So, you want a career in the healthcare industry, but you don't want to be a nurse or a doctor. What other options do you have? Answer: Plenty. Here are just a few healthcare specialties that you can pursue:
Cardiovascular Technology
Cardiology Technologists (CT) work closely with doctors in diagnosing patients with cardiac ailments. A vital part of a CT's role is performing cardiac and/or vascular tests, administering and monitoring various cardiac tests, inserting catheters, pacemakers and other medical devices used to treat cardiac patients.
Most colleges make it so that part of the Cardiovascular Technology program curriculum includes hands-on experience and training at hospitals and clinics. This will allow students to get a realistic view of what a career in Cardiovascular Technology involves, and will also give them the opportunity to see which healthcare environment they would best like to work in.
Diagnostic Cardiac Sonography
A sonographer is a healthcare professional who assists physicians in the diagnosis process by taking internal images of patients. Taking these images can be quite invasive, and can make patients feel very uncomfortable, so sonographers are expected to exercise a lot of patience and compassion.
In addition to taking images, sonographers may also be required to consult and update a patient's medical history file, as well as analyze technical data in order to be able to suggest procedures based on diagnostic data.
Medical Radiation
A Medical Radiation technologist (MRT, or a Radiologic technologist) assists in using radiant energy techniques in order to diagnose and treat patients. When we think radiation, we typically think of cancer treatment. An MRT may spend most of their career assisting with the treatment of cancer patients. But, there are Radiologic specialities that do not only focus on cancer treatment, including radiography, fluoroscopy, sonography and computed tomography.
Occupational Therapist Assistant and Physiotherapist Assistant
An OTA will work directly with patients who are suffering from a lack of motor functions and reasoning. The severity of a patients' conditions can vary, meaning OTA's can expect to work with a range of motor disabilities, including patients who have lost the ability to walk or speak, or even to carry out everyday tasks, like making a pot of coffee or taking a shower.
Personal Support Worker
A PSW plays a vital role in the healthcare system, and is responsible to perform a variety of extremely necessary tasks, including bathing and dressing patients with limited mobility; making and changing patient beds; maintaining a tidy environment for the patient, being mindful of and reporting any unusual or alarming behaviour by the patient.
PSWs have the opportunity to work in a variety of healthcare settings, including hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, or private home care.
Pharmacy Technician
The principal role of a pharmacy technician is to assist pharmacists in preparing and administering pharmaceutical medication. PT's are also expected to know and be able to advise on the regulations and methodologies regarding prescriptions.
It may seem as though a pharmacy professional is responsible to know and understand only those issues pertaining to prescription drugs. However, pharmacy technicians are also required to know the ins and outs of alternative or all-natural medication. This better equips them to be able to suggest or advise a client on what type of medication would be best for them to use.
It is obvious that nurses and doctors are not the only professionals who receive healthcare training. Most Health and Technology colleges offer programs that complement health courses with hands-on training in order to better prepare students for the job in question.
