Careers In Health Care (wetfeet Insider Guide)

Increasingly, the business side of health care has come between patients and providers. "At my hospital, we're supposed to call the patients 'customers'," says one insider. "I keep telling my boss this is not Lord & Taylor! . . . All I can say is it stinks, and corporate America has no business in the system," says another. Because of staffing shortages, people in nursing are finding themselves saddled with increasing numbers of patients to care for. In some organizations today, nurses are under significant pressure to work overtime. The inequities in the U.S. health-care system can be frustrating and demoralizing. Insiders readily acknowledge the fact that the poor receive a different standard of health care from others in the United States. ## Recruiting Overview The recruiting process in health care varies by organization, job function, and career stage. Smaller health care providers-for example, the office of a family practice doctor-don't really do much in terms of recruiting, other than placing help-wanted ads in the window when they need new bodies. Larger organizations are more likely to have more formal recruiting programs and processes. Because this is such a huge industry, employing so many different kinds of workers, there's no such thing as typical requirements for health-care job candidates. But in many cases-consider MDs and RNs-health-care workers must undergo a very specific course of education. And many health-care workers require specialized training and/or licensure or certification. Still, there are a number of personal attributes that will probably make you a more attractive candidate for many health-care jobs: A desire to serve others. At its heart, despite the industry's shift in focus during the past generation from health-care quality to financial performance, in most practitioner jobs in the industry, it's all about helping patients. If it was just about the paycheck, health-care workers would look for work in industries with greater pay for less time and hassle. Annotation. Health care is the largest industry in the United States, accounting for 15 percent of the Gross National Product and employing more than 13.5 million people--and that number is expected to grow in coming years. This industry is the source of a dizzying array of career opportunities. This book can help job seekers navigate this massive industry and plan a successful job search