The seven fastest growing jobs in healthcare 2015

In our last post we tried to give a very brief snapshot of the healthcare industry, from spending to employment trends coming into 2015. We also briefly alluded to seven of the ten fastest growing jobs in the healthcare industry.* In this post, we will go into what those jobs are, and what the drivers are to their increasing popularity.

Hospitals are trying to do more with less. This means watching overhead/operating costs, and reducing readmittance rates, reducing the cost of hospital stays, and shifting patients to less expensive sites of care. In fact, as the ACA is rewarding reimbursement rates from a fee-for-service (quantity) model, to a quality-first model, hospitals in particular are facing ever-increasing pressure to streamline their offerings.

It’s no surprise then that a big part of that effort is in hiring diverse professionals to fill in the gaps, and mostly in outpatient settings. Topping this list are personal care and home health aides, who have the top two fastest growing healthcare occupations in the overall job market. See below for the full list.

*Note: This list is based in part on BLS statistics for fastest growing occupations as rate of change from 2012-2020. Updated figures as of 2013 and 2014 where available from various other sources (see Sources, below).

  1. Personal Care Aides – Job outlook 2015-2022: 48.8%. Median national salary (2013): $20,100. Number of jobs (2012-2022): 580,800. Unemployment rate (2013): 9.2%. Employment Change (2012-2022): +580,800.

 

  1. Home Health Aides – Job outlook 2015-2022: 48.5%. Median national salary (2013): $21,020. Number of jobs (2012-2022): 424,200. Unemployment rate (2013): 7.8%. Employment Change (2012-2022): +424,200.

 

  1. Diagnostic Medical Sonographers – Job outlook 2015-2022: 46%. Median national salary (2013): $66,410. Number of Jobs (2012-2022): 110,400. Unemployment rate (2013): 2.7%. Employment Change (2012-2022): +42,700.

 

  1. Occupational Therapy Assistants/aides – Job outlook 2015-2022: 41%. Median national salary (2013): $66,410. Number of Jobs (2012-2022): 110,400. Unemployment rate (2013): 2.7%. Employment change (2012-2022): +15,900

 

  1. Genetic counselors – Job outlook 2015-2022: 41%. Median national salary (2012): $56,800. Number of Jobs (2012-2022): 2,100. Unemployment rate (2013): N/A Employment Change (2012-2022): +900.

 

  1. Physical therapist assistants/aides – Job outlook 2015-2022: 41%. Median national salary (2013): $53,360. Number of Jobs (2012-2022): 121,400. Unemployment rate (2013): 6.2%. Employment Change (2012-2022): +49,400.

 

  1. Physician assistants – Job outlook 2015-2022: 38.4%. Median national salary (2013): $92,970. Number of Jobs (2012-2022): 204,200. Unemployment rate (2013): 1.4%. Employment Change (2012-2022): +73,500.

 

Honorable mentions:

  • Nurse practitioners – Job outlook 2015-2022: 33.7%. Median national salary (2013): $92,670. Number of Jobs (2012-2022): 151,400. Unemployment rate (2013): 0.7%. Employment Change (2012-2022): +47,600.
  • Physical therapists – Job outlook 2015-2022: 36%. Median national salary (2013): $81,030. Number of Jobs (2012-2022): 204,200. Unemployment rate (2013): 1.5%. Employment Change (2012-2022): +73,500.
  • Mental Health Counselors – Job outlook 2015-2022: 28.5%. Median national salary (2013): $40,580. Number of Jobs (2012-2022): 166,300. Unemployment rate (2013): 6.3%. Employment Change (2012-2022): +48,200.
  • Marriage and Family Therapists – Job outlook 2015-2022: 30.6%. Median national salary (2013): $48,160. Number of Jobs (2012-2022): 166,300. Unemployment rate (2013): 3.8%. Employment Change (2012-2022): +11,600.

 

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Sources:

  1. US News & World Report, Money – Best Health Care Jobs. URL: http://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/rankings/best-healthcare-jobs, Accessed January 21, 2015.
  2. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Economic News Release, Table 4 – Fastest growing occupations, 2012 and projected 2022. URL: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecopro.t04.htm. Last Modified: 12/19/13. Accessed: January 23, 2015.
  3. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook. Fastest Growing Occupations 2012-2022. URL: http://www.bls.gov/ooh/fastest-growing.htm. Published: January 8, 2014. Accessed: January 19, 2015.
  4. Becker’s Hospital Review. Best Healthcare jobs of 2015. URL: http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/hospital-management-administration/best-healthcare-jobs-of-2015.html. Published: January 14, 2015. Accessed: January 21, 2015.
  5. Yahoo Finance: America’s Fastest Growing Jobs. URL: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/america-fastest-growing-jobs-151116223.html. Published: September 3, 2014. Accessed: January 19, 2015.