That's what hundreds of people did Sunday for a few short hours at WellSpan Health's Career Day Festival in the Apple Hill Medical Center off Monument Road in York Township.
The annual event included representatives from colleges, technical schools and health care specialty fields, on hand to address questions and help people find work in one industry that shows no signs of fading.
Health care jobs are expected to increase by 25 percent by 2016, a growth rate faster than any other industry, according to the U.S. Department of Labor and Industry.
Jobs are available in administrative, research, patient care and nuclear medicine, and entry-level positions can be obtained with no more than a few months -- or even weeks -- of training, said Stephanie Workinger, WellSpan's human resource representative who coordinated the event.
"It was almost like a Black Friday sale," Workinger said about the crowd that gathered before the doors opened.
Some attendees spent time at booths upstairs where college and technical school recruiters discussed academic requirements for careers.
Like Workinger, the recruiters discussed entry-level positions, saying those would provide paychecks and experience, which would help workers decide whether they want to pursue a career in that field.
New career: Lori Shellenberger, 44, of Emigsville, was laid off from her manufacturing job a year ago and has decided to return to school.
Shellenberger talked with a recruiter from Lancaster General College of Nursing and Health Sciences about requirements to work in sonography, a diagnostic field in which she would perform ultrasounds and sonograms, for example.
Her children are grown, and she figures a job in health care is secure.
Workinger said many people associate careers in health care with doctors and nurses. Some don't think about working in the industry because they don't want to work with patients.
But they could also work in administrative fields doing medical billing and coding, or housekeeping.
Volunteers needed, too: One way to determine the best job fit is by volunteering.
WellSpan's Volunteer Center links people to numerous opportunities such as flower deliver, courier of medical records, community outreach at health fairs or nurses aide. Once people determine what they like, it's easier to hone in on a career.
Mike Grove, 55, of Spring Garden Township, works in transport services. He says he volunteered at York Hospital because he lived nearby. He trained for three weeks, learning how to move patients from beds to chairs, from one place to another in the hospital.
He liked the interaction. A few months later, he applied for and landed a job in patient transport. The job pays $8 to $10 an hour and is a good way to learn about different jobs in hospitals to find the best fit without extensive training, Workinger said.
-- Reach Kathy Stevens at 505-5437 or kstevens@yorkdispatch.com.
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