Tag: careers

The Top 5 In-Demand Specialties for Physicians

Selecting a specialty is one of the most important career-related decisions a physician will have to make. These five are in high demand.

When becoming a physician, selecting a specialty is one of the most important decisions you will have to make. It will set the tone for your entire career, and it is often an indicator of how easy or how hard finding a job will be. If you are in the fence about which type of medicine to specialize in, here are the top five in-demand specialties, according to data from our job board, as well as their average salaries and the states with the highest demand, to help you make the right decision.

  1. Mental Health
    Average Salary: $200,741-$250,598
    States with the Most Demand: California, New York, Virginia
  2. Internal Medicine
    Average Salary: $194,166-$244,910
    States with the Most Demand: New York, Texas, California
  3. Surgery
    Average Salary: $326,660-$458,449
    States with the Most Demand: New York, Connecticut, California
  4. Urgent Care
    Average Salary: $146,000-$308,000
    States with the Most Demand: California, Washington, Minnesota
  5. Radiology
    Average Salary: $353,566-$470,465
    States with the Most Demand: California, Pennsylvania, Florida

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

The States with the Most Healthcare Job Openings

Some states prove to be a safer bet in terms of finding a job in healthcare, due to the sheer number available. Here are the states with the most right now.

Healthcare job growth has been strong in 2019, as expected—the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics has long projected the healthcare sector to see some of the fastest and most consistent growth through 2022. So, where are the jobs? Here are the five states with the most healthcare jobs available right now.

  1. California
    Jobs Available: 8,541
    Top Positions: Registered Nurses, Physical Therapists, Physicians, Nurse Practitioners, Speech Language Pathologists
  2. Texas
    Jobs Available: 4,702
    Top Positions: Registered Nurses, Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Physicians, Speech Language Pathologists
  3. New York
    Jobs Available: 2,647
    Top Positions: Registered Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, Physicians, Physical Therapists, Physician Assistants
  4. Illinois
    Jobs Available: 2,210
    Top Positions: Registered Nurses, Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Nurse Practitioners, Speech Language Pathologists
  5. Virginia
    Jobs Available: 2,125
    Top Positions: Registered Nurses, Physical Therapists, Speech Language Pathologists, Physicians, Occupational Therapists

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Healthcare Employers Shine on Best for Women List

Women make up more than 60% of the healthcare workforce, so it makes sense that healthcare employers would make it on the list of Best Employers for Women.

Women account for more than 60% of the overall healthcare workforce, so it only makes sense that quite a few healthcare-related employers would make it onto Forbes’ newly-released list of America’s Best Employers for Women.

The list, which was compiled by surveying 60,000 Americans, including 40,000 women, included 300 businesses with at least 1,000 employees. Of the top 300 employers, 21 were listed under the umbrella of Healthcare and Social, 14 were listed as Healthcare Equipment and Services, and other healthcare-related employers, such as athenahealth and a handful of insurance companies, made the list in other categories, as well.

Some highlights from the top 100 include:

#9 – Cincinnati Children’s, Healthcare and Social
#11 – Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Insurance
#12 – Stryker, Healthcare Equipment and Services
#13 – Providence Health Care, Healthcare and Social
#14 – May Clinic, Healthcare and Social
#15 – University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, Healthcare and Social
#23 – Penn Medicine, Healthcare and Social
#30 – Tampa General Hospital, Healthcare and Social
#34 – Parallon, Healthcare Equipment and Services
#35 – Anthem, Insurance
#62 – McKesson, Healthcare Equipment and Services
#74 – Kaiser Permanente, Healthcare and Social
#76 – Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, Healthcare and Social

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

How to Rehab Your Therapy Résumé

Whether or not you are actively searching for a new therapy job, keeping your résumé current is always smart. Here are some tips to get yours in top shape.

Whether or not you are actively searching for a new therapy job—we have a lot of those, if you are, though—keeping your résumé current just in case is always a good idea. Here are some tips to make sure your therapy résumé is in top shape.

Start with the Basics

Just like your patients, you have to walk before you run. Start with a clean, modern layout that breaks your information into easily identifiable sections, so the hiring manager, recruiter, or other important person whose hands your résumé falls into can easy see your selling points—and this is about selling yourself.

Some great examples of templates we love can be found here, here, and here. Be sure to use clean, easy-to-read fonts (side note: it is never appropriate to use Comic Sans), and always save a copy of your résumé as a .PDF file to retain formatting.

