Health Care Careers Other Than Doctor, Nurse, or PA

[JumpyTheFrog]

I wanted to be a doctor as a teen until I read about how brutal residencies are. I decided 100 hour work weeks weren't for me, so I gave up on the idea.

 

All these year later, I am still fascinated by books and podcasts about health. However, considering the state of my own health, I know my body isn't strong enough to survive becoming a doctor. Becoming a PA or nurse would probably also be out. Now I am wondering about other allied health careers that are less intense. One college in my state has an online degree in Health Promotion. The community college has some programs (not sonography, though). A flagship state school about an hour away has many programs, but if I did anything there, it would be in 10-11 years, when I'm done homeschooling.

 

I'm interested in hearing about anyone's experiences in working in any allied health career.

[3 ladybugs]

My mom is a hospital accountant. They are still around. She has a 5 year degree. DH works in medical communications. He has a PhD. Neither ever sees ill people. I am not really sure what you are looking for. 

Edited May 6, 2016 by 3 ladybugs

[Anne in CA]

I was a massage therapist for two years, until I discovered I could make more money waiting tables without the wear and tear on my body that massage took. I would love to be a chiropractor though, I think it's totally useful and worth doing.

[OH_Homeschooler]

I'm like you. I have such an interest in health professions but honestly cannot imagine having any opportunities to go back to school. Some things I've considered are phlebotomist, medical lab technician, medical transcription, and medical coding. 

[vonfirmath]

A friend's daughter is going to school to be a phlebotomist (The person who takes blood).  It can be quite the skillful enterprise!

 

[gardenmom5]

pharmacist - inpatient hospital pharmacy is very different than a strip mall.  dd was overqualified with her undergrad.  (chem  with a minor in  bio.)   the program is four years after meeting pre-reqs - which can be done in as little as two years.  you can also do a residency (not brutal like a mds), that will have you working as a team member on treating patients.  (I spoke with one who is the drug specialist for oncology teams.) 

even during her internship - dd was training nurses.

[SparklyUnicorn]

Maybe medical assisting.  Schooling is much shorter than nursing school.  You get to work with people, but it's not as grueling as many nursing jobs.  Usually the hours are 9 to 5 because they mostly work in doctor's offices.  Plus you have your pick of types of doctors to work for.  So if you like working in OB then you could look for jobs with that, etc.

 

Pay is of course not anywhere near what nurses make, but it's not bad and fair for the amount of schooling required. 

 

 

[historically accurate]

A 2 year program is my thought when I reenter the workforce, probably medical related. 

 

Some I've considered are: phlebotomist, medical lab technician, respiratory therapist, radiology technician. 

[SparklyUnicorn]

Oh and I do actually have experience in the field.  I have a certificate in Medical Assisting.  At the time I needed to make more money than most of the MA jobs I could find so I ended up working in health insurance.  But otherwise, I did like it.  Being away for all these years I really don't have the skills to just jump back into it.  I learned how to do a wide variety of things.  I removed staples form a guy's leg, drew blood (this is not allowed in all states), handled administrative stuff, hooked people up to EKG machines, blood pressures, etc.  Huge huge range of things you get to do.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[umsami]

I was a massage therapist for about 10 years.  It was a lot of wear and tear on my arms, though.    Many massage therapists end up becoming physical therapists or occupational therapists.  There's also audiology, ultrasound tech, radiology tech, etc. 

[prairiewindmomma]

respiratory technician

sonography tech (you can specialize--breast, heart, etc.)

radiology tech

occupational therapy

physical therapy assistant

orthoptist

orthotics & prosthetics (making AFOs, etc.)

lab tech

[Random]

Dietician. 

 

 

[MomtoCandJ]

Pharmacy tech, health information tech

[Katy]

respiratory technician

sonography tech (you can specialize--breast, heart, etc.)

radiology tech

occupational therapy

physical therapy assistant

orthoptist

orthotics & prosthetics (making AFOs, etc.)

lab tech

 

These, plus surgical tech (they sterilize operating equipment & assist in surgeries), dental assistant, and nuclear medical tech (it's like imaging but pays better because of the radiation; you do things like inject radioactive dye before an MRI).  All available through community colleges.

 

After I spent a period on disability, I thought occupational therapy was a fantastic field. They are focused on making day to day life better.  When you're sick, and you're depressed about being sick, having someone confirm it's okay, you really are disabled, and give you tips about feeling better about the situation (like get showered and dressed in something besides yoga pants or pajamas every day, like watching something funny on TV every day, like trying to go for a short walk outside in the morning sunshine, and doing something creative daily and something fun daily) can make a HUGE difference in your quality of life.  Especially when you can feel that doctors are frustrated with you because you're not responding to treatment the way they hoped. You're already disappointed in yourself, feeling the frustration of doctors just makes it worse. But finding someone who helps you deal with what is, to live in the present moment and to make your quality of life better right now?  That is priceless. Seriously, a great occupational therapist greatly reduced my situational depression in one visit. I think in many states that's a community college degree too.

