ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 2, 1997 TAG: 9702280035
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: 6 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: WORKPLACE
SOURCE: AMY LINDGREN KNIGHT-RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
National statistics continue to predict great success for people who take on health care careers such as medical-records technician and physical-therapy assistant.
Despite this rosy picture, we continue to hear about the closings of hospitals and the layoffs of skilled medical staff. What gives? Is it a good field or isn't it?
It's both.
Health care is a tremendously vital arena experiencing breakneck growth. But, like any fast-growth industry, it also is unstable. One national statistic predicts that a fourth of all new jobs created in the United States by 2000 will be in health care. Meanwhile, a publication from the American Hospital Association proclaims that the increased use of technology will ``render 25 to 35 percent of present health care jobs obsolete'' in the same time period.
One thing is certain: As changes unfold on the large scale, they always trickle down to affect the individual worker.
For example, the emergence of health maintenance organizations and pressures from the insurance industry have changed the way hospitals do business.
Still, people continue to need medical services, so, as hospitals fold, outpatient clinics and day-surgery centers spring up in their places. The trick to working in an unstable industry such as health care is to constantly monitor trends to evaluate the next shift in employment. With that information, you can chart your own course instead of simply going along for the ride.
Here are a few of the current trends and the implications they have for job-seekers and health care professionals.
nTrend: Rising popularity of self-care and treatment. Potential jobs: educators to teach self-care practices; development, production and distribution of self-care products; sales and management positions in stores selling self-care products.
nTrend: Shortage of family-care physicians, particularly in rural areas. Potential jobs: physicians' assistants and nurse practitioners to serve the rural communities.
nTrend: Shorter birth stays in hospitals. Potential jobs: midwives, after-care home visit professionals, parenting/breast-feeding trainers.
nTrend: Rise in medical technology. Potential jobs: equipment design, production, sales, repair, use and training.
nTrend: Increase in noninvasive tests and procedures. Potential jobs: laboratory work, specimen collection, phlebotomists, couriers.
nTrend: Aging population. Potential jobs: geriatric services, long-term care facilities, home health workers, patient advocates.
nTrend: Telemedicine (using remote video sites to connect patients and doctors). Potential jobs: equipment technicians, diagnostic professionals.
In addition to tracking these and dozens of other trends, you can analyze your potential role in the health care industry by thinking about your work style and interests. If the sight of blood makes you dizzy, consider a career in training, product development, research, sales or data management. These business positions can fulfill your interest in medical work while putting your business skills to use. Best of all, they don't require special training or licensure, so you can easily transfer from another industry to these jobs - and back again if the health care field fails you.
Don't underestimate the importance of training, however. In health care, the learning curve is almost straight up, whether you're a surgeon or a medical illustrator. The changes happen so quickly that you need to be a perpetual student to stay on top of things.
If you decide to enter or stay in the health care field, remember that this is an unstable industry that will act like an unstable industry. Whole segments will change almost overnight, while others will be eliminated altogether. In the meantime, new segments and jobs will spring up, creating opportunity for the people who are quick enough to grab it. To be sure you're one of those people, keep up with the trends and always ask yourself: How will these changes affect me and my future work?
On the other hand, if you don't like the stress of constant change, consider leaving this field for another industry. If you choose to work in health care, you are almost certainly facing at least one layoff and possibly several. You will need a thick skin, a contingency budget and a philosophical outlook to help you keep these ups and downs in perspective.
Will the health care industry survive its current instability?
Of course. Unlike many products and services, health care in some form will always be a necessity.
As long as people keep getting sick and injured, there will be a need for workers at all parts of the spectrum. If you can stand a little uncertainty, health care will treat you very well.
LENGTH: Medium: 89 linesby CNB