4 Little Know Healthcare Careers You May Not Have Thought of

The healthcare field is incredibly vast. As a result, some areas have great demand, but have difficulty attracting top talent. This isn’t because they are not high paying jobs or have bad conditions, but mainly because not enough people know about them. Knowing what these underserved sectors are could give you an edge and allow you to find great positions with little competition and great pay. Let’s take a look at a few lesser-known healthcare careers you could consider.

Diagnostic Medical Sonographer

One of the most promising fields in healthcare right now is medical sonography. But, what is a diagnostic medical sonographer?

Diagnostic medical sonographers are responsible for taking images of the human body so that doctors and other healthcare professionals can make diagnostics. These can be achieved through a sonogram or ultrasound. This is one of the fastest-growing jobs in healthcare with demand increasing by 12% by the year 2029, which is way higher than the national average. You can get a position with an associate’s degree, but you’ll have a greater chance if you get a bachelor’s in medical sonography. 

Nuclear Pharmacist

If you have no idea what a nuclear pharmacist is and what they do, you’re not alone. But in reality, their job is simple. All they do is prepare drugs that have some kind of radioactive component. These are then used in nuclear medicine. While these are often used to treat cancers, they are also used to treat a variety of bone, brain, and heart conditions.

Perfusionists

When people think of open-heart surgery, they usually think about surgeons or maybe anesthesiologists. But you won’t hear many talk about perfusionists. Yet, they play one of the most important roles in the procedure. Perfusionists are responsible for running the ‘heart-lung’ machines that replicate the job of the heart during surgery. These machines are also responsible for performing the lungs’ function.

Becoming a perfusionist requires that you go through a long formation; four years to be exact. But the effort is well worth it if that’s something you’re passionate about and have the disposition needed to play such a crucial role.

Phlebotomist

Phlebotomists also play a very important role in the healthcare industry. These are those who collect blood samples and send them for analysis. This is a very unique job because of how close of a contact you’ll have with patients. 

You will be interacting with people of all ages and walks of life. This is why being compassionate is an important part of the job. You’ll need to have the empathy to put people who might be afraid of getting their blood collected at ease.

This is a good option if you don’t want to spend too much time on your studies. You can find post-secondary programs that will last anywhere from eight weeks to a year, after which you may have to take additional certification depending on your state.

These are all great options if you want a career that’s a little out of the ordinary. If you feel like any of the above could be your calling, we strongly suggest you speak with a career counselor today.

 

Note: This is a collaborative post