training is one of the most difficult but the potential payoff is high. Those living in New Mexico, West Virginia and Wyoming will fare better at findings jobs than in other parts of the country.

The #1 job is Registered Nurses with an expected 581,500 (a 22.2 percent increase) new jobs opening during the years of 2008 and 2018. Registered Nurses, or RNs, provide basic medical treatment, manage patient records and are the primary providers of long-term care. The Bureau of Labor Statistics notes, “Growth will be driven by technological advances in patient care, which permit a greater number of health problems to be treated, and by an increasing emphasis on preventive care.” Like dental hygienists, the demand for RNs is being fueled by the Baby Boomers who, as they age, will push the demand for nursing care. The median income is $64,690 and people living in Rhode Island, South Dakota and Massachusetts will have the best chance at finding a job in this field.

The job market in the healthcare industry is better than ever-with much opportunity attached. Even the experts agree.

Your job search, especially if it’s been years since you’ve been looking, likely has a frustrating element that dampens any motivation you have for “getting out there” and searching for a career. Your resume it seems is sent into cyberspace never to be seen, or heard from, again. Literally.

You are not alone when it comes to expecting some sort of phone call or even any type of correspondence to let you know where you stand. And you are not alone when you hear nothing for weeks and sometimes when you hear nothing…ever. There are a number of reasons for this. Some have nothing to do with you and some may have everything to do with you. An article posted on a popular job search site breaks down this new phenomenon in job searching and provides some hints on how to overcome it.

The company is not into you.

Yes you may qualify but someone else more closely matches what they were looking for. This is one of the tightest job markets ever so employers can usually get exactly the type of candidate they want.

They like you-they just haven’t come across your resume.

Companies are inundated with applications, so much so, they don’t even have time to send acknowledgement letters. Some companies spend months looking through resumes for one open position. So, while you may want the job today it may take months before you even get an interview.

Did you follow directions?

One way companies siphon through resumes is to see if the applicant followed directions. Did you respond exactly the way the company asked you to? Did you tailor your resume to show you have the experience and qualifications that are required? Additionally, don’t expect success if you are using a shotgun approach by sending the same letter to dozens of companies.

Is the job you applied for appropriate for you?

If you’re not right for the job, whether it’s because you are over qualified, under qualified or just plain wrong for the job, don’t expect the company to find a spot for you on their roster. Read the job description carefully and make sure you are a fit.

Your application materials could use some work.

Did you send a cover letter? Does your resume show you’re the right person for the job? Did you remember to spell check everything prior to submitting? Mistakes and coming across as having no idea what the position is for won’t result in a call back.

The job is gone.

Sometimes companies realize they don’t need the position anymore or budget cuts end up axing the position which means they no longer need you. In some cases, companies will collect resumes for a job they plan to open sometime in the future.

This is not a comprehensive list by any means but if you are not receiving responses, there are some steps that you can take:

1. Call. Try and track down the hiring manager for the position you applied for and see if you’re even in the running.
2. Don’t be a pest. If you did get an interview, send your “thank you” letter and wait a week to call. You can even send an email or two but no more; you’ll just come across as desperate.
3. Reread the job posting. A second or even third read may reveal some tidbits that do indeed disqualify you as a viable candidate.
4. Review your resume. Ask others what they think of it and if it needs tweaking.
5. Network even more. The best chance for you in the healthcare field, especially in this job climate, is to network your way in.

As a healthcare provider you no doubt entered this profession because you care. You care about people, making them feel better and being an integral part of the healthcare process in making lives better. You’ve also likely encountered, thanks to technology and other issues the healthcare sector faces, that patients often seem to get lost in the paperwork shuffle.

To counter this, a growing number of hospitals are assigning Nurse Navigators. Their job is to help steer patients through the medical system maze. Nurse navigators can be nurses, social workers or other hospital staff who have been certified through programs that include training for care coordination, motivational interviewing skills and cultural sensitivity. Currently, Nurse Navigators are primarily for cancer patients who need help booking appointments, getting to appointments and even picking out a wig.

