Healthcare Adds 29,000 Jobs
Although the healthcare industry continues to thrive, the overall national unemployment rate is even higher than expected, having increased to 10.2 percent in October, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 190,000 jobs were lost, bringing the country to its highest unemployment rate since 1983. The biggest job losses were in retail, manufacturing in construction.
Yet again, the most positive numbers were in the healthcare industry, which gained 29,000 jobs in October. Additionally, the healthcare industry has added a total of 597,000 jobs since the beginning of the recession. "One of the few industries where employment continued to grow during the recession has been health care," stated Keith Hall, Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Army Psychiatrist Alive, In Custody After Deadly Shooting Spree
A Ft. Hood, TX Army Psychiatrist opened fire today, killing 12 and injuring 31 people, most of whom were also military personnel, according to multiple news sources.
Initially reported to have been killed, the suspected gunman, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan actually survived being shot four times and was taken into custody alive.
The motive is unknown at this time, but some theories from acquaintances include stress and anxiety due to an upcoming deployment to Iraq. Additionally, it has been reported that Dr. Hasan received a poor performance review recently.
Dr. Hasan's background includes 6 years of practice at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and a fellowship in disaster and preventative psychiatry. He earned his medical degree through a military medical school program as well.
While Dr. Hasan's medical licenses in Maryland and Virginia show no disciplinary action or complaints, he was suspected of authoring several internet manifestos about suicide bombings and other threats.
This crime is thought to be the worst ever committed on an American Military base, a place one would think to be amongst the safest in the nation, if not the world. Equally difficult to comprehend is the fact that the murders came at the hands of a member of the U.S. military, a medical professional trained to help people heal.
Job Security for Cardiac Perfusionists?
A study released this week and reported in the New York Times suggests that "off-pump" heart surgery is no better for a patient than "on-pump" surgery, which entails stopping the heart, and diverting the patient's blood through a heart-lung machine during the surgery.
Prior to this study, the general opinion in the medical community is that the "beating heart" surgery is superior to the "on-pump" surgery. It was thought that there were fewer complications involved in beating heart surgery, although it's challenging for the surgeon to operate on a beating heart.
The study analyzed more than 2,000 heart surgeries to determine the effectiveness of the two different types of surgeries, as well as the effect on the patients. The outcomes, complication rate, and recovery and survival rates for patients who underwent both types of surgeries were found to be nearly identical, according to the study.
This should be good news to clinical cardiac perfusionists, medical professionals who run the heart-lung machines. About 80% of all heart surgeries are completed with the assistance of a heart-lung machine currently according to the NYT report. Had the study found more favorable results for off-pump surgeries, perfusionists may have found their case volume decrease in the future, as doctors and patients would push for what was thought to be the safer, off-pump method.
However, conventional thinking about heart surgery has been somewhat reversed, and the majority of heart surgeries will most likely continue to need a cardiac perfusionist present to run the heart-lung machine. In fact, some surgeons have indicated that they may now increase their percentage of on-pump surgeries.
Home Health Care Jobs
Home health care is a booming industry. With over 50% growth projected in coming years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, home health is one of the most rapidly growing segments of the medical industry.
November is also Home Health Care Month, so this is a great time to explore career options in this field. Hospice care is often provided to patients in their homes as well, although hospice patients have unique needs, as many hospice patients are terminally ill.
Whether you decide to work directly for a patient's family, or find home health care jobs through a home healthcare agency that will set up assignments for you, there are many jobs available for home health aides. While working as a home health aide is not one of the most lucrative health careers, it can be very rewarding in other ways. Additionally, a variety of schedules and levels of flexibility are available depending on the patient's needs.
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Health Information and Technology Week
This week of Nov 1-7 is Health Information and Technology recognition week. Health IT (HIT) is a hot career right now, as medical providers scramble to become compliant with the latest EMR requirements by the imposed deadline.
Health IT was already a growing field, and then, as an additional boost to the industry, $20 billion dollars was earmarked for Health IT and EMR earlier this year in the stimulus package. Furthermore, by 2014, providers who are unable to demonstrate "meaningful use" of EMR will be penalized in the form of fines and cuts in reimbursements. Therefore, EMR software and consulting firms are gearing up for a busy few years, and the field of health IT will continue to grow in demand.
What skills and certifications will employers seek in Health IT professionals? To learn more about health IT careers, how to land a job in health IT, and how to NOT lose your job to EMR, please see below.
