Finding Your Health Care Career Niche

When it comes to working in a health care career, most people think about becoming a doctor or nurse. But - thankfully - those jobs are not for everyone. And, thankfully, there is a wide variety of allied health care careers out there from which to choose.

Concorde offers many of these allied health care careers, along with several in ancillary services. In fact, Concorde offers more than 20 healthcare career programs. So many, in fact, that it can be difficult to decide which is best for you.

We thought we'd break it down a bit for you, as a sort of guide to finding your health care career niche. The website GapMedics.com recently published a blog where it broke down allied health careers to three basic categories - therapists, technicians, and aides. Here is what that blog had to say about each. Perhaps it will help separate a health care career from the pack and help you decide what's best for you.

Healthcare career - therapists 

Several different types of allied health care careers involve providing therapy to improve a patient's level of functioning. A physical therapist assistant works with physical therapists in helping patients increase range of motion, improve balance and decrease pain.

A respiratory therapist provides therapy to patients who have various conditions which interfere with their ability to breathe adequately.

An occupational therapy assistant works with occupational therapists to help patients perform basic life functions.

Depending on which type of therapy job you are interested in, educational programs vary in duration. At Concorde, physical therapist assistant and occupational therapy assistant programs can be completed in as few as 20 months. For respiratory therapy, it's 17 months.

Healthcare career - technicians

There also are various types of specialist technicians that play important roles in health care.

A radiologic tech uses x-ray imaging to help doctors make accurate diagnoses.

A surgical tech prepares both patients and operating rooms for surgery. They might also assist the doctor by handing instruments during procedures.

Healthcare career - aides

While physical therapist assistant and occupational therapy assistant also can be considered aides, there are other such roles that assist doctors, dentists, and nurses in their roles, such as a medical assistant and dental assistant. These aides have a chance to care for patients and make a difference. And, an advantage is that it takes less time to complete the required education.

While this is just a brief look at all the various allied health care careers available, perhaps there's a career mentioned here that catches your eye. You can always learn more about these careers and all the others Concorde has to offer.