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The Pennsylvania Health Workforce: Highlights from the Health Workforce Profile

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State Health Workforce Profiles
Highlights
Pennsylvania

Printer-friendly Pennsylvania Highlights (PDF - 41 KB)

  • There were nearly 600,000 people employed in the health sector in Pennsylvania in 2000, 10.7% of Pennsylvania‘s total workforce. Pennsylvania ranked 7th among the states in per capita health services employment.
  • Health services employment in Pennsylvania grew 28% between 1988 and 2000, while the state’s population grew by only 4%, resulting in a net per capita growth of 23% in health services sector employment. This is close to the national rate of per capita growth in the health services sector of 21%.
  • The total population of Pennsylvania is projected to grow 2% between 2000 and 2020, while the population 65 and over is projected to grow 23% between 2000 and 2020.
  • In 1999, Pennsylvania was above national rates of deaths due to cancer and heart disease and below the national rate of deaths due to firearms.
  • In 2000, Pennsylvania was above the national rate in the number of hospital beds per 100,000 population.

Highlights of the findings about the health workforce in Pennsylvania are presented below.

Medicine

  • There were more than 28,700 active patient care physicians in Pennsylvania in 2000. With 234 physicians per 100,000 population, Pennsylvania was well above the national ratio of 198 physicians per 100,000. Pennsylvania ranked 8th among states in physicians per capita.
  • Pennsylvania had 86 active primary care physicians per 100,000 population in 2000, higher than the rate of 69 per 100,000 for the entire country.
  • Medical schools in Pennsylvania graduated 1,365 new physicians in 2000. Pennsylvania ranked 2nd among the 46 states with medical schools in number of medical school graduates. On a per capita basis, Pennsylvania graduated more new physicians per 100,000 population (11.2) than did the entire United States (6.4) and ranked 5th among the 46 states in medical school graduates
    per capita.
  • There were 2,092 physician assistants practicing in Pennsylvania in 2000. This was equal to 17.0 physician assistants per 100,000 population, above the national rate of 14.4.

Nursing

  • There were nearly 166,000 licensed registered nurses (RNs) in Pennsylvania in 2000; almost 124,000 were employed in nursing. There were 1,009.2 RNs per 100,000 population in Pennsylvania in 2000, significantly higher than the national rate of 780.2.
  • In 2000, Pennsylvania ranked 6th among the states in the number of Licensed
    Practical/Vocational Nurses (LPNs) employed in 2000 with 33,010 workers. With 268.7 LPNs per 100,000 population as compared to the national rate of 240.8 per 100,000, Pennsylvania ranked 17th in the per capita employment of LPNs.
  • Pennsylvania had nearly 4,100 nurse practitioners in 2000. This was equal to 33.2 nurse practitioners per 100,000 population, comparable to the national rate of 33.7. Pennsylvania ranked 24th among states in nurse practitioners per capita.
  • With 231 certified nurse midwives in 2000, Pennsylvania had 1.9 certified nurse midwives per 100,000 population, less than the national rate of 2.9. Pennsylvania ranked 30th among states in certified nurse midwives per capita.
  • With more than 2,000 certified registered nurse anesthetists in 2003, Pennsylvania had 16.7 nurse anesthetists per 100,000 population, much higher than the national rate of 9.3. Pennsylvania was among the states with the highest ratios of nurse anesthetists per capita in the nation.

Dentistry, Pharmacy and Mental Health

  • There were 8,559 dentists, 7,870 dental hygienists, and 8,540 dental assistants practicing in Pennsylvania in 2000. There were 69.7 dentists per 100,000 population in Pennsylvania in 2000, above the national rate of 63.6. The per capita ratio of dental hygienists was also above the national rate.
  • The number of dentists in Pennsylvania increased 17% between 1991 and 2000 while the state’s population increased 3%. The result was a 14% increase in dentists per capita, comparable to the 16% increase nationwide.
  • There were 10,210 pharmacists and 12,620 pharmacy technicians and aides practicing in Pennsylvania in 2000. Pennsylvania had 83.1 pharmacists and 102.7 pharmacy technicians and aides per 100,000 population in 2000, which ranked them 15th and 9th, respectively, among the 50 states.
  • There were 1,753 psychiatrists, 4,340 psychologists, and 22,490 social workers in Pennsylvania in 2000. This was equal to 14.6 psychiatrists, 35.3 psychologists, and 183.1 social workers per 100,000 population. Pennsylvania ranked 11th among states in psychiatrists per capita, 23rd among states in psychologists per capita, and 19th among states in social workers per capita.

Aides

  • There were 20,210 home health aides and 68,980 nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants working in Pennsylvania in 2000.