This discussion is in keeping with my intent for this course to focus more on the practical side of health care as opposed to the more theoretical that is the priority in other courses.

This discussion is in keeping with my intent for this course to focus more on the practical side of health care as opposed to the more theoretical that is the priority in other courses. In that vein, I can think of little that is more practical than an examination of current issues effecting health care careers: choices, opportunities, growth/decline, etc.

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For starters, I’d like you to read this VERY brief article from U.S. News and World Report, featuring an expert panel on the “Future of Jobs in Health Care.” Here is the link to the article:

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/hospital-of-tomorrow/articles/2013/11/26/the-future-of-jobs-in-health-care (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

As always, I’m happy for you to do additional background work on the topic, and am also perfectly fine with you taking the conversation to other places not addressed by the suggested conversation starters below, but here are my questions after reading this and pondering the issues for a bit:

1. The article focuses our attention on the potential changes to career paths and opportunities resulting from the Affordable Care Act, and the alternative legislation Congressional debates post-ACA. Do you have evidence that the data and sentiments in the article have changed since the article’s publication as a result of the ACA (or other forces)?
2. The article points to a shift in job environments, away from hospitals, and more toward “schools, retail clinics, workplaces, and private homes.” Do you agree? Do you see evidence of this in practice?
3. One would think, given the evidence and sentiment that the role of physician extenders (nurse practitioners and physician assistants) that these disciplines would be “booming,” and that training and credentialing tracks for these roles would be full….is this the case? What are the obstacles to continued growth in adjunctive disciplines like these?
4. Alarmingly, the panel projects a physician shortage of 92,000 by 2020, and a “tsunami of RN retirements.” Scary predictions. Do you have evidence that this is true? Not true? How do you see these trends effected by the ACA and/or other trends currently impacting the health care labor market?