Laid Off? Try the Health Care Industry

CNN:

Nursing school seemed like a good idea to Tracy Kidd, but not just because she was interested in medicine.

Kidd, 37, and her husband recently took a massive pay cut -- the painting business they own in Mesa, Arizona, once brought in about $70,000 a month. Now they're lucky to get $800 a month. They have moved in with Tracy's father because their house was foreclosed on.

"I knew that nurses are always needed, and I didn't want what just happened to us to ever happen again," said Kidd, who started a licensed practical nurse (LPN) program two weeks ago that will allow her to work while finishing her registered nurse (RN) degree.

Kidd's logic squares with the numbers: While industries such as manufacturing have had decreasing job openings, there continues to be a deep need for health care positions such as nurses, physician assistants, pharmacists and primary-care physicians.

With the unemployment rate at 8.1 percent and thousands of Americans getting laid off every day, the employment landscape looks bleak. But some experts say there are many job opportunities in the health care sector.

Read the entire article here. Also see "Two Trillion Spent on Healthcare Each Year: A Sick Way to Prop Up an Ailing Economy," by AlterNet writer Joshua Holland.