Novartis Oncology Launches Global Hiring Campaign
While most companies in other industries are looking for ways to cut back on payroll and overhead, some healthcare companies are actually launching creative marketing campaigns to help attract a high volume of top talent to add to the team.
One example is Novartis Oncology, which has recently launched an interesting and unique campaign enlisting current Novartis employees to help recruit new talent by sharing their perspective on the benefits of working at Novartis Oncology. The company launched a global campaign to help attract and hire hundreds of people worldwide to Novartis Oncology this year.
Novartis is hiring for a variety of medical industry jobs, including Clinical Development, Medical Affairs, Marketing, Finance, Compliance, Human Resources, IT, Sales, Communications and Legal.
Talent is needed in the U.S., Japan, Australia, Europe, Russia, China, Latin America, and India.
The campaign allows current employees to post video testimonials, comments, vote on their colleagues' postings, and is very interactive. According to a representative of Novartis Oncology, "Open Employee Generation was able to unite Novartis Oncology's global community - allowing employees from across the globe to connect with one another around their common goal: helping improve and extend the lives of cancer patients around the world."
John Hohneker, M.D., Senior Vice President of U.S. Clinical Development and Medical Affairs states, "The Open Employee Generation campaign is really a global campaign. We pride ourselves on being an open company and culture, and by letting employees do the talking, we feel that will add value to the experience of being in this company."
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Forensic Nursing Careers
What is forensic nursing? According to Vida Lock, Director of the Cleveland State University School of Nursing, forensic nursing "bridges the gap between health care and law enforcement." Forensic nurses work with victims of violent and criminal activity, helping treat the patient while also assisting law enforcement with collecting evidence, gathering accounts of the incident, and looking for clues.
Forensic nurses also are trained to help patients deal with the psychological aspects of their ordeal, whether it was a rape, assault, or a traumatic accident. Due to the nature of the field, forensic nursing requires specialized training in dealing with victims and their families, and handling issues legally, delicately, and appropriately.
For more information on this intriguing aspect of the nursing field, I recently consulted with Ms. Lock, as her nursing school at CSU has provided a forensic nursing track since 2002. She provides a wealth of information regarding forensic nursing careers, to help you determine if a career in forensic nursing may be a fit for you.
Thank You, To Our Veterans
Today is the day for remembering our veterans, and active duty military personnel, who have valiantly served their country to help protect and provide the freedoms we enjoy as citizens of the United States of America.
Among those brave men and women are countless military medical personnel including doctors, dentists, nurses, medics, and allied professionals who helped care for the wounded and dying. In a week when a horrific crime was committed at the hands of a military medical doctor, hopefully the actions of one have not overshadowed the positive hard work of many devoted medical military personnel.
My stepfather, Patrick J. Fisher served as a medic in World War II and told stories that sounded like something out of a movie. At 18, with no medical training, he was sent overseas, into enemy territory, to become a man. One day he was graduating from high school, and weeks later he was cradling dying soldiers in his arms, holding them and telling them they're okay, even as he knew they were taking their last breath.
My mom's husband Pat came home alive, but his buddies did not. All that is left of many of his comrades is a scrapbook of photos he kept in remembrance of his friends who were lost. Once, my stepfather flipped through the pages of the scrapbook with me, telling me the stories of each friend, how they lived, and how they died. I felt honored to have "known" these young men who never had a chance to grow old.
Studying medicine and practicing medicine in the military can be very rewarding, and can also be an excellent way to overcome the financial burden of becoming a physician or other medical professional. However, military medical careers provide their own unique challenges including the fact that you don't decide where you live, and of course, war-time deployment is a reality. Imagine providing medical care in a foreign land with bombs exploding around you or enemies approaching. If you're willing to give a few years of your life completely over to the military, and you have an adventurous, patriotic spirit, a military medical career may be an excellent option for you.
Thank you again to our courageous veterans. Your lives and service will never be forgotten.
Explore Nurse Practitioner Careers
Nurse practitioners (NPs) are advanced practice nurses who, in some states, can practice independently, seeing patients and billing for their time and services almost as a physician would.
Some healthcare analysts and experts see nurse practitioners and physician assistants (PAs) as the answer to the growing physician shortage, particularly in primary care, while others feel that nurse practitioners do not possess enough extensive training and education to fill physicians' shoes.
November 5-12 is Nurse Practitioner recognition week, so this is a great time to learn more about the role of nurse practitioners in the medical community. According to the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), the average income for NPs is about $81,723, making them amongst the highest-paid nurses. You may wish to learn more about how to become a nurse practitioner, and which specialties earn the most on average. If you already are a nurse practitioner, Happy Nurse Practitioner Week!
House Passes Health Reform Bill
After 11 hours of debate, the House of Representatives passed a "sweeping" health reform bill, H.R. 3962, the "Affordable Health Care for America Act." In a vote of 220 to 215, the landmark vote brings the nation one (very large) step closer to a complete healthcare system overhaul.
The more than $1 Trillion bill will expand coverage to more Americans, provides a government run health insurance option, requires insurers to cover patients with pre-existing conditions, and requires all Americans to obtain healthcare coverage. The bill will be funded by tax increases and cuts in other programs such as Medicare, as well as cost-saving commitments from the pharmaceutical industry and medical device manufacturers.
What's next? The Senate's version of the health reform bill must pass the Senate, a vote which isn't expected to take place until December or later. Then, if a bill passes in the Senate, the two separately passed bills would be reconciled into one final bill, and then that bill would go before the House and Senate for a vote.
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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.