Allied Health Professions Week 2009
This week, the week of November 1-7, 2009 is Allied Health Professions Week. Allied health professionals include technicians, technologists, and therapists. A variety of exciting, rewarding careers is available in allied healthcare, for a wide range of education levels, including some jobs for high school graduates. Other allied health careers are ideal for people with a two-year associate's degree, while some more lucrative allied health roles require a bachelor's degree, or a master's level education. In recognition of Allied Health Professions Week, learn more about allied health careers in the Allied Health Career Overview.
More Magazine Features RN as Top Career
More magazine is featuring the Top Ten Careers for Midlife Women (age 40-59), and Registered Nurse (RN) ranked high on the list. The publication conducted a national survey to identify the 10 Best Jobs based on "bright futures, great perks, a high level of satisfaction, and they all come in well above the national average salary for women ages 40-59," which is $33,176.
In conducting the exclusive nationwide poll, More found that in addition to a good salary and benefits, women need a job that is: meaningful (98%), has a bright future (89%), has a high level of freedom (87%) is age-appropriate (79%) and is flexible (73%), according to the press release.
Registered Nurse careers offer salaries ranging from $51,000 to $76,000 annually, with the top 10% making more than $92,000 annually. (Those top earners are most likely advanced practice nurses (APRN) with advanced degrees beyond their RN certification.) RN careers were ranked at #4 on the list, due to the tremendous demand and projected growth of the field, with an estimated 587,000 jobs to be added by 2016.
Registered Nurse was the only medical career that made the list. Some of the other featured careers include Environmental Scientist, Accountant, Education Administrator, and Human Resources Specialist. The full report is included in the November issue of More magazine, out this week.
Related Articles on Nursing Careers:
- Top 3 Highest Paying Nurse Careers
- How to Become a Registered Nurse
- Types of Nurses
- Nurse Career Profile
Image Copyright More Nov 2009
How to "EMR-proof" Your Job
"Will I lose my job to EMR?" This is a common question being asked by health professionals nationwide, especially those who work primarily in medical records or patient documentation.
Hospitals and practices have been gradually making the transition to EMR over the past few years. However, now that a deadline has been declared by the Obama administration, including fines for non-compliant facilities, the race for EMR has picked up considerably.
Could your job be eliminated when EMR is implemented? It's possible, but not as likely as you may think, especially if you take some steps to learn additional computer skills and stay ahead of the curve. In fact, often an EMR implementation can create new jobs for a hospital or practice. However, to remain employed, you need to ensure that you can become qualified for one of those new positions, as your role could become obsolete in a paperless environment.
So, who is most at risk of job loss in an EMR implementation? And how can you prepare for the change and protect your career? To help you learn how to EMR-proof your job, an experienced healthcare IT professional provides some tips on how to EMR-proof your medical career. Additionally, he shared great information about what new skills and certifications will be in highest demand when your employer makes the transition to EMR. If you take these steps to EMR-proof your career before and during the implementation of EMR, you will be indispensable, not disposable!
Become a Medical Librarian
When considering a career in the healthcare field, "librarian" is not often the first profession that may come to mind. However, medical librarians are vital to the healthcare team, providing up-to-date information and technology to assist with patient care, including diagnosis and treatment. Should you become a medical librarian?
If you love books, and you love technology, science, and medicine, a career as a medical librarian may be a great option for you. Although medical librarians don't interact with patients, medical librarians do need great people skills, as they consistently work directly with medical professionals to help them research and learn various subject matter.
October is Medical Librarians' Month, so it is a great time to learn more about how to become a medical librarian, and learn more about medical librarians' careers in general.
Medical Assistants' Week: October 19-25 2009
The week of October 19 through October 25 is Medical Assistants' recognition week. Therefore, it's a great time to explore a career as a medical assistant, and learn more about what they do, and how to become a medical assistant.
Working as a medical assistant is a very versatile career, allowing you to work in a variety of settings and medical specialties. The barrier for entry is relatively low as compared to many other medical jobs. Most medical assisting jobs require only a high school diploma, and some require a certification that may be achieved with a few months of school. Therefore, in addition to being a great career in and of itself, medical assisting is also an excellent stepping stone to a more advanced career in nursing or other role that requires a higher level of education. Medical assisting allows you to "try on" a healthcare career and see if it fits you, before you invest additional time and money in nursing school or physician assistant school.
Medical assistants perform a variety of tasks including administrative duties and some very light clinical work. Depending on the needs of the employer, medical assistants may be trained to give injections, draw blood, and assist in basic surgical procedures. They can assist with patient documentation, check-in and check-out of patients, preparing exam rooms, directing patient flow, and obtaining vital signs.
To learn more about how to become a medical assistant, check out the medical assistant career overview which also includes salary information, required skills, certification, and job responsibilities.