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Get Your Healthcare Career into Better Shape

By Gina Pogol
Learning & Life Columnist
April 6, 2007

Home health aides care for patients in their homes, doing everything from light housework to feeding, bathing, and other personal care. The work environment can be reasonably pleasant or it can be thoroughly depressing. Patients can be cooperative--or they can be abusive, angry, and mentally ill. The job may involve heavy lifting, and aides must be careful to avoid injuring themselves. Advancement is very limited, and the pay is minuscule--about $6.99 an hour.

Get Out of the Kitchen (and the Living Room, and the Bathroom...)

Better jobs in healthcare are everywhere. The industry is the fastest-growing in the U.S., and there are enough specialties to accommodate almost anyone's interests, skills and priorities. Education requirements cover the entire spectrum, from certificate programs for medical assisting, to associate's degrees in nursing and massage therapy, to master's degrees in healthcare administration. Even after landing that first job, healthcare employees can continue to advance their careers with additional education and enjoy high demand and great pay for their services. By earning a bachelor's, master's, or doctoral degree in various specialties, you can get to the top of your profession.

In-demand healthcare careers include medical assistance, certified nursing assistance, laboratory, ultrasound, surgical, medical records and radiologic technology, speech, physical, and occupational therapy, medical office assistance, nursing, pharmaceutical, biostatistics and medical research.

Don't get stuck in your lousy job. Safer, more fulfilling, and higher-paying careers await those who can add education to their experience and move on.

Sources:

• AlterNet Rights and Liberties, "The Ten Worst Jobs in America"
• The Wall Street Journal, "We Ask: What are Some of the Best and Worst Jobs?"

About the Author
Gina Pogol has a terrific job as a writer and editor for an online media company. After working at several horrible jobs, she earned an associate's degree in Computer Programming, a certificate in Paralegal Studies, and a BS in Financial Management.

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