PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — The U.S. Department of Labor reports health care occupations are expected to grow 15 percent by 2029, faster than the average for all occupational groups. That equates to job opportunities.
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CareerSource is holding a virtual career fair for companies in the immediate need of workers in health care and life science from Boca Raton to the Treasure Coast.
At the start of the day, Tenika Francis, a ComForCare Home Care caregiver, packs an emergency PPE kit at the company’s main office.
"My day is never routine. Things come up, and I have to go," said Francis. "It depends on where I'm needed."
She's an on-call caregiver, a job that requires flexibility, skill and compassion.
"We give standby assistance with showers, which is important, but there's so much more than that. We give companionship," Francis said.
"COVID-19 has created an environment where people are stranded. They're left alone. Their support networks have begun to disintegrate. [Their] family is either afraid to come, or they're remote, so the need for care at home has never been more important than it is now," added Scott Greenberg, ComForCare Home Care, CEO, author and radio show host.
Greenberg has even authored a book offering practical advice on the unknowns more families are facing.
"What if you can't cook? What if you can't shop the way you used to shop? What if you can't bring healthy, nutritious food into your house and then can’t prepare that. What if you can't drive. What if you can’t get to the doctor?" he asked.
ComForCare Home Care needs 50 caregivers to assist aging adults from Boca Raton and Vero Beach. The company is one of approximately 30 employers taking part in a virtual career fair in healthcare and life science hosted by CareerSource Palm Beach County and CareerSource Research Coast on Oct. 21 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
"We give people the tools to live their best life possible," Greenberg said.
WPTV reached out to a few employers. The number of jobs, like the industry, is expanding and diverse.
For example, Dynix Diagnostix, a lab helping process COVID-19 tests, needs people in billing, med techs and lab assistants. Meanwhile, Precise Care Services in Fort Pierce needs 20 to 30 licensed practical nurses.