Healthcare organizations added 27,000 jobs in February, the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Friday, and hiring across the country picked up during the first full month of President Donald Trump's administration.
Overall, U.S. businesses added 235,000 jobs and the unemployment rate dropped slightly to 4.7 percent.
While healthcare hiring beat January numbers, when the sector added 17,000 jobs, it fell short of December's 41,000 new jobs.
[Also: Healthcare job growth plummets in January]
Ambulatory centers, which includes physician offices, dentist offices, outpatient centers and diagnostic labs, added 18,300 jobs in the month while hospitals added 6,300 jobs.
Diagnostic laboratories continue to shed workforce, losing 1,400 jobs in the month.
Here's the seasonally adjusted breakdown for the healthcare sector. All numbers are in thousands:
*/| Industry | Feb. 2016 | Dec. 2016 | Jan. 2017 | Feb. 2017 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industry | Feb. 2016 | Dec. 2016 | Jan. 2017 | Feb. 2017 | Change |
| Healthcare | 15,276.80 | 15,594.50 | 15,606.60 | 15,633.40 | 26.8 |
| Ambulatory healthcare | 6,989.30 | 7,194.70 | 7,201.80 | 7,220.10 | 18.3 |
| Physicians offices | 2,502.20 | 2,558.90 | 2,559.40 | 2,566.30 | 6.9 |
| Dentists offices | 918.4 | 937.1 | 938.1 | 940.2 | 2.1 |
| Other healthcare offices | 836.6 | 884.2 | 885.9 | 884.9 | -1 |
| Outpatient care centers | 837.6 | 880.5 | 885.5 | 890.7 | 5.2 |
| Medical and diagnostic laboratories | 260.8 | 262 | 260.6 | 259.2 | -1.4 |
| Home healthcare services | 1,345.50 | 1,380.00 | 1,381.60 | 1,385.80 | 4.2 |
| Other ambulatory healthcare | 288.3 | 291.9 | 290.7 | 293 | 2.3 |
| Hospitals | 4,981.00 | 5,077.00 | 5,078.70 | 5,085.00 | 6.3 |
| Nursing and residential care facilities | 3,306.50 | 3,322.80 | 3,326.10 | 3,328.30 | 2.2 |
| Nursing care facilities | 1,642.20 | 1,645.80 | 1,644.30 | 1,645.20 | 0.9 |
| Residential mental health facilities | 613.4 | 615.8 | 617.4 | 618.5 | 1.1 |
| Community care facilities for the elderly | 887.4 | 897.3 | 899.8 | 899.7 | -0.1 |
| Other residential care facilities | 163.5 | 163.9 | 164.6 | 164.9 | 0.3 |
Twitter: @HenryPowderly
Contact the author: henry.powderly@himssmedia.com