By: Deborah Johnson Wood
By the end of 2008, Spectrum Health expects to create and fill 500 full-time-equivalent clinical healthcare positions. While most of those jobs will be system-wide, Spectrum has earmarked some for its state-of-the-art Lemmen-Holton Cancer Pavilion, slated to open on June 30.
"There's no question this is definitely positive for West Michigan in terms of providing income for families and individuals, and to support the economic base of this community," says Dan Oglesby, vice president of human resources. "The health sector is a growth industry right now and it's exciting to be a part of that."
Oglesby expects most of the new jobs will be clinical jobs—nursing assistants, lab service representatives, nursing technicians, clinical support, and in-patient associates. While the pay scale varies, the mid-range average runs about $45,000 to $50,000 a year.
"Any trained clinical personnel have the luxury today of being quite mobile because of their skill set and the demand for their skills across the country," Oglesby says. "Just the other day I met one of our surgery technicians who came here from Atlanta for a job. Still others are moving here from the Detroit area."
In 2007, Spectrum filled 1,941 full-time-equivalent jobs. While many of those were existing positions, Spectrum's full-time-equivalent job count grew by 460, of which 304 were Registered Nurses.
Source: Dan Oglesby, Spectrum Health
Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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