WorkWise: health care — ripe with opportunity

While no industry is immune to economic upheaval, health care has been shining more brightly than most others. People with expertise in health care fit in a number of settings, including hospitals, clinics, health insurers, nursing facilities, as temporaries with staffing companies and elsewhere. The industry utilizes not just medical expertise, but skills ranging from customer service to IT.

ON THE GROUND

Spot the signs in organizations servicing niches and staffing firms at all levels. The global Best Doctors Inc., headquartered in Boston, exemplifies the niche businesses in the industry. A virtual healthcare benefits provider to about 20 million people, the company has developed a structure to counteract misdiagnosis, which occurs about 20 percent of the time, and mistreatment, which occurs about 50 percent of the time, according to Evan Falchuk, president and Chief Strategy Officer.

“We’ve been hiring a lot of nurses, sales and marketing people, IT and other support staff – 106 in 2010,” Falchuk says, “and we’re continuing our hiring this year.” The company does hire some practicing physicians, but most of the 45,000 in this country work as consultants.

Patients give information to a nurse or doctor by telephone. Then, Falchuk explains, “two internists, including a doctor specializing in the exact problem raised in the case, review it all and write a summary.” Best Doctors then consults with the patient’s physician.

The Healthcare Division of a staffing firm placing at the director level and above in many large acute-care hospitals nationwide, El Paso’s Bauer Consulting Group Inc., watched its revenue spike 37 percent in 2010, reports John Fulcher, director of the division’s recruiting.

“Home health is growing a lot because of Medicare and Medicaid coverage, and the aging population,” he says. “Orders for hospice support, such as case managers, and directors of inpatient hospice, home care and outpatient services are rising.” The need for behavioral health program managers is also increasing.

Hiring in pharmaceuticals and biotechnology is creating a ripple effect, indicates Annessa Fort, Yoh Services LLC’s Health Care branch manager, Pacific Northwest Region, in Walnut Creek, Calif., which serves all of the West. Approximately 60 percent of the staff’s company revenue comes from temps; 20 percent, temp-to-perm; 20 percent, full-time permanent. Last year, contract assignments grew approximately 32 percent. Yoh’s other healthcare staffing facilities are located in Philadelphia, Dallas and Los Angeles.

“We focus mostly on placing medical professionals in occupational health, case management and managed care,” Fort says. “We’ve seen a dramatic increase over the past two months for RNs in managed care; utilization management (primarily within a health plan setting); and occupational health, which also needs NPs, PAs and medical assistants. We don’t anticipate this demand to drop off any time soon. Manufacturing companies and hospital systems are hiring for occupational health.” Fort is also seeing the spring’s annual uptick for nurses with expertise in HEDIS (healthcare effectiveness data and information set), used in audits and medical reviews.

CAREER-CHANGING

An industry that’s hiring attracts career-changers, especially in a weak economy. Fulcher mentions that non-clinical positions using transitional skills, such as HR and finance, are more open to career-changers than others.

Falchuk remarks, “I think (health care) could use some fresh perspective. There’s plenty of opportunity for improvement.” He advocates choosing a segment, becoming well-versed in it and getting training. Fulcher concurs, saying, “Don’t just be open. Be fully committed to health care. This is an acronym-heavy industry.

“Ask questions,” he continues. “Be humble, saying that you’re not familiar with that acronym rather than pretending that you are. Ask for people to help you understand what they are. And don’t be afraid to ask, ‘Why?’”

Finally, he mentions, “skill sets are easy to find. People hire you for your personality.”

Dr. Mildred Culp welcomes your questions at culp@workwise.net. © 2011 Passage Media.