Is Health Care Recession-Proof?
As a respiratory therapist, how secure is your job in the middle of a downturn in the nation's economy? It's probably on pretty safe ground, according to a recent report on CareerBuilder.com. Health care is currently ranked No. 4 in terms of recession-resistant jobs.
In fact, 15 of the 30 fastest growing are opportunities are in health services, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Among the hottest of these are medical assistants, physical therapists and home health aides. But all you need to do as a therapist to determine your future worth is to look at some of the current ad postings in ADVANCE and investigate perks like sign-on bonuses, paid training opportunities, revamped pay scales with offerings as high as $76,000, tuition reimbursement and career ladders. These signal a demand for services.
Nonetheless, it is a myth to think hospitals are recession-resistant, according to Sheryl Skolnick of CRT Capital Holdings in a recent BusinessWeek article. During the 2001-2002 recession, more than 1 million Americans lost their health insurance, translating into the lowest demand for hospital services ever.
A recession this time around could result in 4.2 million Americans losing their coverage, the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, D.C., predicts.
Take this with a grain of salt, however. Therapists still need to look at their basic patient populations in terms of continued need. Heart disease, asthma, trauma care and COPD patients will continue to flood into hospitals and require the type of care only therapists can provide. The same is true for seasonal illnesses like RSV, flu and pneumonia. Neonates and geriatric patients abound. This is a far different situation from elective surgeries that can be postponed until a later day.
Belt tightening is tough in the health care industry, especially in hospitals where most fixed costs relate to labor. Hospitals are essentially fixed-cost businesses, Paul Levy, CEO of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, told Business Week. The only choice many hospitals will have during lean times is to delay capital investments in building and equipment.
Therapists have been there and done that before and can repeat that mode if needed. In this era when many industries are laying off thousands of people every week, therapists can at least rest secure they will still have a job and it will pay fairly well.
Vern Enge
Editor
ADVANCE for Respiratory Care Practitioners