 

Another field is health care management...  Like, either a grad degree in it (the healthcare version of an MBA for hospitals), or depending on the state there are programs for managing nursing homes, I think in some states they are in community colleges, and in others it's a bachelor's degree or a one year grad program.  Those can both lead to six figure jobs, but be careful.  We knew someone who planned on going to Drake University's Healthcare Management graduate program, but in between getting accepted and starting the program they lost the accreditation needed to get a job at VA hospitals the way she planned. I'm sure that was a blessing for her because of all the news about the VA and poor management in recent years, but if you do either of these kind of programs make sure you look into what the field accreditation is and make sure the program has it before you apply.

 

Other things that are somewhat healthcare related and pay really well...  Actuarial Science (4 year math degree, take several licensing exams in college, graduate with a 6 figure job but have to live in a Financial/Insurance Hub City), Informatics (it's a cross between data science and health care analysis, every hospital needs them), Pharmacy (you get a doctorate in drugs, there is always a shortage and you can get a job anywhere), and Computer Science/Security (Every hospital needs someone in charge of keeping the healthcare data secure but easy to access by the proper people).

 

You can also get a nursing degree, do 3-5 years in a hospital, and go on to do something else.  I have a friend who just got a master's in Nurse Education (She plans on teaching at a private college, getting her kids free tuition at any private school in the CIC Tuition Exchange Program).  Another friend is a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, and another is a Nurse Manager at a hospital. I also know people who went on to become specialized nurse educators (mostly in Diabetes programs), and people like me who went on to work for Insurance companies as analysts because it's easier to sort through medical jargon.

 

ETA:  there are also patient advocates in hospitals, and people who investigate issues like medical errors and things like that, but I have never asked those people their background.

 

ETA2: Larger hospitals also employee Industrial Engineers, who design and improve systems to make things more efficient and safer for employees.  If you've ever visited a newer hospital, where everything a nurse needs for your care is stored in the cabinets outside the rooms rather than down the hall, you've seen the work of IE's.

Edited May 6, 2016 by Katy

[sassenach]

Anything in diagnostics (MRI, CT, Ultrasound, X-Ray, Sleep Studies, EEG, EKG)

 

I wouldn't do any nursing position less than an RN. 

[Bluegoat]

There are programs available in health education - people seem to do mostly community work, a lot of teaching, sometimes work in schools.

 

My sister is in health related IT, mostly infomatics.  She says people tend to come into that area from quite a wide variety of backgrounds, not all obviously related.

 

There is administrative work of all kinds, from big hospitals to small offices.

 

There is archive and records management.

[goldberry]

Surgical tech is a two year program that pays pretty well. DD was considering it, we have a friend who works in that field.

[displace]

Speech therapist

Audiologist

Occupational therapist

Physical therapist

Dental technitian

Child life specialist

Ultrasound tech

Medical assistant

Coding

Respiratory tech

Nutritionist/dietician

Pharm tech

 

Length of time training may vary quite a bit!

 

Fwiw, a lot of harder positions (nursing, etc), can be somewhat mitigated by working only in outpatient settings.

[happypamama]

Pharmacy tech

Phlebotomist

 

[Alice]

What about health care interests you? There is a huge range of options but that have very different ways of interacting with patients or not interacting...

 

If you like the idea of hands on skills/procedures..

-phelbotomist, surgical tech, orthopedic tech, medical assistant 

 

If you like the idea of working with patients directly as an educator but not necessarily doing procedures...

-child life specialist, hospital educator/teacher, childbirth educator, lactation consultant, health educator for insurance company 

 

If you like more of the basic science aspect...

lab tech, pharmacy tech

 

If you want to work in health care but not necessarily hands on

medical translator, patient advocate, working with insurance companies, drug rep

[Shellydon]

Physical Therapist

Occupational Therapist

Speech-Language Pathologist

 

All good, in demand careers.  Hard to get into the program, and all require a Master's Degree, but pay well.

[Crimson Wife]

I would see if you can arrange some job shadowing to see which occupations interest you.

 

Auditory-verbal therapy can be done as a speech & language pathologist or an audiologist. I observed some SLP's and audiologists last fall for a class I took and decided that a lot of what audiologists do on a daily basis does not interest me much.