In an article featured in the Wall Street Journal, cancer patient Judith Nakamura used the no-charge service at Presbyterian Healthcare Services in Albuquerque, N.M. and was able to get a follow up appointment to see a surgeon in a week instead of two months, which she was originally told. Her Nurse Navigator not only stepped in to get her the appointment, but Colleen Sullivan-Moore helped Nakamura understand her diagnosis and overcome her fears. Sullivan-Moore was in the recovery room when Nakamura awoke after her surgeries.

“She was the one who answered all the questions I was trying to figure out and coordinated every step for me,” Nakamura said of Sullivan-Moore. “She really helped get me through the system.”

Nurse Navigators, or patient navigation as it is sometimes called, are being seen as one possible solution by hospitals to help make the healthcare system more clear and understandable. Patients are facing more complex treatment decisions and options than in years past and need a guide to sift through the information. Navigators can also provide tips on dealing with chemotherapy, make sure patients stay on track with their treatment plan and offer emotional support.

In Nakamura’s case, she initially ignored her doctor’s advice to contact the nurse navigation program figuring she could do it on her own. Sullivan-Moore was the one who extended the olive branch by setting up a meeting which allowed Nakamura to ask questions she hadn’t thought of when she was digesting the news from her doctor. That Nakamura said, “immediately calmed me down.”

Hospitals across the country are looking to expand the navigation role beyond cancer patients and are starting to find navigator roles for transitional care, low income patients and cultural concierges for language and other ethnic-sensitive concerns. If you have an interest in being a Nurse Navigator, contact your hospital administrator to see if a program has been set up or is going to be set up.

In all the turmoil surrounding this country economically and on the job front, we are happy to report that the one sector where job growth was above average was healthcare.  In July, healthcare posted 31,300 new jobs which helped bring the national unemployment rate down to 9.1 percent from 9.2 percent. The numbers reflect a 0.2 growth in the healthcare industry for last month.

For the year, Healthcare added nearly 300,000 jobs for an annual growth rate of two percent. July’s gain reflected more than 6,000 jobs versus the monthly average for the past year.  Hospitals provided the biggest impact for job growth by adding 14,000 jobs in July.  For the 12 months ending in July, hospitals added 74,800 jobs representing a 1.6 percent increase.

The news for healthcare jobs is even better according to employment trends tracked by another national job listing site. Healthcare job postings have had an eight percent month-over-month increase. The jobs receiving the most attention included “medical assistant,” “pharmacy technician,” and registered nurse.” The most popular keyword searches were “medical assistant,” “LPN,” for licensed practical nurse, and “RN” for registered nurse. Healthcare job postings on that site in July were 892,368 compared to 435,457 for retail jobs and 430,496 for the technology field.

Additionally, the medical field scored very well in a CNNMoney and Payscale.com rating of the top 50 careers in pay and growth prospects.  Three healthcare jobs scored in the Top 10 which includes a physical therapist #7, nurse practitioner #4, and a physician assistant #2. Anesthesiologist, pharmacist, nurse anesthetist, general practice physician and occupational therapist all came in the top 20. The 10 year job growth forecast for PAs and PTs is 27 percent and jobs for nurse practitioners, nurse anesthetists and occupational therapists are expected to climb by 23 percent.

If you’re out of work, under employed or worried about your position, then there is much to be excited about regarding your prospects, especially when compared to your peers in other fields. The reality is that the healthcare field will always need talented and caring men and women to serve in a variety of roles. What’s just as encouraging is the future looks bright and promising for those already in healthcare.

For many people, especially during tough economic times when potential layoffs are imminent, changing careers midway through life is not only acceptable but readily embraced. For those in the nursing profession, however, changing careers after years of education and hard work is not necessarily an appealing option. And nursing is a passion not easily dismissed.

But even the most passionate of nurses may desire a change that brings new challenges and increased job security. Becoming a Nurse Anesthetist may be just what the doctor ordered!

