Picture Courtesy of Tan Tock Seng Hospital
The healthcare sector employed close to 90,000 workers, according to 2015 figures from the Health Ministry.
However, that number is not going to be enough with a rapidly ageing population, according to a recent report published by NTUC’s Future Jobs, Skills and Training (FJST) Department. There will be a higher demand for healthcare workers, in particular aged care services.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) has projected a need for an additional 9,000 healthcare workers over the next three years to meet various healthcare needs among them that of an ageing population.
Where are the jobs
According to the FJST report, the healthcare sector is looking to fill a variety of positions ranging from nurses to allied health professionals, counsellors, patient care assistants and operating theatre technicians.
Employers are also looking to hire workers in areas like IT, procurement, facility management and security.
Healthcare Services Employees’ Union (HSEU) President K Thanaletchimi said information about where the jobs are is useful for the younger ones planning a long term career in healthcare.
It is also helpful to matured workers planning to switch jobs and sector and they can get information about jobs available from Workforce Singapore (WSG) and NTUC’s e2i (Employment and Employability Institute) says Ms Thanaletchimi.
Attracting Workers
A key concern is changing the perception about working in the healthcare sector and making it more attractive.
“This sector is a labour intensive one. It requires much passion, dedication and commitment. It needs lots of patience as well,” explained Ms Thanaletchimi.
“The nature of the job has inherent potential risks and hazards like exposure to radiation or infectious communicable diseases. At times, workers face verbal and physical abuses. Many may have second thoughts of working in this sector,” she added.
Outreach
At the national level, HSEU has been actively involved in the Education and Domestic Services (EDS) Committee, a sub-committee under the Future Economy Council chaired by Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat.
The committee discusses manpower challenges and ways to improve the healthcare sector’s productivity.
The union is also working closely with the LM family to spread the message about jobs in the healthcare sector.
“In the recent road show TODO TODO held in Tampines, we invited Changi General Hospital to put up a recruitment booth to create awareness about the sector’s jobs. We have also helped displaced workers in other unions in job placement in the healthcare sector. It is all about networking. And in the upcoming Future Leaders Summit we have invited the management personnel from healthcare to talk about future jobs, skills and innovations” says Ms Thanaletchimi.
The Long Term
Ms Thanaletchimi emphasised that with an ageing population, there is a greater need for community nursing and allied healthcare professionals, especially physiotherapists.
HSEU wants to attract more school leavers as well as matured workers into this sector.
It plans to work with MOH, NTUC’s e2i (Employment and Employability Institute) and nEBo to promote healthcare sector jobs through its various outreach programmes.
“A lot of work needs to done to change perception. This can only be done by greater awareness of this sector, attachment, apprenticeship schemes and scholarships for various professions.
“I do hope we can work towards forming a tripartite healthcare academy for healthcare employees as we re-define healthcare service delivery and care,” said Ms Thanaletchimi.
Source: NTUC This Week
