The economy continues to hinder the job market, and the hospital and healthcare sectors are being hit significantly by the slow economy.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics shared some shocking numbers this week:

The hospital sector added 7,300 new jobs in April 2007, and that number increased one year later to 11,300 new jobs. However, in April 2009, the number of new hires dwindled to  a mere 600 new jobs.

The healthcare sectors as w hole, which includes physicians’ offices, residential mental health homes, and blood and organ banks, only added 17,000 new jobs in April 2009, which is way down in comparison to the 30,000 average new hires for the month.

According to an article on HealthLeadersMedia.com, which reported these numbers, “If hospital payroll increases continue at this pace, fewer than 25,000 new jobs will be created in 2009, as compared with 137,100 new hospital jobs in 2008; 105,700 new jobs in 2007.”

It is important to note that even though job growth is slow in the hospital and healthcare sectors, they are still outperforming the overall economy.

Click here to read the entire article: Hospital Job Growth Slows.