Podiatrist was the hardest occupation to fill in the US, according to the American Staffing Association’s fourth-quarter skills gap index, a quarterly index that tracks hard-to-fill occupations in the US.

The index identified 73 occupations as hard to fill for the fourth quarter of 2015, with the top 10 being:

1. Podiatrists
2. Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers
3. Photographic process workers and processing machine operators
4. Psychiatrists
5. Oral and maxillofacial surgeons
6. Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists
7. Merchandise displayers and window trimmers
8. Occupational therapists
9. General internists
10. Physical therapists

During the past quarter, oral and maxillofacial surgeons and merchandise displayers and window trimmers moved into the top 10 list of hardest-to-fill positions, while speech-language pathologists and occupational therapy assistants dropped off, though both still rank among the most difficult to fill. Healthcare occupations continue to dominate the top 10 list.

“Demand for qualified workers continues to grow as the pool of talent shrinks,” said ASA President and CEO Richard Wahlquist. “Using the ASA Skills Gap Index and related resources, staffing, recruiting and workforce solutions companies are helping businesses recruit and retain talent by setting competitive wages based on current skills shortages and regional differences.”

The ASA Skills Gap Index draws on nine-plus data sources and utilizes CareerBuilder’s Supply & Demand Portal Hiring Indicator scores.

CareerBuilder recently implemented stricter guidelines for its demand data deduplication methodology, resulting in significantly fewer reported job postings on average. This changed the base for the ASA skills gap index, reducing the number of hard-to-fill occupations overall.