The critical labor shortage that has affected nursing ranks at California hospitals is spreading to other health care professions, according to a new report released yesterday.

The demand for dental hygienists, pharmacy technicians, physical therapy assistants and other so-called allied health professionals is growing rapidly as the general population ages and as California's population expands, but training programs aren't keeping pace, according to the report commissioned by The Campaign for College Opportunity, which is based in California.

On average, the 15 health professions profiled in the report are filling a little more than half of their California job openings annually, the report said.

While California training programs fill about 90 percent of the physical therapist openings that occur each year, the state is falling short of filling 54 percent of pharmacy technician openings and 85 percent of clinical laboratory scientist jobs, according to the report.

Those shortfalls are expected to worsen as aging baby boomers retire from the health professions in California and others require more health care services.

“Allied health workforce shortages will place the health care of all Californians in jeopardy,” according to an executive summary that accompanied the report. “Without significant expansion of the state's educational capacity and an unprecedented focus on student success, there will not be enough allied health workers to meet the growing health care needs of California.”

The report was produced by Health Workforce Solutions, a San Francisco consulting firm, and funded by health maintenance organization Kaiser Permanente – the largest health care employer in the state – and the California Wellness Foundation.

The need for more qualified workers is becoming a bigger issue for hospitals in San Diego County.

Vacancies in the fields of medical imaging, rehabilitation therapy and clinical laboratory science have become harder to fill at facilities operated by Scripps Health, said Vic Buzachero, the company's senior vice president for human resources.

“We are beginning to sense (allied health labor shortages) much more acutely each year,” Buzachero said.

Eventually, the shortages will force hospitals to rely more heavily on overtime work and temporary staffers, Buzachero said. This could lead to patients noticing a decline in customer service.

“The experience the patient has becomes more variable,” he said. “Costs go up. If lab tests slow down, then you might be in the hospital a little bit longer.”

Yesterday's report called on the state to direct more money to increasing the size of training programs at community colleges and universities, to boost efforts to attract youngsters to the allied health professions and to better prepare students for math and science studies.

Another problem cited by the report is finding room at hospitals for students to receive required clinical training, which provides real-world experience beyond the classroom.

“There are so many schools in San Diego competing for clinical placement. It makes it difficult for hospitals to take students,” said Debbie Yaddow, interim associate dean of health professions at Grossmont College in El Cajon.

To help offset the shortage, Grossmont opened a simulation laboratory that re-creates clinical settings, Yaddow said.

As many as 150 students are enrolled in the seven allied health programs offered at the community college, she said.

“We are really doing everything that we can from our end to improve the numbers (of students) that we produce,” Yaddow said.