While I have worked in various unrelated fields, much of my time was spent in healthcare.  So, it’s natural for me to ask job seekers if they have ever thought about pursuing a career related to healthcare. When I do ask, people will often give me a funny look and say healthcare is just not for them.  Why? Usually, they say it is because they are squeamish about blood, needles, being around sick people, or other such things often associated with the field. Does this sound like you?

If so, let me assure you there are MANY jobs in healthcare which do not involve blood, needles, and so forth.  Heck, with many positions, you may rarely even see a patient! Given this, why exclude yourself from a career field which is growing and can offer great income potential?  In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects jobs in healthcare will grow 18% from 2016 to 2026.  This is much faster than the average for all occupations and represents about 2.4 million new jobs.  The BLS goes on to say this growth is due to an aging population, leading to a greater demand for healthcare services.

Where’s the Big Bucks?

After reading the BLS data, you might be thinking, “Most of these higher-paying jobs are in direct patient care fields.  I don’t want to work directly with patients!”  You’re right. Most of the best paying jobs are, of course, in direct patient care.  Why?  Because these are high-demand, hard-to-fill positions in the core business of healthcare: treating and caring for patients.  Plus, don’t forget, the work these folks do is often “billable” in some way.

Like it or not, healthcare today very much involves money. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that jobs which directly generate revenue are likely going to pay more than those which do not.  You have your reasons, but if you still decide to exclude yourself from the direct care group, that’s OK.  After all, as healthcare is growing, the need for the support positions will grow as well.  You can still get in on the healthcare employment boom, even without being in direct patient care.

Sure, some of these positions, especially at the entry level, may not pay as well as the clinical jobs.  However, these positions can open the door to a career path in which your income will improve as you advance to higher levels or into management.  You can have a real career, not just a job.

Amount of Patient Contact

Let’s take a look at some jobs from the viewpoint of how much direct patient care is involved.  For example, a nurse obviously has to have close contact with patients.  However, a person who works in the billing department may never even see a patient.  In fact, the billing person may work in an office building miles away from the hospital or medical office.

Every medical office, clinic, hospital, etc. is different, and no one can guarantee you will never see a patient.  For example, a billing person may have to sometimes attend business meetings in the hospital.  In that case, it’s possible to run into a patient in the hallway or on an elevator.  Would that really be so bad?  I suppose if you truly faint at even the sight of a Band-Aid^®, then maybe healthcare isn’t right for you.

However, if you have a more realistic and reasonable goal of just minimizing patient contact and mainly avoiding the “blood and guts” stuff, there are still definitely jobs for you! Lots of them.

Types of Non-Clinical Jobs

There are many non-clinical positions in healthcare which can provide excellent employment opportunities.  Do you like working with computers?  Healthcare involves numerous IT systems; everything from small office systems to multi-hospital networks and systems.  Many trades positions (electricians, plumbers, painters, HVAC, carpenters, etc.) are needed to keep a hospital operating properly and safely.

Office-type positions abound as well.  Organizations need talented administrative assistants, accountants, human resources staff, and others. Communications professionals perform public relations and print/online media work.  Risk management is an important legal field and many organizations have their own in-house lawyers. Health information technicians (medical records) are needed to manage the huge number of both physical paper and electronic files. Hospital administrators are often at the top of the pay scale and oversee the operations of entire medical centers.  The list goes on and on.

Take a Look

Before writing off the healthcare field as not for you, at least take a look.  You might be surprised to find there are many opportunities in your area of interest.

Most of all, consider the rewards.  No, not just the pay, but the satisfaction that the work you do really helps people and the community.  For many in the normal workplace, doing their jobs well just means they’ve made more profit for the business owner or stockholders.  In healthcare, even in many non-clinical positions, a job well done means you’ve made a difference.  Someone is better off because of the work you do.

That’s a sense of satisfaction and a great feeling that’s hard to beat!

Agree? Disagree? Share your experience or thoughts? Feel free to leave a comment!

Here’s a pop quiz for you.  What question often divides job seekers as well as those who advise them?  The answer?  Should an objective statement be included on a resume?

Admittedly, this question has bothered me for a while.  Whenever I read a resume with an objective statement at the top, it just doesn’t feel right.  The presence of one always seems to leave me with a funny feeling, and it’s not a warm and fuzzy one.  To me, it appears the applicant is either a novice at applying for jobs or has just finished reading a 25-year-old book on how to write a resume.  An objective statement on a resume just seems like a relic from days past.

