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Exploring Healthcare Career Options

  • 1.  Exploring Healthcare Career Options

    Posted 09-05-2022 11:21

    (Source: Questions to Ask Before Choosing a Healthcare Career)

    There are many career options in the healthcare field based on level of education, field, skillset, and salary. Healthcare is an essential part of life. Patients need proper care from compassionate people, and healthcare providers need to find the right people to fill those positions.

    Healthcare Occupation Facts:
    • Employment in healthcare occupations is projected to grow 16 percent from 2020 to 2030, much faster than the average for all occupations, adding about 2.6 million new jobs. Healthcare occupations are projected to add more jobs than any of the other occupational groups. This projected growth is mainly due to an aging population, leading to greater demand for healthcare services.
    • The median annual wage for healthcare practitioners and technical occupations (such as registered nurses, physicians and surgeons, and dental hygienists) was $75,040 in May 2021, which was higher than the median annual wage for all occupations in the economy of $45,760.
    • Healthcare support occupations (such as home health aides, occupational therapy assistants, and medical transcriptionists) had a median annual wage of $29,880 in May 2021, lower than the median annual wage for all occupations in the economy.
    Health Care Careers are divided into five pathways - Therapeutic Services, Diagnostic Services, Support Services, Health Informatics, and Biotechnology Research and Development:
    • Therapeutic Services Pathways are those careers that help to maintain or change the health status of the patient over time.
    • Diagnostic Services Pathway are those careers that help to pinpoint a disease or condition creating a picture of the patient's health status at a single point of time.
    • Support Services Pathway are those careers that help to provide a therapeutic environment for the delivery of health care.
    • Health Informatics Pathway are those careers supporting and documenting patient care.
    • Biotechnology Research and Development Pathway are those careers that use scientific and technical enhancements to enhance diagnostic and therapeutic
    Here are some career options based on each level of education:
    • With a high-school diploma diploma or equivalent, you could become a home health aide, orderly, optician, pharmacy technician, psychiatric aide, veterinary assistant, or lab animal caretaker.
    • With an associate's degree or postsecondary training certificate, you could qualify to be a dental hygienist, emergency medical technician, medical sonographer, cardiovascular technologist, licensed practical nurse, massage therapist, medical assistant, medical records specialist, medical transcriptionist, nuclear medicine technologist, certified nursing assistant, psychiatric technician, occupational or physical therapy assistant, occupational health and safety technician, paramedic, phlebotomist, radiation therapist, radiologic or MRI technologist, respiratory therapist, surgical technologist, or veterinary technician.
    • With a bachelor's degree, you could become an athletic trainer, lab technician, dietitian or nutritionist, exercise physiologist, recreational therapist, or registered nurse.
    • With a master's degree, you could pursue a career as a genetic counselor, mental health counselor, nurse anesthetist, nurse midwife, nurse practitioner, occupational therapist, orthotist, prosthetist, physician assistant, or speech-language pathologist.
    • With a doctoral or professional degree, you could be an audiologist, chiropractor, dentist, optometrist, pharmacist, physical therapist, physician, psychologist, surgeon, or podiatrist.
    Here are some helpful questions to ask yourself when deciding on a career:
    • What is the level of education I am willing to pursue?
    • What are some careers best suited for my skillset and interests?
    • Which work environment do I work best in?
    You can use resources such as Health Career Explorer | explorehealthcareers.org to gather more information and figure out what is best for you.

    Discussion Questions: How did you chose your healthcare career? If you have not chosen it yet, how are you exploring different options? Feel free to share any personal stories, questions, or concerns.

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    Mike Beasley
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