The Most in-Demand Healthcare Jobs in the UK

Unquestionably, it has been a challenging couple of years for the healthcare industry as the country faced the largest public health crisis in living memory.

In response, the industry has swelled. During the last 12 months for instance, new analysis shows that recruitment appears high on the agenda with a 37% increase in the number of people hired by the sector in 2022.

Recruitment software company Occupop has crunched the numbers from key job application channels such as Indeed, Careers Page and LinkedIn, and has also found a 36% increase in the number of job applications in the industry.

The healthcare sector has assumed high priority in the public’s job-hunting collective consciousness. But what are the most in-demand healthcare jobs in the UK and what do these entail? We explore the subject further.

Healthcare Assistants

With an impressive 59% of applicants, healthcare assistant roles made up the bulk of job searches. Healthcare assistants (HCAs) are often an entry-level health job which doesn’t require a degree in a specific field. Despite this, HCA roles offer candidates the chance to acquire some good patient-facing experience and can work in a variety of healthcare settings from A&E to outpatients and maternity wards.

Healthcare Administrator

Not all healthcare applicants however will work in medical roles. For instance, 14% of jobseekers sought admin jobs. Again, in most cases, no formal qualifications are needed, although excellent communication and organisation skills will be preferred. Healthcare admins can work across hospitals, clinics, general practices and trust headquarters and will support medical colleagues by arranging appointments, creating patient documents and updating records.

Nursing and Midwifery

Nursing and midwifery roles also witnessed a spike with a 7% increase and offer candidates a life-changing, rewarding career. This rise could be explained with a nationwide drive by government to recruit more nurses with tens of thousands of vacancies across the country in recent years. Nursing offers a range of roles and responsibilities with areas of work spanning clinical, critical care, mental health and midwifery to name but a few.

Social Care Worker

1.54 million people are currently employed by the social care sector and this is expected to rise with a 7% increase in demand. As more older people live longer, the need for care increases which can explain the rise, in addition to younger disabled people living longer than ever before. Social care workers provide practical and emotional support to a wide range of people and can assist with tasks to enhance their quality of life.  

Allied Health Professionals

Allied Health professionals also made a demonstrable rise with a 5% increase. Allied Health is a broad term used to describe a range of medical professionals who are not doctors or nurses but still perform specialist tasks. Often these can be in distinct areas who work alongside multi-disciplinary doctors. Professions can include roles such as chiropractors, dietitians, osteopaths, pharmacists and radiographers.  

Elsewhere in the survey, the month with the most applications was revealed to be July, demonstrating a summertime spike in job-hunting, while March was the month with the most hires as firms look to increase their headcount ahead of the new financial year.

Jobs search engine Indeed proved the most lucrative source of hires attracting 40% of applicants while Careers Page received 29%, LinkedIn 11% and Facebook 7%.

One thing that is for certain, health is wealth for UK job seekers.