|
By Clint Williams
The economy is sputtering – no news flash there – but John Adams is still keeping busy, which is a bit surprising considering he is the person in charge of hiring other people. While many economic sectors are shedding jobs like a parched Christmas tree sheds needles, hospitals are still hiring. “Are we hiring at the same pace we were a year and a half ago? No, but we’re still hiring,” says Adams, director of employment services at Phoenix Children’s Hospital where about 2,700 people work. Banner Health, which operates more than a dozen hospitals and other medical facilities across the Phoenix metropolitan area, has more than 200 job openings posted on its Web site. The John C. Lincoln Health Network, which includes two hospitals, has nearly 70 jobs to fill, according to its Web site. The Mayo Clinic of Arizona has about 50 job postings. Cancer Treatment Centers of America at Western Regional Medical Center in Goodyear has nearly doubled its staff since opening in December 2008 – growing from 151 employees to 285. “We hired an additional recruiter because we’re hiring that many people,” said LaDonna Liles, the CTCA talent recruiter. The specialty treatment center anticipates filling another 70 to 100 positions by July 1, Liles added. And, Adams and Liles note, it takes more than doctors and nurses to run a hospital. “We’re hiring people in finance and administrative support, as well as people involved in direct patient care,” Adams says. Liles has similarly broad needs. “We are hiring for everything from cashiers to cooks to security officers to lab technicians to registered nurses,” she says. Indeed, among the Mayo postings is one seeking a chaplain. The number of health care jobs in Arizona has grown by 36 percent since 2001 — more than double the national rate of growth. There are now more than 126,000 health care jobs in the Valley of the Sun. And they are typically good paying jobs. The average salary for a pharmacist tops $104,000. Registered nurses make more than $65,000 a year. Physical therapists average nearly $70,000 a year. Overall, the average wage for Phoenix area health care workers is $22.87 an hour compared to $19.28 for the Valley workforce. Health care jobs dominated the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics of the 30 fastest growing occupations for the coming 10 years. While some of the jobs – physician assistant, physical therapist – demand advance degrees, many of the jobs – dental hygienist, home-health aide -- require just an associates degree or on-the-job training. As jobs are lost in other economic sectors, Adams says he is seeing an increasing number of experienced workers starting new careers in health care, primarily in the so-called allied health positions such as radiology technicians or pharmacy technicians. A $558 million expansion of the Phoenix Children’s Hospital campus underway will mean an increase from 345 licensed beds today to 626 by 2012. And that will mean much more work for John Adams. |