Objective: Ditch the “Objective”

Since you are selling yourself, you need to identify your personal brand, and put that at the top of your résumé in a professional summary, instead of an outdated “objective”. Your objective is to get the job—that’s already clear.

Start with your personal brand statement—a good trick for this is: a few words describing your strengths + who you are + your experience + your unique expertise. For example: An empathetic, tech-savvy Doctor of Physical Therapy, who has served the pediatric population for five years, with a special focus on treating those with Autism spectrum disorder.

Follow your personal brand statement with a professional summary. Highlight your expertise level and education accomplishments, if they are impressive enough to include here—such as a high GPA or special honors, and use strong action words (pioneered, increased, managed, achieved, generated, conceptualized, collaborated, and so on) to further drive your value.

School Them On Your Schooling

Education is a big selling point for therapy professionals—and, obviously, for us, since we’re mentioning it again. Your education, continuing education, and other certifications are your core, and recruiters and hiring companies are interested in them. Any schooling and training you have completed and completed well should be placed in its own section, and, if formatting allows, placed above your clinical experience.

Focus on Your Accomplishments

Don’t just bullet point your responsibilities in your previous roles, focus on what you have accomplished—maybe even brag a little.

List your experience in reverse chronological order, meaning your most recent role at the top, and expand on the points you touched on in your professional summary. This is a good place to get in some keywords (which will help your résumé get through the automated process of screening candidates and into the hands of an actual human, mind you) and talk about populations you’ve treated, modalities you’ve used, EHR you’re familiar with, and so on.

You can even include volunteer experience here, if it bolsters your brand.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Transitioning into a Career as a Traveling Therapist

Traveling therapy roles are abundant, and they can do wonders for therapists who may be feeling as if they have stagnated in their current role or setting.

Traveling therapy roles are abundant—for instance, check out these great nationwide therapy opportunities from our friends at Princeton Staffing Solutions—and they do wonders for therapy professionals who may be feeling as if they have stagnated in their current role or setting. If you’re interested in taking on your first travel therapist role, here are some tips on how to get started.

  1. Start with a Map: If you are going to cross state lines, you will need to seek licensure in the state or states you are aiming for. By narrowing down your search and beginning the credentialing process in specific states, you will be setting yourself up to work in your ideal location. The process can take a few months, so it is important to start in on this right away, or partner with the right staffing company to help you expedite the process (but more on that later).
  2. Narrow It Down: One of the best things about travel therapy positions is that they offer variety. Decide what type of setting you are looking to work in, and how long of a contract you are seeking. Most travel therapy contracts can range from 8 to 26 weeks, or even the length of an entire school year, depending on what setting you land in.
  3. Get Connected: Partnering with the right recruiter or staffing company can make all the difference in landing your dream travel role. From getting you into your ideal contract to handling travel plans and housing or licensure, it is essential to have them in your corner.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Top Survival Tips for New Nurses

Here are four essential tips for the new nurse, to not only quell your nerves, but to begin to shape you into the best nurse you can be.

You’ve just accepted your very first job as a Registered Nurse. Now what? Here are four essential tips to not only quell your nerves, but to begin to shape you into the best nurse you can be.

  1. Seek Out a Mentor: Though some hospitals and health care facilities have mentorship programs built in, some don’t. If your new employer is one that does not, speak up and seek out a mentor of your own—be it a seasoned nurse that you can just quietly observe or one that you have a more established mentoring relationship with, in which you can ask questions and receive feedback.
  2. Ask Questions: Though you’ve just finished school, there is still a lot to learn. Don’t be afraid to use your voice, if you come across something you’re curious or unsure about. No one knows everything—not even the most experienced nurse—but there will be plenty of people who can help you to learn more as you settle into your new role.
  3. Pay Attention: It’s easy to become overwhelmed, especially when you’re new to the field, and things could easily slip through the cracks, if you’re being pulled in multiple different directions all at once—which you likely will be. Be mindful and focused as best you can at all times. And don’t be afraid to step back, breathe, and ask for help, if you need it.
  4. Practice Self Care: Your shifts will likely be long, your bathroom breaks will likely be short, or non-existent, and you’ll likely be on your feet all day. It’s easy to feel drained, when that is your day-to-day. Take care of your brain and body every single day by hydrating, eating right, sleeping well, and leaving the stresses of work at work.

