5 hardest-to-fill healthcare jobs in the District of Columbia

Washington aides stand 8% above the national median, yet the District of Columbia search stays difficult.

Washington home health aides look thin, share 0.58, a third under usual Washington supply.

Washington dental hygienists are a weak backup, and Washington still scores that search 7.6. District of Columbia openings in December 2025 were 4.5, above the U.S. rate of 4.0.

Each occupation and metro

Ranked table

Swipe the table sideways. The same figures are in the blocks above.

Takeaways

• Washington psych technicians are barely half typical, and Washington's share on that row is 0.46.
• Washington records specialists earn about $58.8K, so the District of Columbia should not call them easy.
• Washington phlebotomists show share 0.66, and Washington should not treat that search as simple.
• Washington hygienists earn about $119.2K, 21% above the national median, and the District of Columbia must respect it.

For recruiters

• Washington recruiters should staff aides in the District of Columbia before the other rows.
• District of Columbia teams should keep hygienists warm once Washington aide staffing is done.
• Place the Columbia wage in the Hiring Pack.

FAQ

Are these posted wages or open jobs?

No. The table is a government survey or a designation file.

What should a recruiter do first?

Follow the recruiter note on this page.

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

Related hiring pages

Methodology

The five rows are the five recruiting occupations on the hiring grid whose best scored metro page in District of Columbia has the highest score. A state with fewer than five scored recruiting occupations is omitted. Pages under 500 local workers are not scored and are not eligible. A metro page is scored only when OEWS employment for that occupation is at least 500. Below that, the page stays up and is left off this ranking. Postsecondary teaching occupations and medical scientists are left off even when they are scored. Nominal weights, before a missing shortage match is rescaled, are projected openings divided by 2025 employment 18%, projected growth 22%, the metro median divided by the U.S. median 40%, how common the occupation is locally compared with the country 8% (the location-quotient column; a lower figure means a thinner local bench), a matching HRSA shortage designation 8%, and statewide all-industry JOLTS for December 2025 4%. Bands are Standard under 4, Elevated from 4 up to 7, and Hard at 7 and above. The District of Columbia total-nonfarm job openings rate for December 2025 is 4.5. The U.S. rate is 4.0. Both are all-industry JOLTS rates. Rounded figures in the prose: $38,530 is stated as about $38.5K. a comparison of 1.08 is stated as 8 percent. $35,800 is stated as about $35.8K. Rounded figures in the prose: $58,810 is stated as about $58.8K. $119,170 is stated as about $119.2K. a comparison of 1.21 is stated as 21 percent.

Sources

• BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics · May 2025
• BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, total nonfarm · December 2025