Healthcare services are essential to society, and without access to medicine, treatments, and general advice and guidance on healthy living, a lot of people would be a lot worse off. This is why it is important to get more people interested in healthcare careers, as there is always a demand for reliable, smart, and passionate individuals to help keep this industry going.
While there are a lot of incredible career opportunities within the healthcare sector to explore, if you are someone who prefers to work directly with people in a caring role, then you might be more interested in patient-facing jobs rather than a career working in the laboratory. If so, below are some examples of these types of roles that you might want to consider.
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Doctor
Of course, the first role that comes to mind when you are thinking about patient-facing roles in healthcare is working as a doctor. This can be a very exciting career path to choose, and one that can certainly offer you stability and the chance to earn a great salary. Doctors can also work in various environments, whether that be a more fast-paced setting like a hospital or choosing to work as a GP in a smaller healthcare clinic. You could also work overseas for charities, or work as a doctor in the military, as a few examples.
Being a doctor can be quite a desirable position, but it doesn’t come without its pressures and can be a stressful career at times. It will take an individual who can work under pressure well and can adapt to changing situations easily. You’ll also need to be dedicated to years of study at medical school to become a qualified doctor, so this is something to consider before starting your career path in medicine.
Nurses
Nurses are other essential members of the healthcare team, and this is another role that you might think about immediately when you discuss this type of work. Often referred to as the unsung heroes of healthcare, nurses work hard every day to support patients, doctors, and other healthcare staff members to make sure that the best quality of care is delivered. They work tirelessly in their positions, and they can make all the difference as part of the team.
Nursing can be a wonderful profession to choose as it is very rewarding, but it will also challenge you, which is fantastic for someone who is looking for personal and professional growth opportunities. There are also a lot of different career paths for nurses, which can make things more interesting for you later in your career. You can choose to specialize in a certain area of medicine, get involved in research, education, and much more. If you are interested in nursing you will need to get your degree before you can sit the exam to get your license as an RN – look at these online accelerated BSN programs for more information on how you can get your degree sooner than a traditional degree program would allow.
Occupational Therapy
If you aren’t sure if working as a doctor or nurse is the right role for you, but you still want to work closely with patients, then why not consider occupational therapy? The purpose of an occupational therapist is to support patients who have a variety of issues and need help to recover from things like accidents, strokes, mental health difficulties, and who need emotional support, too. You will help patients regain their strength through several physical exercises, and check to see if they can return home safely or assess if they need more support.
In this role, you can either visit patients in their homes for ongoing support, or work in a hospital ward, or another healthcare clinic. It can be the perfect role for an individual who still wants to work with patients every day, and be challenged, but wants something a bit different from the previous two roles listed.
Psychologist
If you are more interested in mental health, then working as a psychologist might be a position that has already crossed your mind. Therapy can be a very important part of helping those suffering from mental health problems work through their issues and perhaps even overcome them, depending on the circumstances. In this role, you will sit with patients and assess their needs based on your conversations. You can provide them advice and guidance on what mental exercises they can use to help work through their issues, as well as provide a safe space for them to talk openly about what has been bothering them and help them to learn how to navigate these thoughts and make sense of them. It can be a very interesting career and a lot of psychologists practice independently, too.
You could also take your career to different areas, working in schools, colleges, prisons, nursing homes, and rehabilitation centers as just a few examples of the working environments you can choose from.
Midwife
Pregnancy and giving birth are unique experiences, and while bringing a new life into the world is amazing, it can also be a challenging time for new mothers and their partners. If you are interested in supporting people through this time in their life to help ease their concerns and help them have a more positive experience during pregnancy and as new parents, then working as a midwife could be a great role for you. Your responsibilities will be advising new parents on childcare, discussing options for when they go into labor, being there to support them during the birth, assessing their needs, coming up with care plans for them and the child, and carrying out screening tests.
If you think you would thrive in a role that helps new mothers and parents through what can be a challenging period in their lives, this could be the career path for you.
Paramedics
Working as a paramedic is a very challenging job, and you are often the first people on the scene when there is an accident or incident that requires medical professionals to attend. It isn’t a job for the faint-hearted, and some scenarios that you come across in the role are likely to be very distressing. It is important to make sure that you practice good self-care as a paramedic and consider your mental health in this position. However, for all the challenges this role can throw at you, it can also be a very rewarding career. If you like working in high-pressure, fast-paced roles, then becoming a paramedic could be ideal for you. You will also have the opportunity to save lives and support those who are going through perhaps the scariest moments they have ever experienced.
Patient Advocate
This role is closer to working in social care in a lot of ways, but you will still be directly involved with the healthcare sector. In this position, you will be responsible for supporting individuals who need access to certain healthcare services but might struggle to organize this themselves. You can also provide educational information to the patient and advice to help them get the best care they can. You will liaise with the patient and their healthcare team to make sure everyone is on the same page and that this care is given properly and safely. This can be an interesting role for those who would like to work with patients, but not necessarily in a traditional clinical way.
Physiotherapy
If you are interested in how the body works in terms of skeletal structure and muscles, then working in physiotherapy could be an interesting career choice for you. In this role, you will be there to support patients who might have been injured or their muscles weakened through illness or other medical issues. You can help them to improve their posture and strengthen their muscles, which can help to reduce the pain that they might be experiencing. These exercises can also help them to regain mobility in some cases, allowing them to become more independent. It is an important job and can make a big difference in the lives of patients, and you can work as a physiotherapist privately, in hospitals and healthcare clinics, nursing homes, and other environments.
Working in the healthcare sector can be a very exciting career choice, and it’s certainly one that you can be proud of. Being a part of an industry that works to improve the lives of citizens of the world is a truly amazing thing, and there are so many opportunities within healthcare that finding a career path that speaks to you is certainly possible. If you are someone who would like to work directly with patients, however, and has a compassionate disposition as well as being interested in a challenging role, consider the options listed above. Although there are a lot of other patient-facing roles you can pick, these are all great examples of the different types of careers you can choose.
