I recently viewed the results of a Monster.com poll for the question: “Would you actively encourage children (your own or others) to enter the career you’re currently in?” I was surprised to see that only 21% of respondents said they would recommend their career path to their children. It made me think about my own career path and how I’ve always wanted to follow in my parents’ footsteps.
I come from a family of medical professionals. My father is a doctor and my mother and sister are both nurses. I grew up loving the medical field, but I knew that I did not necessarily have that science brain that it takes to become a nurse or doctor.
As I began my own personal job search, I found that I could start a career in healthcare and follow in my parent’s footsteps, without all those terrifying science classes.
A recent fortune.com article listed both healthcare professionals and healthcare management and support staff as part of the “10 hot careers for 2012”. I blogged about the article and emphasized that there is more to healthcare than trained medical professionals! Think about all the things that go into healthcare. Management of hospitals and small medical businesses and practices, pharmaceutical and insurance companies, businesses quickly sprouting up to help with new government-mandated health records laws and more.
Healthcare’s growth has sparked an increase in healthcare PR jobs. The Council of Public Relations Firms listed healthcare as one of PR’s biggest growth fields. They reported that healthcare generates about 20% of firm revenues. Healthcare PR clients can be found in the areas of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, animal health, vaccines, medical technology and more.
Ragan’s Healthcare Communications News just released an article with a list of 7 in-demand healthcare careers. The article said that healthcare added 700,000 jobs from December 2007 to October 2010, when no other sector came close. It also said that the outlook for future healthcare jobs looks promising.
For the 10-year period 2008-2018 it is projected that many healthcare jobs will grow. Dental assistants can expect 100,000 new jobs, healthcare managers can look for 45,000 new jobs and medical records technicians can look forward to 35,000 new opportunities.
The article also listed new degree programs popping up around the country specific to healthcare careers. So if you’re just getting started with your job search or looking to start a new career, why not consider healthcare? At the end of the day, your work will be helping others. What more could you ask for?
What do you think about the projected growth for healthcare jobs?
