Four reasons why you should consider a career in healthcare
In the face of a global health crisis, opportunities in healthcare are booming on the job market today. Find out four reasons why you should consider a career in healthcare.
Arguably, one of the noblest careers a person can pursue is a profession in healthcare. There are a number of opportunities in the healthcare field, including, but not limited to, medical billing coding, nursing, medical sales, medical writing, physical therapy, openings for general practitioners, and specialized surgical fields.
With all of these career options in mind, most people can find a role that will appeal to their strengths and schedule limitations.
If you’re still debating what career path you should explore, you might want to consider a career in healthcare. After training, medical staffing agencies can help place you in a role where you can go to work every day knowing you’re helping those people in need.
But, aside from helping vulnerable people, why should you get a job in a medical field? Here are four of the primary reasons why you might wish to consider a career in healthcare.
1) Healthcare jobs will always be in high demand
Unfortunately, there will always be people who are injured, facing chronic illness, or dealing with the occasional winter flu. It’s simply a part of life. That means that there will always be a need for healthcare workers – making it a virtually recession-proof industry.
People can limit their food expenses, travel expenses, or other luxuries, but you won’t be able to strike the cost of an ambulance from your budget nor will you be able to skimp on healthcare for your chronic illnesses or unexpected injuries, such as a compound fracture.
As COVID-19 floods emergency rooms and Instacares, we need medical workers on the frontlines more than ever. Despite restaurant closures, school shutdowns, and limited access to air travel, you won’t struggle to find work like the millions of Americans whose employment was threatened by the pandemic.
As a healthcare worker, you won’t have to worry about losing your job unexpectedly and having to claim unemployment.
2) Healthcare jobs are often travel-friendly
Some people are hardwired with a craving for world travel and/or a nomadic lifestyle. Unfortunately, many of us are restricted by work obligations, family obligations, and even our financial pictures.
Luckily, the healthcare industry offers plenty of opportunities to travel. People need healthcare services in every country and corner of the world, which can include some idyllic vacation spots and culturally-rich hubs for tourists.
The reality is you can find opportunities to work in the medical field just about everywhere in the world. You could even relocate to a developing country that is desperately in need of dedicated healthcare professionals.
If you can’t or don’t want to commit to one location, there are also a number of medical careers that will allow you to travel from place to place, such as traveling nurse positions. Traveling nurses will be assigned all over the country or even the world, depending on need.
A pharmaceutical sales representative will travel to hospitals, clinics, and practices all over the country to brand a given medication and scope-out potential buyers.
Medical educators will also be granted the opportunity to travel to different locations to train teams on the latest procedures.
3) Healthcare professionals are compensated well
We all want to do something we love, but ultimately, most of us will work for a paycheck. Luckily, healthcare professionals can make a decent living. To get a better sense of the compensation in-store for an aspiring healthcare worker, here are the average salaries for a small list of careers in healthcare:
- Nursing assistant – $29,580
- Phlebotomist – $35,560
- Medical transcriptionist – $36,350
- Nurse at doctor’s office- $$67,790
- Home health care nurse- $71,850
- Nurse at hospital – $77,730
- Physical therapist – $88,880
- Physician’s assistant – $108,430
- Cardiologist – $423,000
- Plastic surgeon – $501,000
This is just a fraction of the nearly innumerable opportunities available in the industry. Besides a wide realm of career possibilities existing, there is also room to advance in any given healthcare position.
If you aren’t happy with your salary or you want to shift your career focus, you can always go back to school to build your resume and further extend your reach in the job market. In some cases, your employer may even pay for your education.
Remember, compensation isn’t only about pay. It’s also about benefits. Luckily, people in the healthcare industry generally receive a decent benefits package which includes healthcare and a 401k. These healthcare industry benefits not only a greater sense of financial security but can even offer much-needed peace of mind.
4) Healthcare jobs are personally rewarding
It’s important to have a job that builds your self-esteem and leaves you feeling fulfilled at the end of a long and strenuous workday.
Yes, the hours may be exhausting in the healthcare industry, especially if you’re scheduled to work in a 24-hour facility, but for the right employee, with the right attitude, and the right schedule flexibility, each graveyard shift will be worth it.
Along with the financial compensation and benefits packages, you’ll get to help people every single day. Often, healthcare workers report an overwhelming sense of personal satisfaction knowing that you directly serving your community and saving lives on a daily basis.
You’ll also have the privilege of watching people heal, make miraculous recoveries, and defy all odds. Overall, pursuing a career in healthcare can inspire others and set a positive example of hard work, dedication, and serving others for the people in your life.
Could a career in healthcare be right for you?
There are countless chronic illness sufferers and those with terminal diagnoses that will need a supportive healthcare professional to help them conquer their physical ailments and the mental woes that accompany a life-altering condition.
You can be that person through a number of different avenues. You’ll want to study the different job opportunities and possible career paths that are available to learn which position is the best fit for you.
Photo by Luke Jones
