Job Trends for Allied Health Professionals
Allied health professionals occupy a space within the healthcare industry separate from traditional nursing and medicine. These providers “ally” with doctors and other healthcare workers and assist them with their work. Oftentimes, allied health professionals are split into two categories: technicians/assistants and therapists/technologists. In practice, you can find allied health providers working as dental hygienists, dieticians, physical therapists, radiographers, speech language pathologists, and more.
The SIA projects a continued growth of 5% in allied healthcare professionals in 2023 and 2024. In addition, the locum tenens segment—which places medical providers in understaffed facilities on short- or long-term temporary contracts—is expected to grow by 10% in 2023, with continued growth in 2024. Take these stats along with the fact that allied healthcare temporary staffing revenue grew tremendously by 103% from 2021 to 2022, according to the SIA, and it’s easy to see why travel allied health might continue to expand.
Healthcare Trends Drive Demand
What’s behind the projected growth in allied health professionals in the coming years? There are a few healthcare trends that are the main reasons.
Many schools have become increasingly dependent on staffing agencies to fill positions like speech language pathologists and psychologists, according to the SIA. At Barton Healthcare Staffing, we often work with schools to quickly place qualified allied health specialists in temporary positions.
The SIA also points to the aging population as another reason why there’s such a large surge in demand for allied health professionals. More elderly patients means a greater need for allied health workers who are skilled in operating special equipment to diagnose and treat conditions linked to old age, like heart disease.
Interested in what kinds of allied health professionals might see the greatest supply and demand in the future? Last year, the United States Health Resources & Services Administration released its allied health workforce projections out to 2030. Here are some of the biggest findings:
| Allied Health Worker | Supply by 2030 | Demand by 2030 |
| Respiratory Therapists | 166,930 | 144,100 |
| Occupational Therapists | 150,810 | 127,260 |
| Pharmacists | 410,490 | 359,770 |
| Physical Therapists | 302,360 | 298,820 |
Find Travel Allied Health Positions with Us
Are you an allied health provider who is looking to start a travel healthcare career? Our experienced team is here to help you land your first job. Check out our open travel allied health positions online today!