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Despite an uncertain economy and a depressed job market, the profession of health care has never been, well, healthier—at least from the perspective of job seekers.
"Most people have heard about the nationwide nursing shortage," wrote Mary Engel in a 2008 Los Angeles Times article. "But the country is also experiencing a shortage of trained workers in the … [more than] 200 occupations that make up about 60 percent of healthcare workers." "One of the things we can absolutely be assured of is that we are going to use more health care, and the more health care we use, the more healthcare providers we use," said Dr. Michael West, executive director of the University of Texas at Arlington’s Fort Worth Higher Education Center. "About 1,100 people a day will go on Medicare and Social Security starting in 2011," he said. "That’s why the industry is growing."Many jobs require a graduate degreeGraduate degree credentials can open the door to many in-demand healthcare jobs; in some cases, advanced training is required rather than preferred."A large majority of the health care (educational) programs are going to graduate degrees," said Dr. Jimmy H. Ishee, dean of the College of Health Sciences at Texas Woman’s University. Ishee offered an example of how one patient might require a health care team populated by professionals with advanced degrees: "Let’s say a person has a stroke," he said. "During rehab, they might need a speech pathologist, a physical therapist and an occupational therapist."A nutritionist or dietician would meet with the patient to help prevent recurring strokes, and a kinesiologist would work with the patient on a treadmill," he said. Advanced education for nursesOne healthcare field particularly rich in opportunities for professionals with post-graduate education is nursing. "There is a nursing faculty shortage across the country which is contributing to the (general) nursing shortage," said Dr. Paulette Burns, dean of the Harris College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Texas Christian University. "To help meet this shortage, we are graduating nurse educators (from our program)." "We are also beginning a new graduate option for a clinical nurse leader," said Burns. "This nurse functions at the unit level in hospitals or agencies, making sure the patient has coordinated care. "They are kind of a pivotal force in making sure that the patient gets what the patient needs," she said.The clinical nurse leader is a somewhat new healthcare career path, according to Burns. "We’re working with Texas Health Resources to begin this program and implement it in their systems," she said. Not all healthcare career paths are clinical: examples of these include health educators or healthcare administrators who manage operations. "From a practical standpoint, it’s more cost-effective to prevent (disease) than it is to treat it," said Ishee. "We prepare health educators who teach in the public schools or work in community health centers (to teach) preventive aspects, from drugs to smoking to nutrition.
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