Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Tough market for non-clinical jobs


It's a tough job market all over the country. The non-clinical sector of health care has been hit harder than the clinical sector. After all, we'll always have sick patients who need medical care. Hospitals will always need workers.

Corporate jobs have disappeared as companies have merged and reorganized. More non-clinical jobs have been lost as companies close and shut their doors. Unemployment is rising and even seasoned executives are being laid off. Sometimes you may see several jobs being consolidated into a single job. Current employees are being asked to reapply for their existing positions.

There's no doubt that the clinical side of health care offers more long-term job stability. However, does it offer you job satisfaction? Are you happy with your current job?

In some ways, I see 2010 as a great year for people to transition from the clinical side to the non-clinical side. You may not get a job in 2010, but you may in 2011. This type of career transition can easily take over 12 months, so it's important to maintain a stable source of income while you prepare for the career switch. Once you leave the clinical side of medicine, it can be very difficult to re-enter. There are formal re-entry programs for physicians who have been out of clinical medicine for several years, but that requires an investment of time, energy, and money. You would not want to repeat a year of residency, would you?

1 comment:

  1. I read that white collar unemployment dropped from 5.2% in Sept to 4.7% in Oct. Also hearing that many companies have bee running lean and will be hiring more soon. That's not industry specific but overall.

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