While the US healthcare system represents around $3 trillion in annual spending and is the largest single sector of the overall economy, it also sits inside larger “macro trends” that help define the landscape of jobs.
Such factors as globalization, the state of the general economy, the rapid pace of innovative handhold and genomic technology (like the latest iPhone or Android and mapping the human genome), 78 million Americans hitting retirement age (and higher healthcare utilization) at the same time, and radically changing values and beliefs are all working together to create a larger context for skills and people needed in the healthcare system.
What difference do all these big changes mean to us?How will healthcare systems evolve to best leverage a global market for their services?
What will a growing share of healthcare dollars mean to the healthcare workforce in a stagnant or slow-growing general economy?
How will smartphones or other technologies create new jobs in healthcare?
Will genomic research eliminate certain diseases by modifying a person’s DNA? What ethical issues might this raise?
How will the massive chronic care needs of older people create new career opportunities?
What new jobs may be created to best meet new consumer demands for more patient-focused care? Less institutionalization of the elderly? And better access to culturally appropriate caregivers?
What do you think? What human resources needs are you likely to be encountering – and managing — in ten or so years?