For me, it’s not a huge deal and I can get past it easily enough.  But still, I feel the person has not really put his or her best foot forward.  Isn’t it sort of obvious one’s real objective is to land the job for which they are applying?  Plus, wouldn’t a cover letter be a better place to include such information?

Then again, I thought, maybe it’s just me.

What Do Others Say About Objective Statements?

I wondered how my views on this matter align with those of others, so I decided to take a look at some of the resume advice found online.  Spoiler alert!  We have a hung jury.  One “expert” will tell you to definitely include an objective statement.  Another, definitely do not.  Still others will tell you an objective should be included “sometimes” or that “it depends.”

So what exactly are others saying?  A blog published by Pongo, a provider of resume services, states, “Should you lead your resume with an Objective or Summary that briefly describes your skills and background? In a word, yes.”  Ok, chalk up one for the other side.  However, according to Alison Green in an article from U.S. News & World Report, “Resume objectives never help and often hurt.”  A point for me!  The well-known job search website Monster says “An objective sometimes helps and sometimes hinders your job search, so knowing when or even if to include one gets a bit tricky.”  A little confusing?  You bet.

Let’s try another approach.  I contacted a colleague at a university to see what advice professors and counselors currently give their students regarding this matter.  “Well,” was the response, “I tell my students it’s a bit of a gray area.  Some career counselors suggest including an objective statement for various reasons, but usually when they are included, the statements are so vague and poorly written that they don’t help.  I don’t include one on my resume.  I let my cover letter serve as the ‘objective’ and besides, I need the resume space for other items.”  My thoughts exactly.

What to Do?

Yes, it’s a mixed bag of advice out there.  Acceptable resume writing styles have evolved and changed over time, just like countless other things in the workplace.  However, it also appears not everyone has changed, so what is a job seeker to do in this situation?

Personally, I would not include an objective statement on a resume unless the posting clearly asks for one or it is the norm in your field to do so.  As I said earlier, the employer and you both know your real objective is to obtain the position for which you are applying.  Have a lot of education, experience, etc. to include? The extra physical space gained on your resume can be used for this.  I also firmly believe having no objective statement on your resume is far better than including a poorly written one.  Here’s an example:

Ask yourself this: does the stated objective really provide the employer with any useful information? Does the statement do anything to help convince the reviewer you’re the right candidate for the job?

After reading this objective statement, the employer may be thinking:

• I already know your objective is to get a job in this field.
• I already know it is an entry-level position.
• Every organization likes to think it is progressive and high-quality.
• You mentioned skills; which skills?
• You mentioned experience; what experience?
• I already know our electronic devices are complex.

Including an objective doesn’t really seem to help in this case.  It states the obvious. Plus, it seems to leave more questions than it answers.

Give Me Some Space, Please

Space on a resume is like valuable real estate.  You wouldn’t buy an expensive and beautiful Malibu oceanfront property strictly to put up a lemonade stand.  So, why waste valuable resume space to do nothing more than merely state the obvious?  Experienced applicants may already have trouble finding room to include all their relevant education and work experience on one or two pages.  Leaving out the objective section may help provide space for a few additional lines of text.

Final Thoughts

I cannot dispute that, in the end, at least to some extent, whether or not to include an objective may well be a matter of personal preference and taste.  But whose?  In this situation, I think it is the preference and taste of the employer with which you should be concerned.  After all, the employer is the one doing the hiring and thus the one to whom the resume should appeal.  But, it is very unlikely one would ever know the personal preference and taste of the individuals who might read the resume.  So, now what?

Let’s pause and look at what we know.  A well-written objective section probably does not hurt or detract.  In fact, it may very well help if the reviewer happens to favor objectives.  However, inclusion of a lousy one will do some serious damage for sure.

This situation seems to call for a risk/benefit analysis. I fear the risk of including an objective statement which might be poorly received by a reviewer is greater than the benefit which might be gained should the reviewer happen to favor its inclusion. Since I have no idea how any reviewer will feel about inclusion of an objective, I would rather just leave it out and use the extra space to further detail my experience and skills.  Why gamble?

What do you think?

Agree? Disagree? Share your experience or thoughts? Feel free to leave a comment!

Featured image courtesy of CollegeDegrees360 – flickr