The healthcare industry is growing, as the necessity requires them to. Once, hospitals were a person’s only option for treatment. Now, there are clinics and home care to help everyone who needs it. This expansion of services allows for more personalized care for the individual patients, and can really cater to their needs.

The healthcare title covers so many different people within such a vast industry. There are many people in this industry with little training in actual healthcare but are responsible for any administrative work like billing and scheduling patients. Then there are many fields that require a little training and certifications and require experts with college degrees or advanced degrees.

The hours can be flexible, depending on the type of healthcare industry you work in. If you work in a hospital or eldercare facility, there are positions that go 24 hours in a day which creates a lot of flexibility with hours. This flexibility also applies to people who work in home care, where they travel to patient’s or client’s homes to provide services. Some people within this industry work per diem to earn extra money.

If you are interested in a fast paced career that helps people, then this can be a great place for you. Do your research to find the best position and so you can obtain the proper training and certifications to gain employment.

Job Opportunities

Here are some opportunities a person can find in healthcare:

Medical Assistants: A medical assistant will handle a lot of clerical duties for the nurses and doctors within the office they work in. They check patients in and will record all their vitals for the doctor. They will handle updating charts or filling charts as needed. They can handle both clerical and clinical duties, and what exactly they are responsible does vary with where they work and their certifications. Some medical assistants will also handle giving patient’s vaccinations. They might also handle medical billing or insurance coding tasks, depending on where they work. A medical assistant will need education beyond high school, often a degree from a technical degree in that field. They will also need to get their certifications as required by the state in which they work in. They might earn an average of $29,000 a year.

Registered Nurses: Registered nurses are the heart of the healthcare world. They often offer emotional support to both patients and their families. They also help give advice to patients and give them any information they might need to help them make an informed decision. They might coordinate their patient’s care as well as provide outreach services within their community. These community outreach projects are aimed to spreading awareness and information about health related topics that the community could really benefit from hearing. They also will assist the doctors whenever they are needed to. In some home health services, the registered nurse is the person who primarily deals with the patient and administers medicines and other treatments according to the patient’s chart. There are two types of paths into this field: an associate’s degree in nursing or a bachelor’s degree in nursing. Both will get a person employment in this field. An associate’s degree program is a 2-3 year program that touches on the basics of nursing and combines training in the classroom and in a clinical setting. They can go on further and get their bachelor’s degree in nursing. The bachelor’s program offers a more complex course load to really prepare a person for this field by teaching more advanced techniques. They will need to be licensed in accordance to their state’s regulations to become a nurse. Typically a nurse can earn around $65,000 a year.

EMTs and Paramedics: A paramedic is a more experienced EMT, and so to be one will need similar training to be the other. These people are to help with medical situations outside of a hospital or clinic setting. They must be able to think quickly and react fast to help save a person’s life. After handling a patient upon arrival, they will bring the patient to the hospital if that is the necessary course of action. Each level of EMT will have a different and more advanced skill set than the EMT level before until they eventually get their advanced degree and become a paramedic. Some basic skills that are required are CPR and how to handle various types of medical issues. This includes handling head trauma, broken limbs, and trauma to the neck or back. They should be able to properly assess a medical situation to determine if a trip to the hospital is truly necessary. An EMT will need to have a high school diploma or equivalent to enter into the EMT training program. From there, they must pass all licensing and certifications as required by their state of residence. An EMT can earn around $31,000 a year.

Physicians: Physicians are the ones who will diagnose and design treatment plans for the patients. They are the ones who perform the physical examination of the patient, take medical histories and determine and necessary diagnostic tests to perform. They can give advice on medical topics to help their patients. Some physicians perform surgical duties while others focus on clinical duties. A doctor can prescribe medicines to their patients to treat or prevent illness. A doctor must complete a doctoral program in medicine to obtain employment. They will then move onto a 3-8 year residency program, which is dependent on their specialty field. They must be licensed in their state of operation. A physician can earn around $187,000 a year.

Job Outlook

The estimated job growth in this industry is between 18% to over 20%. This growth is much faster than the 11% that can be found in other industries. This is as a result of an aging population which requires additional medical services than previously needed. This includes an expansion into home care and special eldercare type of facilities.