Nurse Anesthetists are actually the oldest nurse specialty group in the United States dating all the way back to the Civil War. As you can imagine, the profession has come a long way in the last 150 years and so has the salary. Nurse Anesthetists can make upwards of $160,000 a year.

To become what is officially referred to as a CRNA, or Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, you must first complete a Bachelor’s Degree in nursing or a science-related field along with one year of full-time nursing in an acute care setting. Once those criteria have been met, interested nurses then apply to a nurse anesthesia program that has been accredited by the Council on Accreditation (COA). A nurse anesthetist education is complete with either a Master’s or Doctorate and lasts from two to three years in length.

The National Board on Certification and Recertification of Nurse Anesthetists governs the certification and recertification process. As with regular RNs, continuing education is a must and recertification is required every two years once initial certification is granted.

Once licensed, CRNAs perform a variety of crucial tasks and responsibilities in conjunction with other healthcare professionals including:

• Performing a physical assessment
• Participating in preoperative teaching
• Preparing for anesthetic management
• Administering anesthesia
• Maintaining anesthesia
• Overseeing recovery
• Following the patient from recovery to the patient care unit

Employment opportunities for CRNAs are booming and jobs are available in a wide variety of healthcare settings including the traditional hospital rooms, ambulatory surgery centers, pain clinics and physicians’ offices. CRNAs can practice by themselves, in groups and collaboratively. They can administer every type of anesthetic and provide care for every type of surgery or procedure, including open heart surgery.

Finding current openings for Nurse Anesthetists is just a click away with our Job Seekers tool. To become connected with more than 42,000 CRNAs and Student Nurse Anesthetists be sure to check out the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists.

Tired of laboring long hours? Pulled enough hair out every time your computer crashes and loses information crucial to a patient’s care? Are promises to be at your child’s soccer game or dance recital impossible to keep?

Then you’re not alone. If a better work/life balance is something you’ve been thinking about, than you may want to look into what many of your colleagues are already doing. In fact, by 2013, it is estimated that two-thirds of physicians will be employed by a health care system. The trend of private practices being sold is gaining steam, and it is estimated the current two percent conversion rate during the last 20 years will increase to a five percent conversion from private practice in the next three years, according to the American Medical Association.

More and more physicians are seeing the appeal of having a hospital administration that relieves them from day to day administrative responsibilities, allows greater access to better information technology, helps them maintain a more manageable patient load and gives stability in uncertain economic times and in the healthcare world.

“It has gotten incredibly difficult to be a physician in practice,” said Erica Drazen, Managing Director of the Global Institute for Emerging Healthcare Practices at CSC. “A lot of these guys went into medicine because they wanted to take care of patients. Now they are taking care of paperwork half the time.” Drazen said practices need to change in order to facilitate a greater coordination of patient care.

Hospitals are pushing the trend of hiring doctors because of government controlled healthcare reform, but they also foresee a coming physician shortage and a subsequent shortage of customers, or patients! Hiring more doctors now means a well-staffed hospital and steady stream of patients in the future.

This practice may sound familiar because it is. Twenty years ago, hospitals tried owning and managing practices but found it was not as lucrative as they had hoped so they retreated. The big difference between now and the late 80s and early 90s is the interest from private practice doctors wanting to be “employed.”

Additionally, Drazen said, the impact of Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) on the horizon is making hospitals a little nervous about the competition nabbing doctors and patients. “In some sense,” Drazen said. “It’s a land grab.”

Being on a hospital payroll, former private physicians now have a steady but workable stream of patients and they can focus on healthcare with state of the art facilities and equipment, rather than downed computers and overwhelming paperwork. In return, the hospitals lock in valuable physicians and can ensure the workload (patients), are there.

You may have started a career in medicine with the idea of owning your own practice where you took care of your patients, and eventually, your patient’s children and their children’s children. But in today’s world that just doesn’t happen as often. If you want stability and like the idea of being “employed” with retirement benefits, regular hours and vacation pay, then working for a hospital may just be for you. To see current job openings, please click here to see what’s available through Hospital Dream Jobs.

