Job prospects Unit Assistant - Medical in Nova Scotia

Explore current and future job prospects for people working as an "unit assistant - medical" in Nova Scotia or across Canada.

Job opportunities in Nova Scotia

These outlooks were updated on November 29, 2023.

Prospects over the next 3 years

The employment outlook will be very good for Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates (NOC 33102) in Nova Scotia for the 2023-2025 period.

The following factors contributed to this outlook:

• Employment growth will lead to a moderate number of new positions.
• A moderate number of positions will become available due to retirements.
• There are a small number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation.
• High employee turnover in this occupation could lead to additional employment opportunities.
• Recent graduates from fields of study related to this occupation have found it easy to find work.

The aging population has resulted a major shortage of workers in this occupation. Increasing wages and tuition relief for training programs may serve to entice new entrants into the Continuing Care Assistant role. Further, some employers are offering incentives such as signing bonuses and in-house training paths to CCA certification.

Jobseekers in this occupation should have little difficulty finding work regardless of which region of the province they live in, though owning a vehicle is a common requirement that may be a barrier to some applicants. The physically challenging nature of this job, which often involves shift work, has led to higher turnover than normal. Opportunities do occur in hospitals, but are more frequent in non-hospital settings.

Here are some key facts about Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates in Nova Scotia:

• Approximately 11,650 people work in this occupation.
• Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates mainly work in the following sectors:
  • Nursing and residential care facilities (NAICS 623): 59%
  • Social assistance (NAICS 624): 13%
  • Hospitals (NAICS 622): 13%
  • Ambulatory health care services (NAICS 621): 10%
• The distribution of full-time and part-time workers in this occupation is:
  • Full-time workers: 74% compared to 82% for all occupations
  • Part-time workers: 26% compared to 18% for all occupations
• 62% of nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates work all year, while 38% work only part of the year, compared to 62% and 38% respectively among all occupations. Those who worked only part of the year did so for an average of 42 weeks compared to 42 weeks for all occupations.
• Less than 5% of nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates are self-employed compared to an average of 11% for all occupations.
• The gender distribution of people in this occupation is:
  • Men: 12% compared to 51% for all occupations
  • Women: 88% compared to 49% for all occupations
• The educational attainment of workers in this occupation is:
  • no high school diploma: less than 5% compared to 10% for all occupations
  • high school diploma or equivalent: 22% compared to 27% for all occupations
  • apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma: 23% compared to 12% for all occupations
  • college certificate or diploma or university certificate below bachelor's: 33% compared to 22% for all occupations
  • bachelor's degree: 14% compared to 20% for all occupations
  • university certificate, degree or diploma above bachelor level: less than 5% compared to 10% for all occupations

Breakdown by region

Explore job prospects in Nova Scotia by economic region.

Source Labour Market Information | Prospects Methodology

Labour market conditions over the next 10 years

Explore current and future job prospects for people working as an "unit assistant - medical" in Nova Scotia or across Canada.

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