Between 1995 and 2007, the number of older workers on full-time work schedules nearly doubled while the number working part-time rose just 19 percent. Our society is being reshaped by a rising demographic tide. Never have so many people lived into the later stages of their lives so healthy and productively, says American Psychological Association at apa.org.
There will be many job opportunities in teaching and care giving roles including nurses,vocational training instructors,home health aides,nursing aides,orderlies,attendants, and medical assistants. The Department of Labor Division of Industry Employment Projections further estimates that the number of workers over the age of 54 will represent 23.9 percent of the labor force and workers between the ages of 65 and 74 will soar by 83.4 percent by 2016.
Seniors are going to need to continue to work to finance their retirement years and as these people hit the job market, hiring doctors, and other clinicians will have to determine whether they want to hire a younger, middle-aged,or older person for available medical assistant positions.
Benefits of Doctors Hiring Mature Workers
Mature workers are known to perform better across the range of relevant performance indicators – better interpersonal skills, better attendance, more motivated and conscientious, able to make quicker decisions and so on. Among these employers are doctors who find older medical assistants for their practice a perfect fit because they appreciate the fact a mature worker has a deeper understanding and compassion for people and are dedicated to them in a meaningful way.
Generous Social Security and employer-provided pension benefits can discourage work, since many people are reluctant to remain in the labor force if they appear to be able to receive a substantial portion of their current pay merely by retiring. Take for instance, pay less in early years of receipt—thus encouraging more work—and more in later years. . The economic value of the annual benefit in these pension plans can be calculated as the change in the present value of all future pension benefits for staying on the job one more year.
Challenges Seasoned Medical Assistants May Face at Work
While an older person is likely not to get as flustered under stressful situations as a younger person, fresh out of high school there are studies which show that older workers have a harder time physically. Unfortunately, working in a medical office can also become busy at the drop of a hat, the medical assistant must be able to handle the stress, react fast, and keep up with the fast pace.
Further more, suitable candidates for medical office position are expected to be on their feet for several hours without a break, good hand – eye coordination, and have excellent near vision to see details at close range (such as the calibration markings on syringes, reading small print on medication labels, visualization of skin changes, identifying objects and seeing veins to draw blood). They must be able to work with a professional group or team and participate in face-to-face discussions with doctors, nurses and their colleagues.
It takes a lot more than education and training to become a good medical assistant. Because medical assistants are required to take vital signs and record patient information, they need to be as detailed as possible. This field also requires a person to deal with sick and injured patients on a regular basis.For that reason, a good medical assistant should be sympathetic and friendly.