HOUSTON -- Some UTMB employees who were given their walking papers by the Galveston Island Hospital are getting a new opportunity to find new jobs.

St. Joseph Hospital, located in downtown Houston, held a job fair on Wednesday to match people with the right positions in the medical field.

The job fair was planned before the lay offs, but it gave people such as Gail Jones a reason to feel optimistic.

Jones lost her job in UTMB's clerical department after 23 years.

"It's devastating," said Jones, "But I am confident. I have the right skills and a lot of experience."

Hurricane IKE caused more than $700 million in damage to UTMB.

The hospital said it cannot continue to operate and meet its payroll expenses. It said it will lay off approximately 3,800 people.

Despite the problems faced by UTMB, the medical field in general continues to be very strong and that's one reason why St. Joseph is able to hire people.

"Our patient demand is growing, we are always hiring more physicians and personnel," said vice president of marketing, Fritz Guthrie.