Corona Brezina - Getting a Job in Health Care

Published in 2014 by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc.

29 East 21st Street, New York, NY 10010

Copyright 2014 by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc.

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Brezina, Corona.

Getting a job in health care/Corona Brezina.First edition.

pages cm.(Job basics, getting the job you need)

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-4488-9610-3 (library binding)

1. Medical personnelVocational guidance. 2. Allied health personnel Vocational guidance. I. Title.

R690.B658 2014 610.69dc23

2012047069

Manufactured in the United States of America

CPSIA Compliance Information: Batch #S13YA: For further information, contact Rosen Publishing, New York, New York, at 1-800-237-9932.

A young nursing aide arrives early at the hospital and checks in to work. Shes wearing a crisp uniform that still looks almost brand new Its a big day for her. After intensive on-the-job training, shes finally going to start her regular duties.

The job is an important responsibility. A nursing aide provides the most basic medical care for patients in health care facilities. He or she is the caregiver that patients turn to first. A patient might tell the nursing aide about a health concern. The aide will relay the concern to a nurse or doctor. If it requires treatment, the aide may participate by dispensing medication. Aides also attend to patients day-to-day health, comfort, diet, and hygiene. A nursing aide has more personal contact with the patient than any other member of the medical team.

While shes waiting for the elevator, she thinks for a moment about the high school program that put her on the path to becoming a nursing aide. She had signed up for the allied health program at her local vocational-technical institution. After graduating, she had enrolled in a one-semester nursing aide training course at her nearby community college. She had passed her certification exam after completing the course. It didnt take long to receive a job offer, since nursing aides are in high demand on the job market. She is already thinking about the possibility of taking additional training in the future so that she can get a more specialized job in occupational therapy.

A CAT scan technician examines an image. Medical imaging specialists are in high demand in the job market. Many educational programs in the field take less than two years to complete.

Can you imagine yourself working as a nursing aide someday? Perhaps you would be interested in a health care job, but your real aptitude lies in technology. Youd want a job that requires computer expertise and an ability to use high-tech equipment. In that case, there are plenty of health care jobs that may pique your interest. For example, health information technologists and medical imaging technicians are also in high demand.

A wealth of information on health care careers is available in the Bureau of Labor Statisticss (BLS) Occupational Outlook Handbook. For each occupation, the Handbook outlines what youd expect to do on the job. It describes the work environment. It details what sort of education, training, and certification are requiredmany health care jobs require an associates degree from a community college or less. The Handbook lists the pay for the jobmany health care workers earn good wages. It also projects the expected job outlook for the next ten years or somany health care jobs are expected to see faster than average growth in employment. The Handbook also lists organizations that can offer more information on each specialty.

The overall economic situation in the United States may be uncertain, but health care industries continue to grow. Many workers appreciate the economic security of a good job in health care. Health care is a promising field for new entrants to the workforce at all levels of education. Entry level workers with an associates degree or less can enter the field in a variety of specialties. For many young people weighing their options, a health care job could easily provide a secure and rewarding path to success.

H ealth care is a huge career field. It deals with many different aspects of peoples physical and mental well-being. A health care worker can choose from a variety of jobs and job settings. Specialties exist within the field that match just about every personality type and skill set. Are you analytical and exacting? Try looking at health technician jobs. Are you compassionate and eager to help people? You might be a good nursing aide. Are you sociable and a natural problem solver? There might be a good medical assistant position for you.

Many health professions require high levels of education and specialized skills. Doctors and nurses undergo extensive training for their jobs. But doctors, nurses, and other highly trained specialists are supported by a huge workforce of other health care professionals. Many of these jobs require only an associates degree, which can be completed in two years or less. Some jobs require even less training. And dont forget that health care workers are in high demand. It is possible for a high school graduate to find a basic health care job immediately upon graduation and complete training on the job.

If youre considering the field of health care, dont be scared away by long job titles! You might see a job title like electroneurodiagnostic (END) technologist and assume that its way beyond your capabilities. But if you read the description, youll find that an END technologist is the person who handles certain specialized medical equipment. A community college student can complete an END program in twelve to twenty-four months. Likewise, many other health care jobs with complicated-sounding job titles may be more easily attainable than you might at first believe. In fact, certificate programs for some health care careers can be completed in less than a year.

A medical technician assists a doctor during a computed tomography (CT) scan, a powerful tool that produces cross-sectional images of a patient's body.

Dont forget that general medical workers are required in a variety of specialty practices. You might be interested in a specific health care field only to find that it requires a high level of education. Art therapists, for example, treat problems such as mental illness with art, music, and dance. You might think that it sounds like an exciting career path, except that it usually requires at least a four-year degree. But an art therapy practice hires employees such as medical assistants in the office. You might pursue a job as a medical assistant with the aim of getting your foot in the door, pursuing more education and training while working, and eventually rising up to gain a position as an art therapist.