Physical Therapist among Top 5 Healthcare Professions as of 2013

Physical therapist ranks as the fifth best healthcare profession, according to a Dec. 3 CareerCast.com report on the top job opportunities in healthcare. Other healthcare jobs in the top five are biomedical engineer, dental hygienist, occupational therapist and optometrist.

“The Affordable Care Act is expected to create a wide range of new jobs in the healthcare industry,” Tony Lee, publisher, CareerCast.com, said in a news release. “More insured people means an increase in the need for different types of health services, ranging from direct care to research and maintenance of medical records.”

For the 2013 Jobs Rated report, CareerCast.com reviewed each job based on four main criteria — environment, income, outlook and stress. Data were from the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau, with other data from trade associations and industry groups.

The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies projects 31% growth in U.S. healthcare employment in the next decade, which translates to an increase of roughly 4.6 million jobs.

Biomedical engineer is still a fledgling field, but those who work in this profession are on the cutting edge of the healthcare industry, according to the release. Innovations made in biomedical engineering research will be vital through the coming decade of treatment and preventative care. Because of dentistry’s growing importance, dental hygienist ranks as one of CareerCast’s best jobs in healthcare.

Occupational and physical therapists also are expected to be in high demand during the next few years, according to BLS projections. The BLS predicts 33% more OTs working by 2020, according to a 2012 occupational outlook. Similarly, the number of employed PTs is expected to grow by 39% by 2020.

Here are the 12 best jobs in healthcare, per the 2013 Jobs Rated report:
• Biomedical engineer, 62% projected growth
• Dental hygienist, 38% projected growth
• Occupational therapist, 33% projected growth
• Optometrist, 33% projected growth
• Physical therapist, 39% projected growth
• Chiropractor, 28% projected growth
• Speech pathologist, 23% projected growth
• Pharmacist, 25% projected growth
• Podiatrist, 20% projected growth
• Respiratory therapist, 28% projected growth
• Medical records technician, 21% projected growth
• Physician assistant, 30% projected growth

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