What other tips would you add to this list? What is the best advice you received when entering the field of nursing?

Entry Level Positions with Surprisingly High Pay and Demand

Healthcare is a notoriously stable industry, making it a smart career choice. Here are some great positions to consider, if you want to get into healthcare.

Healthcare is known for being a stable and, beyond that, a constantly growing industry, even in times of economic uncertainty, making it a safe bet as a career choice. But which career should you choose? Here are five entry level healthcare jobs that are not only in demand, but also come with a solid annual salary, making them viable options to consider, if you are looking to get into the field.

Medical Secretary
Average Base Salary: $39,527
Education Required: High School Diploma or Certificate
Projected Job Growth from 2016 to 2026: 15%

Medical Billing Clerk
Average Base Salary: $37,529
Education Required: High School Diploma or Certificate
Projected Job Growth from 2016 to 2026: 13%

Medical Assistant
Average Base Salary: $34,594
Education Required: High School Diploma or Certificate
Projected Job Growth from 2016 to 2026: 29%

Pharmacy Technician
Average Base Salary: $33,841
Education Required: High School Diploma or Certificate
Projected Job Growth from 2016 to 2026: 12%

Certified Nursing Assistant
Average Base Salary: $32,048
Education Required: State-Approved Certificate
Projected Job Growth from 2016 to 2026: 11%

Ready to start your search? You can find these positions and thousands of others on HealthJobsNationwide.com.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Great Side Hustles for Nurses

Though RNs make an average annual salary of $70,000, sometimes, a little extra cash can go a long way. Here are four side jobs perfect for nurses.

Though Registered Nurses make a strong average annual salary when compared to that of the national average ($70,000 versus $44,564), a little more money in your pocket couldn’t hurt, be it to make getting by a little easier or to save for a big purchase or a rainy day. Fortunately, RNs have a specialized skill set that makes them a natural fit for some great side jobs, in addition to their day-to-day roles (and paychecks). Here are four options to consider, if you want to make a little more cash on the side.

Give Flu Shots
Flu season is upon us, and with it, nurses are needed to administer flu shots in clinics, doctors’ offices, grocery stores, pharmacies, and more.

Teach CPR and First Aid
CPR and First Aid classes are available year-round, through a variety of organizations, so the work can be fairly steady. Though you’ll need to be certified as an instructor first, the cost is low and the process is fairly quick.

Tutor Nursing Students
Set your own hours and rate, and tutor the next generation of nurses for NCLEX prep, either in-person or online.

Per Diem Shifts
Per diem nursing offers a flexible work schedule, for a typically higher wage. And, bonus, taking on freelance shifts in underserved areas can be rewarding in more ways than just the pay.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Nursing Jobs, Cost of Living, & Where to Hang Your Hat

Making decisions about your work-style and lifestyle can be fraught with anxiety and concern about the future—let’s unpack that conundrum.

From Nurse Keith’s Digital Doorway

In my work as a career coach for nurses and healthcare professionals, I frequently witness those who work in nursing struggling with decisions related to finding work and the relative cost of living in terms of where they live or where they might move.

Making decisions about your work-style and lifestyle can be fraught with anxiety and concern about the future — let’s unpack that conundrum.

Workstyle and Lifestyle

Figuring out where to live and work can be a difficult choice. On the one hand, you want to earn up to your potential and receive the highest possible wage according to your level of experience and expertise. On the other hand, the highest salaries are generally in large popular metropolitan areas where the cost of living is through the roof and the relatively high salary will just barely (if at all) make up the difference when compared to more moderately priced cities or towns.

A single working professional may have much more freedom of movement than one who is married, but finding a way to afford single life in more expensive areas can be a challenge.

Choosing a new domicile becomes even more complicated when children are in the picture. Whereas a single person may simply look at nightlife, cultural amenities, cost of living, safety, etc, the nursing professional with children must also consider school quality and everything that comes with the needs of growing children.

Choosing an underserved rural area may offer a quiet place to live and low cost of living for someone who loves the outdoors, but for a nurse with a regular habit of going out to movies, theater, and other nightlife activities, the flip side will be discovering how to have those amenities in the city without breaking the bank.

Your chosen lifestyle and workstyle need to be fairly aligned; if you have a spouse and kids, these decisions are more complex but not impossible to overcome. And while work can sometimes take up a third or more of your life, it can’t always be the sole factor that determines where you rest your head at night.