I once had a promising phone interview for a job I very much wanted and had a good shot at. I researched the company and the department thoroughly, wrote out answers to potential questions, and had my resume and the job description in front of me.

Unfortunately, though I tried to be prepared, a few key elements went awry that I’m sure cost me a shot at the job. I didn’t even get a face-to-face meeting! I wish I’d had these tips to help me prepare.

First the Don’ts:

• Don’t use a cell phone if you’ll be doing the call in a place with unreliable cell service.
• Don’t answer call waiting. If possible, temporarily disable this feature (some carriers allow this).
• Don’t have pets or children in the room with you.
• Don’t try to squeeze the call in between other appointments, during a short lunch break or your kid’s nap time!
• Don’t multitask. Stay focused on this activity only.
• Don’t discuss money – yet. If the question is broached by the interviewer, you can stall by telling them you’ll need to understand the full scope of the job better as well as be more familiar with the entire compensation package.
• Don’t let them catch you off guard. If an interviewer calls you unannounced and attempts to conduct an impromptu interview, politely ask if you may call them back.

Now the Do’s:

• Plan a minimum of 30 minutes in a quiet, controlled environment.
• Be prepared for the interview the same as if it were face-to-face.
  • research the company
  • know as much about the job specifics as possible
  • have a list of questions you want to ask
  • prepare a list of potential questions that they may ask along with your answers (but don’t read them, they should come out sounding natural and unrehearsed)
  • have your resume handy
• Dress professionally and sit at a table or desk with a good chair – this will impact your body language which will impact how your voice carries over the phone.
• Have your internet up with the company’s website in front of you.
• Use a hands-free headset so your hands are free to take notes and quickly access information you might need on the web.
• Mute the phone if you have to cough, sneeze, sip, etc. (Make sure you know how to use this function first!).
• Smile! They can hear it in your voice.
• Give them a reason to meet with you face-to-face.

If a potential employer asks if you have/can do Skype – the answer is yes even if you have to figure it out with someone else’s help before the call takes place. If at all possible, set up your computer in an uncluttered, preferably professional environment. (The employer may choose a video call instead of just the audio option). And of course, look your best. It can be a bit odd on a video call because you can see yourself, and because there’s sometimes a delay in the audio. But you mustn’t let the little oddities distract you from your purpose.

Phone interviews are very prevalent as an initial screening process, especially if the job isn’t in your current city and as more companies are cutting costs. So be prepared and don’t give them any reason to cross you off their list. Get that face-to-face interview and you’re one step closer to landing the job!

When you chose to enter the field of healthcare, marketing was probably the furthest thing from your mind. You chose this line of work to help people not to sell to them, right? You are a caring, compassionate person who just wants to do the best job possible in some of the toughest working conditions imaginable – long hours, limited budgets, constantly changing federal policies, mountains of paperwork, ever changing technology, and now you’re expected to tackle marketing too? Why? 

Good question. Although you can’t be expected to be a marketing expert, familiarizing yourself with the landscape of healthcare marketing is crucial. Although there is a predicted shortfall of doctors and nurses and overall healthcare resources over the next decade, especially as Baby Boomers continue to age, healthcare will continue to be a highly competitive field. And most patients have a choice of providers.

As you work diligently to provide the highest quality of care, you can’t subscribe to the “if you build, they will come” philosophy. And you can’t rely 100% on marketing professionals to do the job for you. You have to participate in the process of attracting and retaining new business. Additionally, being savvy about advertising, web design, blogging, social media and other aspects of marketing will give you a leg up should you find yourself job hunting. 

Again, I’m not saying you have to be a pro, but you should be in the know. There are a whole host of books to read and workshops to attend highlighting the various aspects of marketing. You can also gain insights from your professional membership organizations. And if you are in a position of management or leadership you can learn from your members of your marketing department or contracting marketing firm, ensuring the marketing efforts are collaborative. Ask a lot of questions, risk making suggestions and allowing them to tell you why these may or may not be good ideas.

