How to Choose a Career in Healthcare | The COVID-19 pandemic gravely affected health systems worldwide. With vaccine supply lagging behind demand, the pandemic exposed the inefficiencies in healthcare. So, how prepared is the world for the next pandemic? How are global leaders ensuring that our health systems become sufficient? These are the questions health stakeholders are faced with today.
Nevertheless, there’s no hiding from the fact that the health industry needs a renewal in methods and innovation. Also, the sector could use new hands and minds. Now more than ever, healthcare has become a ripe spot for young adults seeking to jumpstart their careers. If you’re one of such, these tips can guide you through your decision.
Start with an objective.
The strength of every decision hinges on the commitment to see it through. Having an objective in mind can help you gather the commitment needed for every step of the journey. There may be a lot of thoughts running through your mind all at once. But an objective like ‘to be the best care giver in New York’ might help narrow your scope.
Setting specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, and time-bound (SMART) objectives will provide the clarity needed to determine the required steps towards your goal. In setting these objectives, it might be helpful to think long-term. Becoming a health practitioner requires consistent efforts, years of experience, and sacrifice, which may be hard to realize in the short term.
Be as specific as possible.
With a SMART objective in mind, now you know where to look. Health care is broad; you need to determine which area suits you best. It helps to be specific right from scratch. While an objective is a headway, these questions may help you organize your thoughts further:
- Between consulting and practicing, which one are you more interested in?
- Where would you consider practicing? The United States or less privileged countries?
- Would you consider full-time?
- Private practice or public?
- Who would you consider as ideal mentors? Let’s say you’re considering a psychotherapy career in New York City. A list of therapists in Manhattan might be a good start to finding mentors.
It might be ideal to keep a checklist of essential questions to help you arrive at a clearer picture of your career and how best to achieve it.
Get the right certifications.
Health care training can take several forms, depending on which level of the knowledge ladder you’re on. Between a pre-med student and someone with no medical background, training might differ. However, it is easier than ever for students to start any health care course due to the current popularity of online educational platforms.
That said, for health care professionals, certificates are crucial. The only thing that might convince patients of your training to administer first aid for people of all ages is an online CPR AED certification. As you transition through the levels of your health care career, be sure to claim relevant certificates. Even if it’s an online course, ensure there are provisions for a digital certificate.
Evaluate your knowledge consistently.
With all the tips above, you may very well be on your way to your new career. What next? Managing a career in health care goes beyond sporting a lab coat in your everyday life. As you go through several levels of your career, it’s important to evaluate yourself. Remember the objective you set? Occasionally bring it back and ask yourself how you measure up.
Evaluation is a key recipe for growth. The more you evaluate yourself, the more you find weaknesses and opportunities to help you upgrade. For instance, after a significant run as an occupational therapist, you may consider branching into other areas of interest like mental health counseling. You may keep your original duties as a full-time worker and manage a part-time counselor or consultant role.
Gain the relevant experience for the job.
For every career beginner, experience is vital. Hands-on practice is twice as crucial in the health sector, where lives are always at stake. There are no chances to take, and no one can stomach your excuse for health treatment poorly administered.
Beyond your CPR training and obtaining an AED certificate, volunteering with actual first responders may help you gain a deeper understanding when a fulfilling career. Experience may also be a sure way to becoming an expert in your field.
For career beginners with a good balance between education and experience, getting the job becomes a lot easier.