The Best Places to Live

Here in the United States, there is a wide diversity of choices related to climate, safety, way of life, economics, diversity, educational opportunities, housing costs, crime, and culture. And we all know that one person’s paradise can be another’s purgatory.

Money Magazine and Realtor.com crunched the numbers for 2018, creating a list of the 50 best places to live in the United States. The communities were examined using a methodology that looked at areas with populations over 50,000; the rankings were compiled based on the examination of over 70 types of data, including those mentioned in the preceding paragraph.

Somewhat surprisingly (or not), the 50 winners aren’t all household names like San Francisco, Boulder, or Dallas. Here are the top 10:

  1. Frisco, Texas
  2. Ashburn, Virginia
  3. Carmel, Indiana
  4. Ellicott City, Maryland
  5. Cary, North Carolina
  6. Franklin, Tennessee
  7. Dublin, California
  8. Highlands Ranch, Colorado
  9. Sammamish, Washington
  10. Woodbury, Minnesota

Two small cities within the metropolitan halo of Boston made the cut: Newton and Brookline. In relation to the New York City region, only Union and Parsipanny/Troy Hills, NJ were on the list. Near Atlanta, we find the suburb of Alpharetta as a highly prized location (my mother lived there very happily in the last few years of her life). And the only selections in the entire state of California are Dublin, a city of 60,000 located 30 miles east of Oakland, and Eastvale, a city an hour east of downtown LA. Sorry, Hawaii and Alaska — you didn’t even make the top 50.

Anyway, here’s Money Magazine’s list of the best places to live in each state.

We can’t entirely live our lives according to the results from this kind of research, but such information can serve as a jumping off point for further exploration and can support us in doing our due diligence and making prudent choices.

Now For the Jobs per U.S. News

When considering relocation and where to settle down, other tools also come in handy. U.S. News & World Report’s “The 25 Best Jobs of 2018” can help us to piece the puzzle together. While software developer clinched the #1 spot for 2018, rest assured that healthcare jobs dominate the list, with the following health-related careers making appearances:

#2: Dentist
#3: Physician Assistant
#4: Nurse Practitioner
#5: Orthodontist
#7: Pediatrician
#8: A tie between Obstetrician/Gynecologist; Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon; & Physician
#11: Occupational Therapist
#12: Physical Therapist
#13: A tie between Anesthesiologist & Surgeon
#15: Psychiatrist
#16: Prosthodontist
#17: Dental Hygienist
#18: Registered Nurse
#20: Physical Therapy Assistant
#21: Respiratory Therapist
#22: Nurse Anesthetist
#23: Optometrist

If you’re thinking of switching out of healthcare entirely, see the list for the details, but rest assured that you’d do well as an actuary, marketing manager, statistician, or mathematician.

If you’re wondering about the difference between NPs, nurse anesthetists, and RNs, look no further:

Nurse Anesthetist
Median salary: $160,270
Unemployment rate: 2.7 percent

Nurse Practitioner
Median salary: $100,910
Unemployment rate: 0.7 percent

Registered Nurse
Median salary: $68,450
Unemployment rate: 1.2 percent

One thing we have no reliable data on is how much nurses are earning when they reach the PhD or DNP level, so the operative question remains whether pursuing those terminal nursing degrees repay the earnest (and highly indebted) nurse with high salaries and low unemployment.

Similarly, the Bureau of Labor Statistics also does nothing to parse these differences either. Don’t get me wrong, BLS data is a useful resource but doesn’t give us the full breakdown we truly need (likely because those BLS folks have no idea what a DNP is, and it’s even less likely that they even know what DNPs are capable of.)

The 25 Best Nursing Jobs

According to an article posted on TopRNtoBSN.com, nursing jobs of course have their own hierarchy of popularity and career mojo. Unfortunately, no methodology is shared, thus we’re left in the dark as to how they arrived at these conclusions. While the only hard statistics we’re given are median salaries, the list includes:

  1. Ambulatory Care Nurse
  2. Camp Nurse
  3. Case Management Nurse
  4. Correctional Nurse
  5. Flight Nurse
  6. Forensic Nurse
  7. Home Health Nurse
  8. Hospice Nurse
  9. Informatics Nurse
  10. IV Therapy Nurse
  11. International Nurse
  12. Long-Term Care Nurse
  13. Medical Supplies or Pharmaceutical Rep
  14. Nurse Advocate
  15. Nurse Educator
  16. Nurse Manager
  17. Nurse Researcher
  18. Psychiatric Nurse
  19. Public Health Nurse
  20. School Nurse
  21. Substance Abuse Nurse
  22. Telephone Triage Nurse
  23. Transplant Nurse
  24. Travel Nurse
  25. Wound, Ostomy, & Continence Nurse

You likely already noticed that many of the listed nursing jobs are removed from acute care, demonstrating to curious nurses that there is indeed life beyond the hospital (I’ve known this for decades, myself, but so many nurses seem unaware that any potential for work exists outside of the hospital milieu. Don’t get me started about those who say real nurses only work in hospitals!).