Another possible fount of knowledge is something I recently came across while surfing the web: a marketing crash-course for healthcare professionals offered in an online newsletter format from MD Clients, a Web Interactive Marketing firm for medical professionals. The newsletter was launched in April and will be distributed through March of 2012. Here’s what’s on the agenda for upcoming newsletters:

• July, 2011 – Newspapers & Magazine Advertising: Cost vs. Conversions
• August, 2011 – Paid Search & Microsites: How it works, when it works and who it would work for. Google Paid Search vs. 2nd Tier Paid Search.
• September, 2011 – Professional Websites: Medical Hosting, Choosing a Domain, on-site SEO and Privacy Policies.
• October, 2011 – Website Security: HIPAA/PHI compliance, Online Forms and Collecting Patient Information.
• November, 2011 – Social Media: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Local forums, Health forums and reviews.
• December, 2011 – Directories: SEO-only, Local and Health.
• January, 2012 – Blogging: A Doctor’s blog, medical organization blog, blog comments and what other bloggers say about your practice.
• February, 2012 – Physician Entrepreneurs: What you need to know before you start your own practice
• March 2012 – Further Study: Books to Read, Workshops to Attend and Charities to support.

Subscribe to the newsletter here.  

A career in healthcare is complex and demanding, but you’ve made it this far, proving your passion, commitment and resilience. And with a little bit of marketing know-how your prospects for a long, vibrant career will remain high.

As a very specific arena of medicine, with specialties within a specialty, podiatry is considered one of the highest paid professions in the country. What we call a “foot doctor,” the medical world calls a podiatrist, a doctor of podiatric medicine (DPM), or a podiatric physician or surgeon. DPMs are qualified to diagnose and treat conditions affecting the foot, ankle and related structures of the leg. Interestingly, “podiatrists are the only doctors to receive specialized medical and surgical training and board certification in the care of the lower extremity.” (todayspodiatrist.com)

I had just donned my new sandals and was proudly wiggling my freshly painted toenails when I was stopped in my tracks by an alarming headline: “Your favorite pair of flip flops is bad for your health.” Luckily, this article posted by the American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) went on to provide tips for avoiding pain and supply a list of podiatrist-approved flip flops. Saved! There’s even a video showing “Must-know tips to avoid ‘flip flop fiascos.’”

I ended up spending a lot of time on various pages regarding podiatry and came away impressed both by the compassion of the podiatric community and by the varied career opportunities that exist for podiatrists.

Many of us take the health of our feet for granted, in spite of the complexity of these anatomical wonders that our key to our overall health and well-being. Podiatrists understand this and seem to be part of community passionate about helping Americans take better care of their feet, their overall health and the well-being of the American healthcare system. In March, the APMA published the eye-opening results of a study of nearly 500,000 patients that showed the financial impact of just one area of foot care: diabetic foot ulcers.

“If just one individual at risk for a foot ulcer sees a podiatrist once before a foot ulcer becomes apparent, they will have singlehandedly saved our country nearly $20,000 over three years,” said Kathleen Stone, DPM, president of APMA. “The bottom line is that seeing a podiatrist saves limbs and lives, and equates to billions of needed dollars saved for America’s health-care system.” More about this study can be found in the March/April 2011 Journal of American Podiatric Medical Association.

The APMA has a wonderful career tool in their “Today’s Podiatrist” website with resources for students and medical professionals. The site is full of videos, podcasts, interviews, mentor opportunities, inspiring bios and more. For students considering a medical career who have not yet committed to a specific area of study, this is a great resource. The website offers two compelling reasons to consider podiatry:

• With diabetes on the rise, more people exercising, and Americans growing older, the demand for podiatrists continues to increase.
• Podiatrists are well compensated and enjoy a healthy work-life balance.

My brief foray into the world of foot care was intriguing, and as I prepare to go from winter boots to summer sandals, I definitely won’t take the health of my feet for granted knowing how important it is and how an entire segment of the medical community is working to keep America healthy one pair of feet at a time!