And remember that nurse entrepreneurs and other outside-the-box nurses (like myself) never get air time on mainstream healthcare and career websites.

Choose Your Own Adventure

Nursing offers varying entry points into the profession, with some students now choosing an entry-level MSN as their starting place, especially when coming from another professional career. That said, RN and BSN programs are still robust in terms of how many people are clamoring for admission, as are the many types of MSN and NP programs.

In essence, nursing is a “choose your own adventure” undertaking, with as yet many unknowns for each individual. Those unknowns may include the twists and turns of the economy; potential changes in healthcare reform and the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the number of insured Americans; student loan program changes; as well as cost of living and other factors covered in the first half of this post.

Between cost of living, your family’s needs, potential salaries, and the lifestyle you prefer to lead, your choice of a nursing specialty and a place to put down roots is truly up to you. If you’re single or otherwise able to explore the country as a travel nurse, that could be one way of doing your research. Otherwise, networking, conversations, informational interviews, and deeper research is called for.

The possibilities are endless, nurses — do your due diligence and see what the roulette wheel of life and career hold in store for you.

Keith Carlson, RN, BSN, NC-BC, is the Board Certified Nurse Coach behind NurseKeith.com and the well-known nursing blog, Digital Doorway. Please visit his online platforms and reach out for his support when you need it most.

Keith is co-host of RNFMRadio.com, a wildly popular nursing podcast; he also hosts The Nurse Keith Show, his own podcast focused on career advice and inspiration for nurses.

A widely published nurse writer, Keith is the author of “Savvy Networking For Nurses: Getting Connected and Staying Connected in the 21st Century,” and has contributed chapters to a number of books related to the nursing profession. Keith has written for Nurse.com, Nurse.org, MultiViews News Service, LPNtoBSNOnline, StaffGarden, AusMed, American Sentinel University, the ANA blog, Working Nurse Magazine, and other online publications.

Mr. Carlson brings a plethora of experience as a nurse thought leader, online nurse personality, podcaster, holistic career coach, writer, and well-known successful nurse entrepreneur. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico with his lovely and talented wife, Mary Rives.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

Steal this Recruiter’s Tips to Land the Perfect Job

Seeking a competitive advantage to help you land your perfect job? Look no further than this advice from a clinician who has been involved in hiring.

By Jordan G Roberts, PA-C

No matter your profession, job searching can be hard. On top of the everyday challenges, the internet has no shortage of advice with questionable authority.

There are entire blogs written by human resources professionals filled with tips and insights they say will help you land any job. However, they don’t fully address the unique needs of a clinician’s job search.

When it comes to hiring healthcare professionals, employers have the advantage of hiring consultants if necessary. Where can clinicians turn when they need a new job?

Recruiters and healthcare-specific job boards like HealthJobsNationwide.com are one source. They can tell you what characteristics clients are seeking for certain positions, which is great.

Another strategy is to obtain insider tips. In today’s article, we have tips and advice from one of the premier sources for hiring PA’s and NP’s. Renee Dahring, FNP is a former owner of a clinician staffing agency and current correctional healthcare NP.

One of the best places you can find job search advice and strategies is a clinician who has been involved in the hiring process. This article expands on my interview with NP Dahring from the Clinician1 podcast.

Read the article and get the competitive advantage that will help you land your perfect job by clicking here. Once you’ve soaked it all up, come back to HealthJobsNationwide.com to put your new skills in action.

Jordan G Roberts, PA-C helps medical education companies create and distribute the best medical education around. He helps students and clinicians improve their clinical game by using his background in neuroscience to teach simple ways to learn complex medical topics. He is a published researcher, national speaker, and medical writer. He can be found at Modern MedEd where he promotes clinical updates, medical writing, and medical education.

Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.